Welcome to China! This is a somewhat short guide on what to expect for your first visit. This comes from my own experience after being here for about 3 years.

1. Prepping before you get here

Before taking off, make sure your paperwork is solid. passports, visas, admission letters, insurance, college/work stuff, certificates… everything should be in order, because China isn’t shy about checking these things.

Bring a printed copy of everything for immigration if they ask. Although immigration is usually smooth, they hardly ask any questions.

Unless you speak Chinese, keep a translator handy!

VPN - get one before coming

expect any non-chinese apps to be blocked. google, youtube, telegram, whatsapp, chatgpt, instagram… as a foreigner, having a vpn is a MUST. set it up in your devices before traveling.

if you’re not aware, China is known for banning online content, mostly from other countries. a VPN is basically a tool that lets you bypass the ban. most foreigners NEED a VPN for daily stuff such as talking with our families back at home, managing home bank accounts, and other stuff like youtube, discord, netflix…

Unfortunately I do not have a good suggestion for this. If you know some technical stuff, I would encourage you to just set up a personal server. But if you’re looking for an install-and-use kind of app, you might want to ask around. Maybe you can look at this reddit post. just dont get nord or express, they wont work.

Get this BEFORE you come here! Otherwise it is very annoying to set up later.

Apps you NEED

WeChat 微信: used for EVERYTHING. messaging, payments, social media, even booking taxis. get it and set it up before you land.
Alipay 支付宝: payment app, everything about money. paying bills, ordering food, bus/metro QRs, booking hotels, yada yada. bind your foreign bank card before flying, saves lots of headache.
Amap 高德地图: chinese map. dont use google maps, it is not accurate here. two popular map apps are amap and baidu maps: (iOS) - (android). if you have apple, you can also use apple maps.
Translator app: i suggest deepL. other translators should be fine too, as long as you have wifi or data. if you’re studying chinese or staying for more than a few weeks, pleco (dictionary) is your best friend. (iOS) - (android)

everything here is done and paid in phone, expect no cash. so setting up wechat微信 and alipay支付宝 is crucial. get both.

bringing cash is not that necessary. maybe bring RMB 500 for an emergency, like if your phone doesnt work and you’re stuck at the airport.

E-SIM

if you can get an ESIM before coming, go for it. ive never got one though, maybe read through this reddit post. However, note all Esims would be non-mainland carriers, as Esims I think are banned inside China. This also means, if you use Esim then you do not need a VPN as the connection is routing outside.

2. Expectations when you land

China is an experience. be ready for some culture shock, because the pace and style of life here can be way different from what you’re used to. a few things to keep in mind:

On-Arrival Declaration

When you land, you are required to fill out a questionnaire. From the moment you deboard, you will notice QRs everywhere down the path. Connect to the airport Wifi and fill it out, it is required before you even start queuing up for the immigration line. Do not worry, it is available in English.

When you finish filling up the questionnaire, it shows you a QR code of your own. This is your confirmation, take a screenshot and show it to the guard so they let you queue up. The immigration line is usually quick (just like everything in China), expect 20-30 min at most.

Police registration

If you stay in a hotel, they will always ask for your passport. They do this to register your stay with the local police station. Don’t worry, this is common practice, and it is legally required to do so.

Unless staying at a hotel, you have to go to your local police office and register within the first 2-3 days you land.

take your passport, accommodation registration, and admission notice from university (or work papers).

you need a local phone number to register. if you dont have one, write down your university’s or office number (or a chinese friend if you have).

do NOT go to a random police station, there is one specific to the address you’re staying in (ask the landlord/front desk).

you can do this online, but i strongly recommend going physically to avoid surprises, specially if it’s your first time.

public transportation

public transport is great in most cities, and taxis are everywhere. if you need a taxi from the airport, get Didi滴滴出行. uber does not exist here.

however, expect your taxi to smell like cigarrette…

do NOT expect public wifi

the only places that might have wifi consistently are starbucks星巴克, mcdonalds麦当劳, airports (sometimes), and your university campus. getting a phone number with a decent amount of data is key. i use over 100 GB monthly, at roughly 9 USD.

Medical check-up

if you’re an X1 student (studying for more than 6 months), you have to take a medical check-up locally. this is usually arranged by your university on the first week. make sure to write down the details, take your passport with you, and expect fasting.

language

you’re probably not fluent in chinese (or maybe you are, flex). but you’re gonna be in situations where even basic chinese will be super helpful. dont expect people to know english. get familiar with some phrases. try HelloChinese. i dont like duolingo for chinese.

if you’re into learning chinese, pleco (dictionary) is your best friend. (iOS) - (android)

“this app is not available in your region”

if using iphone, create a new apple id and set its country to china. i suggest making a new, separate account from your main one.

if using android or other, check this reddit post (google is banned, so not many chinese apps on google store). i’d suggest asking a local if this is your case.

3. Money matters

currency

the currency is the yuan: ¥ - CNY - RMB - 元 - 人民币… prices are cheap unless youre in beijing or shanghai. i check currency rates here.

paying by phone

no cash, no physical cards, no apple pay: only wechat/alipay, make sure you have them downloaded and a card binded.

And yes, you can add foreigner cards to Wechat and Alipay. Although they usually charge a 3% transfer fee for anything higher than 200 yuan I think.

withdrawing money

you might have some trouble with international cards. not all foreign cards work everywhere. in my experience, ICBC and HSBC ATMs are reliable.

if you’re staying for a couple months, get a local bank account after getting a phone number. i have ICBC, it works ok.

living costs

Expect some variation. smaller cities are pretty cheap, but in places like beijing or shanghai, costs can skyrocket. on average, rent might run you anywhere from ¥2000 to ¥8000/month, depending on where you are and if your university provides housing. i pay ¥2300 per month in suzhou苏州, as of 2026. This is in a full apartment by myself.

food is cheap, specially street food, but western stuff can burn a hole in your wallet if youre not careful.

average chinese meal: ¥20 - 40 (this includes deliveries)
nice meal in a shopping mall: ¥60 - 80
western style: ¥80+

of course, it depends on how picky you are about food. meals with friends are usually cheaper. i get away with about ¥5000 a month, including rent, food and transportation.

sim cards

get a local sim card for your phone as soon as you arrive. phone numbers are VERY important here. They are used for everything, like creating an account on any platform, opening a bank account, ordering taxis, etc.

The major carriers (china mobile 中国移动, china unicom 中国联通) all offer student-friendly deals, and they’ll hook you up with a number and data plan. talk with your university about this. mine has some sort of local agreement and they give me a ¥60 plan with 100 GB of data per month. pretty good if you ask me.

taobao 淘宝

you may have heard that packages and deliveries here are super cheap. yes, it’s true. get taobao淘宝.

Of course, taobao also has competitors. I suggest the following:

Jingdong 京东 for anything where quality is important, like appliances or electronics
Pinduoduo 拼多多 for anything super cheap. I find shirts at ¥20 - 30. Also any small silly things like gifts can be found here.
Taobao 淘宝 for any custom-made products (定制) or anything else, really. (you can order custom items, like mousepads or decorations based on a picture of your choice).

if you live in dorms, your packages may arrive to a cainiao station菜鸟驿站 instead of your door, so ask your reception and download the app if so.

4. getting around

expect metro in all major cities. expect bullet trains to everywhere in the country. expect cheap taxis and buses. china’s public transportation is S tier.

from the airport to your place

if new to china, set up didi and get a taxi. or you can also go to the designated taxi area and pick one (more expensive than didi).

if coming for studies or work, talk with your university/office, they usually help booking a pickup, sometimes they pick you up themselves.

if you speak chinese, you could take the city metro 地铁, or train 高铁 if going between cities (ex, arriving to beijing北京 but going to tianjin天津).

public transport: metro & bus

metros and buses are everywhere, and they’re dirt cheap: ¥2–¥5 per ride (less than a dollar). you can set it up on Alipay 支付宝: in main menu, press the “transport” button, open the card, and use a QR code. or, you can get a physical transport card and reload it as needed.

didi 滴滴

china’s version of uber, but better and cheaper. download it here. you’ll need to link a payment method (like wechat or alipay) to your account, and you can get rides from basically anywhere. if you’re stuck late at night, having drinks, or just feeling lazy, this is your go-to option.

Note, the driver does not take cash! Make sure you pay through the app.

if you can read chinese, you can do fancier stuff like setting up taxis from Amap 高德地图 too.

bullet trains 高铁 and flights

the official platform for trains is 12306 (english available). you can also use trip (foreign version) or ctrip携程旅行 (local version).

you NEED your passport when taking trains, just like flights.

for nearby cities, a one-way bullet train ticket goes for ¥50-100. make sure to use them when visiting nearby cities (say, shanghai上海 > suzhou苏州 > hangzhou杭州). for longer distances (5h +), you may wanna compare with flights.

i buy national flights in ctrip携程旅行. if you need english, you may use trip.

driving

don’t expect to drive a car here, you’ll need a local license驾照 regardless of your nationality. converting an overseas license into a local one is usually not straightforward, read more here.

however, you’ll notice the massive amount of bikes (and e-bikes) around the street. for the yellow ones, you can rent them with meituan美团. the blue ones are from Alipay 支付宝. ask your university/office for more info.

e-bikes

some foreign students buy e-bikes like the chinese. you can buy one and use it (ive heard it starts from ¥3000), you dont need a license as of 2026. but keep in mind most are illegal (their legal speed limit is 25 km/h, but stores mod them to increase the cap and show 25).

if you get into an accident while driving an illegal e-bike, your insurance may not cover you. make sure to know your stuff if you’re buying an e-bike.

a safer choice is renting, just like the normal bikes. so there are both standard bikes and e-bikes you can rent via meituan美团 and Alipay 支付宝.

also note, it is technically illegal to carry any passengers (so only one person per ebike). But as you can imagine, this is only a problem if you do get into an accident. Just drive safe.

Hotels

When you stay at a hotel, remember to bring your passport. They need it to register with the police station, which is a legal requirement.

Hotels are usually super cheap, just like everything in China. The average price for any city is 300-400 yuan, but you can find cheap ones all the way down to 100 yuan.

Also, there are some hotels that are not certified to host foreigners. This might only be a problem if you venture into a city far from shanghai or beijing, or if you booked some sketchy hotel far far away. For foreign hotel brands like marriott/hilton/hyatt/etc, you can probably ignore this. But for Chinese hotels make sure you ask!

If you can, I do recommend trying a fancy hotel here. It is always cheaper than abroad, and the service and food is excellent. For cheaper options, try a fancy hotel anywhere that’s not Beijing or Shanghai, as those can go up to thousands of dollars. But in other cities like Chongqing, Chengdu, Xi’an, you can easily find a hotel around $200 dollars that would usually cost you $500 abroad.

5. Food & dining

China has some of the best food in the world, but it can also be a bit… different. don’t freak out though. here are some basics:

Restaurants

Don’t expect a menu in english, or a physical menu at all. Look for the QR codes that say “扫码点菜” or “扫码点单” (sometimes they’re in the tables). get the translate feature in wechat/alipay for help with menus. or just play laowai (foreigner), point at stuff and hope for the best. if you can read some chinese and wanna search for restaurants, use 大众点评.

If you have allergies or special diet requierements (vegan), BEWARE! China does NOT accommodate for these easily! Be extremely careful with the restaurant you pick, write down your dietary restrictions in chinese and carry them with you.

Street food

this is where it’s at. dumplings (baozi包子、jiaozi饺子、xiaolongbao小笼包), skewers (chuan串), hotpot (huoguo火锅). if you’re adventurous, get your hands dirty and try it all. Of course, take it slowly, it may take some time to adapt to it.

golden rule: if crowded, the food’s good. if not, better look somewhere else.

Delivery

meituan美团 and taobao淘宝闪购 deliver to your door. depending where you order, they may deliver to some lockers (外卖柜), so keep an eye on where they are.

when ordering, you may notice they call you when they arrive. if you dont speak chinese, you may just ignore it. if they call twice, the driver might have gotten lost, or they might have ran out of something you ordered. look for a chinese person to help you answer if so. If you do not want to receive calls, you can go to the “Notes 备注” and write this:

To just leave it in your apartment door: 对骑手：无需致电、放单元门口即可，谢谢！
To leave it in a delivery locker: 对骑手：无需致电、放快递柜即可，谢谢！

Spicy food

in chinese, “辣” (là) means spicy. write this word down. chinese food can vary a lot, but spicy food is relatively common.

if you’re not used to spicy food (for example, you’re italian), beware - the “small spicy 微辣” options can be much stronger than expected. sichuan food 川菜 is known for being spicy. i wouldnt suggest it as your first dish.

also, you might notice something is sold as non-spicy, yet it feels spicy. yes, it happened to me too. Carry some water, and be prepared if you order from a Chinese place.

Coffee, Tea, Drinks

China’s a golden mine for coffee and tea lovers. expect ¥15 (2 USD) in average per cup, both for coffee and tea. alcohol in bars may start around ¥30, although i dont drink so im not sure.

for coffee, look for Luckin瑞幸咖啡, Manner, Algebraist… china’s full of caffeine addicts, so choices are plenty. starbucks still charges ¥40 a cup (same US prices), so id avoid it.

for tea, look for HeyTea喜茶, ChaPanda茶百道, A Little Tea一点点… but honestly just try it all. china’s full of tea, so look for one that you like.

note: in China, red beans are mainly used in sweet food. you may stumble upon them in a drink or ice cream. i personally dont like it, so be aware if your tea or ice cream says 红豆.

6. cultural quirks

Personal space

when commuting, personal space wont exist. you’re going to be jostled on the metro, people will get uncomfortably close in line, and don’t even get me started on the elevator situation.

Queueing

For whatever reason, Chinese people queue up like a sport. If you go to anywhere like a themed park, train station, airport, or restaurant, don’t be surprised if you see hundreds of people lining up for no apparent reason. Don’t worry though, they actually like it. I think.

Loudness

chinese ppl aren’t shy about making noise. don’t be surprised if your neighbors are arguing in the hallway or if someones blasting douyin抖音 in the bus. But the worst place is probably just any street. Ebikes honk all the time, cars honk all the time, they will even honk at the air. Also train stations are VERY loud. There are always announcements going on, and in the platform there are some super loud alarm rings when they’re closing the train doors. it’s just how it is.

if you are easily scared like me, consider buying noise-cancelling headsets. They’re a godsend. If you want functional headphones to play music on, buy 隔音耳机. If you only want the earmuffs, buy 隔音耳罩.

Scams

if some random chinese gets a bit too friendly and “invites you” to a tea or coffee at a non branded store, its 100% a scam. ive never experienced it, but ive heard stories of people paying ¥500 for a cup of tea (only in shanghai xd). keep in mind, dating apps are full of scammers. if you’re worried about scammers, read this, although dont worry too much about it. maybe keep some distance and you’ll be fine.

Safety

despite the amount of people, china’s one of the safest countries out there. just dont do stupid stuff, avoid chinese politics, and you’ll be fine. ive walked in many random places at 3 am, not a single concern.

Smoking

if you’re sentitive to cigarrettes like me, sorry to tell you, you’ll have a bad time with this: smokers, smokers everywhere.

most public bathrooms, KTVs, and taxis smell like cigarrete. if you take trains between cities, do NOT take the old style train (the suspiciously cheap ones), people smoke on those.

before covid, people smoked more on private places like restaurants. sometimes, it still happens, but it’s slowly improving.

7. what’s next?

once you’ve survived the first few weeks, you’ll start getting the hang of things. make local friends, improve your chinese, and enjoy the ride. make sure to keep an eye on important dates (flights, legal stuff) and your legal papers like visas and residence permits.

China’s an experience - overwhelming at first, but you’ll learn to love it. hopefully. most of us do.

if youre coming soon and freaking out a bit or have a specific question, you may drop a message on my telegram. say you come from this website.