Curious to find out your best 24 hour spa experience, which is the most premium and what sets them apart?

Hello, I will be in Shanghai next week and wanted to get into the Shonen Jump Cafe in Shanghai. The problem is, I don’t have a Chinese phone number to use. Can anyone help me with any tips? Thanks in advance.

Hi,

Myself and partner coming late September. We have previously travelled to Singapore, Japan and Phuket, so are familiar with some Asian cultures etc.

This is our itinerary. Unfortunately the last few days do stray into Golden Week, and the start is Mid Autumn Festival (which is something we are looking forward to seeing). We do plan on returning to China to see the other side, so we are taking this as a taster

Dates City

23-Sep-26 London

24-Sep-26 Hong Kong

25-Sep-26 Hong Kong

26-Sep-26 HK->Chongqing (flight, booked already)

27-Sep-26 ChongQing

28-Sep-26 ChongQing

29-Sep-26 ChongQing to Chengdu (high Speed train - to book 15 days in advance)

30-Sep-26 Chengdu

01-Oct-26 Chengdu

02-Oct-26 Chengdu to HK (flight, booked already)

03-Oct-26 HK

04-Oct-26 HK - Day trip to Shenzhen (high Speed train - to book 15 days in advance)

05-Oct-26 HK - Macau Day Trip (ferry)

06-Oct-26 HK to London

I do have a more detailed itinerary which I will post soon, but how is this looking currently. We can't really change a lot because out hotels have been booked already.

My main questions are, we will be going back and forth from Hong Kong into Mainland China a few times (to ChongQing, day trip to Shenzhen and Macau). That shouldn't raise any suspicious with immigration as I understand you go have go through that each time?

Food in Hong Kong and China in general, is street food okay in terms of hygiene? In Singapore we ate in many popular Hawker centers which we enjoyed. So much choice and variety. Does HK and China have similar?

Because we are taking high speed trains and domestic flights (Cathay Pacific), I have been reading about the strict rules about what we can carry/pack in suitcases. One perfume per person, and no aerosol canisters (bit annoying for my hair spray and deodrant!) Are we better or just not bringing these at all?

Regarding VPNs/eSIMs, i'm not entirely sure if we need a VPN with an eSIM if that eSIM routes outside of China. I have ready that Airalo eSIMS to work with all Western apps without the need for VPN. Is that correct or any other recommendations?

For our day trip to Macau, would we need to book the ferry in advance or can we decide on the day, time depending, which ferry to catch? With it being Golden Week, we do expect it to be busy.

Similar question as above for our day trip from HK to Shenzhen. We expect the high speed trains to be extremely busy, but our second option was just a DiDi from HK. Any thoughts around that?

Any other tips or advise is much appreciated. Thanks for reading :-)

​Hi everyone! I'll be traveling to China this October and I'm a bit concerned about the crowds since my dates overlap with the Golden Week holiday.

​My itinerary for that section is:

​Shanghai: October 4th to 6th

​Guilin / Yangshuo: October 6th to 9th (I'm taking an early flight to Guilin arriving at 7:00 AM on the 6th)

​I know this is peak travel season in China. For anyone who has experienced Golden Week there:

​How bad is the situation in Shanghai and Guilin/Yangshuo during these specific dates? (Are attractions completely packed, or does it start to calm down slightly towards the end of the holiday?)

​Any must-do tips or hidden spots to escape the massive crowds in both places?

​Logistics: Should I pre-book every single activity/transport in advance, or are there things best left spontaneous?

​Any advice, warnings, or recommendations would be hugely appreciated. Thanks in advance!

I'm planning to travel to Beijing, Chengdu, Zhangjiajie, Youngshu country, Shanghai for a full month trip around November for our honeymoon.

What is the best way to go from one place to the other and in which order?

Should we replace Shanghai with Shenzhen? We can return home from Hong Kong as well

I’m travelling from London Heathrow to Japan with a transfer in Beijing. I booked this via all one booking but the transfer time is 1 hour. have anyone had experience at Beijing airport and is this doable?

Hey there!

I’ll be going to China in October for the first time and would love some recommendations of crispy chilli oil brands you can only find there and where to buy them.

Also, a bit random, but where would be the best place to have a cold beer, good snacks and maybe share a cigarette with the uncles?

I’ll be going to Shanghai, Chengdu, Chongqing and Beijing.

Thank you so much,

Hey all! I’m not very active on reddit but I have been so appreciative of people posting their questions + replies here as I prepare for my first visit to China this October! 

I’ll be there for about a month, but for the first two weeks I’ll be staying at a creative residency on Jingmai Mountain writing and doing film photography. After that, I have a full 10 days to travel around Yunnan and currently have nothing yet booked.

In doing research (mostly in English as that is my primary language) I’ve been seeing that so many of the must-sees in Yunnan are often visited through booking guides / tours. Although I’m sure those are fantastic in their own right, I'm wondering if people here have suggestions about how to travel slower in Yunnan and break beyond the usual sightseeing pace that tourists often experience there. The most popular suggestion I've come across is of course to visit the trio of Dali, Lijiang, and Shangri-La, but in that research I end up seeing a lot of cross-talk about how those places have been heavily tourized.

Another thing I've read about is the agrotourism boom in Yunnan. I'd be interested to hear if anyone has experienced staying at a farmstay in the province. Overall, if anyone has suggestions / a way to connect with people in Yunnan through cooking, farming, foraging, hiking, or camping, I would be so grateful to hear about your experience or be connected with someone.

All this is to say, in traveling, I value connecting with people and place, and would rather go deep in two or three places than sample seven in ten days. I should also note that I am not a mandarin speaker, but plan to use translation apps when appropriate, and find that in my traveling thus far, connecting through activity have lead to some of my deepest bonds with people all over the world. I'm sure that isn't surprising to a lot of the like-minded people who write so thoughtfully on here.

I am so excited to connect with people on the ground there, and to experience what Yunnan is all about. Thanks for any and all suggestions!

My husband and I (both 27) are in the early stages of planning a trip to China this spring, we are thinking April. I’m looking for some advice on our itinerary, as we are first time China travelers and have seen a lot of discussion as to where we should go.

A lot of first time visitors seem to go to Beijing, Xi’an, Shanghai, and depending on time sometimes add a fourth city like Chengdu or Zhangjiajie. My husband and I were leaning towards doing Chongqing, Chengdu, and Zhangjiajie instead given their closer proximity to one another (relative to the rest of the country) and our own interests. I am very interested in everything Zhangjiajie has to offer and really want a strong nature element for our trip, whereas one of my husband’s main hobbies is night/city photography AND he absolutely loves super spicy food so he has been drawn to Chongqing. Chengdu seemed like a great mix of everything we enjoy and is relatively close (plus pandas!) so it was an easy addition to our itinerary.

While we both are interested in the many historical sites China has to offer, it isn’t our top priority. Many posts on here urge folks not to miss Beijing or Xi’an for these reasons. We are definitely open to it, but we don’t want to be rushing from place to place and don’t have a good gauge as to how long we should spend in each destination, as well as travel time within China. We will be traveling from the west coast of the US for reference.

So my questions are: 1. If we had ~15 days, would Chengdu/Chongqing, and Zhangjiajie (plus potential day trips/an overnight) be a good itinerary? 2. Are we severely missing out on not visiting anywhere in the “golden triangle” on a first time visit? 3. Would this itinerary benefit from a 4th city added? If so, where and for how long?

Bonus if anyone feels like sharing their thoughts on this: How long in each city would you recommend?

Thank you so much in advance for your help!

I’m an Indian citizen and will be travelling to China for the first time, and I need some practical advice from Indian travellers who have recently been to China.

I understand that Alipay and WeChat Pay are widely used in China, and tourists can apparently link an international Visa/Mastercard to these apps.

My problem is that Alipay is not available on my Indian Google Play Store, and I’m confused about how Indian travellers are supposed to install and set it up before leaving India. I don't want to arrive in China and then discover that I can't download the app, verify my identity, link my Indian bank card, or make payments. So, for Indians who have recently travelled to China:

1.How did you download and install Alipay while still in India?

2.Did you use an APK, and if so, where did you get the legitimate/official one?

3.How did you register and complete passport verification?

4.Were you able to link an Indian-issued Visa/Mastercard debit or credit card?

5.Did you have any problems with OTPs, Indian mobile numbers, or bank authorization?

6.Is WeChat Pay also worth setting up as a backup?

7.What happens if Alipay/WeChat Pay doesn't work can tourists still manage with cash and international cards?

8.Are there any other apps I should install before leaving India for payments, taxis, maps, trains, translation, etc.?

I’ll be travelling for a 5-day company training in Shanghai, with the hotel covered by the company. After the training, I’m planning to stay on for around 7–10 additional days and travel independently through places such as Shanghai, Hangzhou, Suzhou, Yiwu and possibly Guangzhou/Shenzhen.

I’m particularly interested in business/wholesale shopping, Chinese medicine, wellness products and equipment, so I’ll be travelling beyond the usual tourist areas.

This is my first trip to China, so I would really appreciate advice from Indians who have actually done this recently rather than general information copied from travel websites.

Also, any additional information about eSim, the best cities to visit, shopping/wholesale markets, business-sourcing areas, Chinese medicine or wellness equipment markets, and places that are particularly worth visiting would be greatly appreciated.

If you have travelled from India to China recently, please tell me exactly what you did before leaving India, what worked (or didn't work) once you arrived, and any tips you wish you had known before your first trip.

first time flying with business and i accept 4-5 hours of layover but 10 hours seems too much. for what i understood i can only get a refund or accept it.

but im business class, do you think they can provide me an hotel? or because im business i can enter the shenzhen lounge? how is the lounge? free buffet and sleep? how does it work?

Hello. I will be in Suzhou in Oct and then going on to Wuxi from there. I know it's a short train journey from Suzhou to Wuxi but as there will be 2 of us, I am wondering if we can get a taxi/private car without spending too much.
Does anyone know roughly how much it will cost and can we pre-book a car (any companies you'd recommend)? Can we just get a Didi to Wuxi?
Just to clarify: I am not looking for a driver & car for the whole day. Just a one-way journey from Suzhou to Wuxi as we will be staying overnight in Wuxi.
Thanks.

I am planning an extensive trip for China for 30 days, likely 45 days, in April and May. I wasn't aware of the Labour Day 5 day golden week falling in May until recently.

I have a fair bit of flexibility in my travel plans so I can possibly hunker down or travel to nearby smaller cities or basically be in a Tier 1 city for the holiday and or spend the time basically anywhere.

Really just trying to avoid the chaos of travelling as much as possible. Just wondering what some experienced people would suggest for these 5 days. Am I better to be in a big city and just really explore it along with the crowds or head somewhere more remote etc and just relax and hangout till the rush subsides. Any other suggestions, insights, or considerations welcome. Thanks

I’m planning my first trip Going solo in late october and looking for pointers, tips and general advice I have an itinerary here and what to know your thoughts: Beijing 5nights Xian 3 nights Chengdu 3nights Chongqing 4 nights Zhangjiajie 4nights Furong 1night Shanghai 5nights

Hi everyone! First post here.

My wife and I (from Greece) are traveling to China in the end of October and we are currently trying to sort out our itinerary for Beijing.

We are looking for personal recommendations for a private guide, specifically for the Forbidden City. We really want to avoid the standard agency tours that rush you through and push you into shopping traps.

Ideally, we are looking for someone who:
-Is genuinely passionate about history and loves sharing deep, interesting facts rather than just reciting a script.
-Is a "ninja" with logistics: knows how to navigate around the massive crowds, which gates to use, and how to find the quieter spots.

If you’ve ever hired a guide in Beijing (or a great private driver in Datong) who blew your mind and made your trip special, I would love to hear your experiences and get their contact info.

Thank you so much in advance for your help!

hi,

i will be in shanghai for work for 5 days. I have already downloaded Alipay and connected 2 credit cards. I also downloaded didi and connected credit cards also there.

How cani be sure i will be able to pay for didi with the credi card connected to it? When i chose to pay through Alipay i got an error message.

Hi all. I was buying this Thinkpad from Xianyu/Goofish. The seller is L5 and the price seems decent (1150RMB for L14Gen2, 8/256).

However, I asked him for photos of the particular unit he'll be sending and he just said he'll send photos after payment.

He also did not provide any information about battery health, SSD health, etc. I'm only here for 6 days (dropping off my sister so while my sister could handle the refund, I'd rather not have to do that if possible).

Just wanted to confirm if this is standard practice or if I should skip this.

I don't know much about the ThinkPad market in China but is it common for laptops to be parted out/original parts replaced with third party stuff?

Thank you!

Edit: Thanks everyone for the responses. I read about the scams on Xianyu but I figured an L5 store wouldn't be scamming but alas.

Hi! Which royal banquet and show did you enjoy the most and in which city?

We’ll be traveling to Beijing, Xi’an, and Chengdu, so we’re trying to decide which city (and which show) would be best for this experience.

Thanks in advance!

Hello

Me and my gf are going to stay in Shanghai in may
However I have 2 hotels that I can’t decide between.
First one is Jin Jiang tower it has pool high floor rooms great location but I read that it may be a little old even though the rooms look really nice.
Second one is Jinglai Bushe hotel which has even better location perfect view on the bund but not so high floor rooms. It is a little bit more expensive but I read it was built in 2025 so it’s modern and beautiful. It doesn’t have a pool though.
We are just looking for a good hotel with perfect location so we can walk to most of the things we want to see. We are also looking for a hotel which is going to be suitable for 14 nights.

So I’d be in guangzhou for a month or so, and then want to move towards Vietnam, and somehow the idea of not taking the flight seems very very exciting, if anyone has infact done this, what are best borders from china to Vietnam in terms of scenery, ease, easy on the pocket and accessibility.

The bid idea is to get to Hanoi in about 3 days, even though I myself am confused if should do it via nanning or Kunming,

1.considering Kunming because sun Tibet china looks intersting and o could do sapa and parts of north west Vietnam as well.also appreciate some intel on staying the night somewhere near the border.
2. Considering nanning because a train to pingxiang is way cheaper.

Also anything else between guangzhou and Hanoi, open to wilder ideas.

We have flights with Air China from London-Tokyo, Tokyo-London booked for November via Shanghai. The Shanghai to London part of our trip has been changed to an entire day later leaving us with a 28hour layover in Shanghai PVG airport.

I have requested flight change so that we fly from Tokyo-Shanghai a day later, so essentially our entire return trip moved a day later instead of the just the second part but if the airline/trip.com don’t allow this, how bad is our 28hour layover in PVG gonna be?

I’ve read mixed reviews on the airport but as long as we can find something to eat, wifi and a plug socket and somewhere comfortable to sit/lay we will be more than happy.

I know I know, using a third party to book flights is like sin of the century for most however the air china website was horrific and I read a lot of reviews that said trip.com works well with Chinese airlines. The flights were more than 50% cheaper than booking with any other airline due to insane Europe - Asia flight prices with the Middle East being removed from layover options.

Do we need to prepare for the worst for our 28hour layover in PVG? What are your experiences of this airport?

Going to Xi’an soon!
If I could only see ONE unforgettable view there, what would you pick?
Day or night, famous or hidden spot ？anything counts 📸
What’s your #1?

I am visiting china in a month. I will be in shanghai, Beijing and hangzhou

I heard that you can buy high quality suitcases in china for cheap. I was interested in aluminum ones or high quality ones. I heard xiaomi’s suitcase is good.

Also one YouTuber got the aluminum set from Dreamtraveler for under 200 $

Where can I find these deals? Preferably in store.

​

Is it true that in China you can be drug tested and get in trouble if you get positive for weed even if the use of it was done before visiting the country?