When is the cheapest time to go to China? Holidays in China

The state of the People's Republic of China is located on an area of ​​more than 9 million square meters. km and in terms of scale confidently ranks 3rd in the world, behind Canada and Russian Federation. rich cultural heritage China attracts travelers from all over the world and does not leave any tourist indifferent.

    Landmarks of China

How to travel to China on your own

China for a tourist is a world of contrasts, a combination of the splendor of a modern metropolis, a carefree and expensive life with a modest life of farmers and trinket market traders. It's fast paced here modern life best combined with ancient history.

You can go to the Celestial Empire as part of a group, and then part of the organizational issues will be resolved by a travel agent. Sophisticated tourists who prefer to travel on their own should take into account some simple details of the trip:

    Book accommodation or hotel rooms in advance.

    Apply for a visa and buy insurance.

    Buy plane tickets.

When traveling independently to China, you need to understand that 80% of the population does not speak foreign languages. To avoid problems with the language barrier, it is advisable to raise your level of Chinese to at least HSK1.

Registration for training

Free Trial Lessons

Every week we hold free trial lessons for adults and children. In the lesson, you will get acquainted with the basics of the Chinese language, its phonetics, hieroglyphs and learn your first phrase. We regularly hold presentations of programs for parents of students.

Level detection

If you or your child has already studied Chinese before, then before starting classes, you must pass an interview to determine the level. After that, we will select a suitable group and assign a trial lesson in it.

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Itinerary in China: where to go

Popular tourist destinations include modern and traditional types of recreation:

    SPA resorts
    There are many professional health centers where the developments of modern Western medicine are effectively combined with the unique methods of Chinese therapy. You will be offered therapeutic mud baths, aromatherapy, acupuncture, herbal treatments, body wraps, moxibustion, balneotherapy, acupuncture, inhalations, various massages. People go to China to improve the functions of the musculoskeletal system, to treat cardiovascular and gastrointestinal pathologies, respiratory and nervous system, rheumatism and arthritis.

    Ski resorts
    Fans of active pastime will appreciate the infrastructure and high service ski resorts Baidakhe, Jinguetan and Yabuli. Modern tracks that meet international standards allow both professionals and amateurs to actively engage in sports.

    Ecotourism
    On the territory of China there are numerous historical monuments of architecture, ancient temples, places of pilgrimage to sacred mountain Huashan, National parks in the area of ​​Sanqinshan and Jade Mountain with a huge variety of rare plants and animals, national park Volun with natural habitat of giant pandas. Most areas are labeled as World Heritage UNESCO.

    dive resorts
    For exciting diving, the surroundings of the city of Sanya are suitable - Xiaodonghai, Yalongwan and Dadonghai bays, the islands of Wuzhizhou, Sidao. Among the variety of marine fauna can be found starfish, many bizarre fish, large jellyfish, more than 50 varieties of corals. Water South China Sea so transparent that underwater landscapes can be viewed at a depth of up to 25 meters.

Landmarks of China

    Great Chinese Wall - one of seven modern wonders light, the largest structure on the planet. Climbing the wall will seem like an exciting walk only for physically prepared tourists. Evaluate the capabilities of your body in advance, as big number steps can take all the strength, and the tour will not be enjoyable. The funicular is an alternative.

    Shaolin Monastery. Here you can watch the life of the monks with your own eyes, see their daily many hours of strength and spirit training, as well as a demonstration of martial arts.

    tropical island Hainan. The perfect place for a relaxing beach holiday with a white sandy shore and crystal clean water. Admire the beauty underwater world with vibrant landscapes unusual representatives fauna and coral thickets will be able to divers and snorkelers.

    thermal springs Nantian. In the territory health complex more than 40 pools with warm water, the available temperature range allows everyone to find their comfort zone.

    Oceanarium on Henkin Island. The world's largest aquarium houses the rarest specimens sea ​​depths. Here, tourists can feed the crocodiles, look at the most terrible and unusual animals up close.

    Monkey Island. The trip itself to the island along the longest and most picturesque cable car China can already be considered optional excursion. And on the island, tourists will find a sparkling pearl museum and jewelry stores.

    Shanghai. Arriving in Shanghai, tourists should definitely see the temple of God - the Guardian of the city and the Temple of the Jade Buddha, as well as take a walk along Nanjing Street (Shanghai Arbat).

    Hong Kong. Cultural and historical center with many galleries, exhibitions and museums: horse racing, police, medical sciences, wax figures Madame Tussauds, Art Museum Tsui, Lau Uk Folk Museum, Pao Art Center and other attractions.

Important and useful little things for tourists

Additional Information will facilitate the stay in the country and help to avoid embarrassing situations for both beginners and experienced tourists:

    Time. The difference with the Moscow time zone is +5 hours.

    Payment system. In modern shopping malls, hotels, restaurants for payment are accepted bank cards almost all payment systems. For small purchases, it is best to have cash in national currency. The best currency converter is at the airport.

    Transport. Traveling in China is easy with high speed trains(350km/h), tickets should be bought in advance, especially if the planned trip falls on a weekend or holiday. Car rental is only possible with a driver, as international driving licenses are not valid here. To travel short distances, you can use the services of a taxi, the prices are adequate. It is important to have an address written in Chinese with you, almost no one speaks English.

    Shopping. The finest natural silk and world-famous Chinese porcelain are among the most popular and expensive souvenirs. From exclusive gifts, you can bring pearl jewelry, healing tinctures for ants, snakes, scorpions, Chinese Maotai vodka. Expensive gifts should only be bought in shops or factories. You can bargain and talk about price reductions not only in the market, but even in large stores.

    Weather. When planning a trip to China, keep in mind that the weather in different areas can vary significantly even at the same time of the year. Depending on the location, some provinces may be cold, while other areas may be under the rays of the scorching sun.

Traveling to China will allow you to immerse yourself in the ancient traditions and unusual culture of this country, see the bewitching landscapes national parks And mountain ranges, visit the largest architectural monuments, palaces of emperors, ancient temples, pagodas and museums, as well as appreciate the dishes local cuisine that has preserved thousands of years of tradition and secrets.

WikiHow is a wiki, which means that many of our articles are written by multiple authors. When creating this article, 41 people worked on editing and improving it, including anonymously.

A visit to China will provide many delightful and unforgettable experience. To get the most out of your visit, you need to take into account the local features, and the following tips will help you pack your bags so that the trip is a success.

Steps

    Gather all the documents you need to travel to China - passport, all necessary visas, international air tickets, etc.

    Take everything you need to China. Although shops will be found on every corner, they will not always sell the things that you are used to at home. Most toilets don't have toilet paper, so it's best to have your own stock on hand. Large rolls are inconvenient to carry, so even before the trip you need to set aside a part of the roll that is more than half used. For a family of four, 6-8 of these mini-rolls will be enough for a two-week trip. Of course, in 5-star hotels, the toilets are decorated in European style, and in international airports there are definitely western-style toilets. Stock up on only what you need. It is better to take only one key from the house and from the car with you.

    • Having your own toilet paper is especially important for those traveling by train.
    • Train toilets in China can only be used in "rural areas", outside the urban area.
  1. Take Pepto Bismol and loperamide in a chewable form. In China, the quality of tap water is terrible. Problems can arise even if you brush your teeth by rinsing off the paste with tap water or eat vegetables that have been washed and not cooked. To prevent bowel problems, chew 2 tablets before meals.

    • Poor water quality is predominantly found in rural areas rather than "urban" areas.
  2. Prepare your clothes according to the season. It is very hot in China in summer and very cold in winter. Take a lot of clothes, and remember that you can always use the laundry service in the hotel or self-service laundry if any parts of the wardrobe need to be cleaned. True, some laundries use detergents that can cause allergies, so dry cleaning is safer.

    • China is a lot like the US. Summers in the south are very hot and humid, while winters in the north are frosty and dry.
  3. In most Chinese establishments, the dress code can be described as sensible informal, but if you are planning formal meetings, it is better to wear a suit or formal attire.

    Make sure that water does not get into your mouth while taking a shower. Her taste is normal, but there is a danger of picking up some kind of infection. Therefore, it is better to use bottled table water for rinsing your mouth and brushing your teeth.

    • In not big cities can sell cheap table water that has only been coarsely filtered. It is safer to use water from supermarkets by buying well-known brands.
  4. Visit your general practitioner(s) or travel clinic. Experts can help you determine which vaccinations you need based on your health status, vaccination history, specific regions you plan to visit, and activities you plan to do during your trip. Before the trip you need to fulfill all these requirements. To purchase any psychotropic drugs in China, you must show a prescription certified by a doctor. Bring along any antibiotics and other prescription medications you may need during your trip to make sure you have enough for the duration of your stay in China (plus a few extra pills). Transport medicines in their original packaging. Travelers from the US can get all the information they need about medicines in China from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

  5. Prepare a small camping kit for each family member. Place a mini toilet paper roll and a bottle of hand sanitizer in your hip pouch. It is better to choose an antiseptic that is not alcohol-based, since in some provinces (especially Guangzhou) it can be confiscated at customs. Add a high-calorie sweet cereal bar with nuts, cough drops, and chewing gum. It's also a good idea to bring a flashlight so you don't end up in the dark during power outages that happen in China.

    • Don't forget that you are in China and not anywhere else! To reduce environmental pollution, toilets usually do not have toilet paper. Always have paper napkins on hand, which can be purchased at any store for 1-2 yuan.
  6. Always carry some cash and traveler's checks with you as most restaurants and shops credit cards do not accept. Prepare a bag with money, travelers checks, air and train tickets. It must be firmly and safely fixed on itself, and it is advisable to cover it with clothes. It will be safer than leaving these things in a hotel room.

    • The main banks of large and medium cities have ATMs that accept debit cards. You can easily use your USAA Federal Saving Bank and North American East Asia Bank cards. In small towns, some banks do not even exchange dollars for Chinese yuan.
  7. Other must-haves include a raincoat and/or umbrella, a hat, summer timesunscreen and goggles, insect repellant, as well as a power adapter (power converter) needed to power and recharge electrical appliances.

    • Always carry with you business card the hotel where you are staying. This will take you back in case of any unforeseen situations. In case of an emergency, you should have a copy of your passport, the original of which can be left at safe place In a hotel.
    • Don't eat everything. It is better to know what is offered to you and how this dish was prepared. In places like Beijing's Wanwujing Market, it's not uncommon for light snacks to be prepared in a non-technological way. If you are not sure about the quality of the food you eat, drink beer - it will help digest incompatible food, the main thing is not to abuse it.
    • If you are African, European, or Hispanic, don't be surprised if the Chinese ask permission to take pictures with you.
    • Once you've decided where you're going, do some research. Learn about climatic conditions in this area. There is nothing worse than being dressed for the wrong weather. At the same time, a certain conservatism is needed. Long pants and neat shirts/blazers will do for any terrain.
    • Take the time to study the maps of places where you are staying or planning to visit. This will help you stay on course while walking around the city. You are also unlikely to get lost if you arm yourself with a handheld GPS navigator.
    • Before traveling, it is worth preparing a listing of all the hotels in the areas where you will go. Be sure to prepare a printout in Chinese as well (you can use the Chinese pages of the websites of these hotels or translate the text using an online translator). This will make it easier for you to communicate with taxi drivers, who often do not speak English. For the same purpose, you can ask the concierge at the hotel to write in Chinese the name of the attractions that you plan to visit.
    • Even cheap hotels have a drinking water heater on every floor. Use a clean bottle to cool 97.22 C boiling water to an acceptable temperature.
    • Control the amount of cash you have with you. Just in case, it is worth having an NZ, which is enough to return to the hotel by taxi. Most airports have ATMs and it's best to get cash as soon as you arrive.
    • Read a few reports from other travelers to better understand the sights and what to look out for. Find a travel booklet to read on a flight or in a hotel room.
    • China censors the internet. To access Facebook or YouTube, you will need an address replacement proxy service.
    • Chinese mobile operators operate on other standards. If you want to use the same phone in China and the USA, you will need a phone with a quadraphonic frequency range. Also make sure you don't have a local sim card. To work in China, it must be nationwide.
    • Find a Chinese audio course and also grab a dictionary. Knowledge of the Chinese language is necessary, but there is no need to be upset about its complexity. You just need to remember a few key phrases and general grammar rules. Remember that outside of 5-star hotels and fancy restaurants, people's knowledge of the English language is usually limited to the word "hello!". If you want to roam freely, you need to learn basic phrases. You can also ask the concierge to write down on paper the names of the places you plan to visit during the day. Thanks to this, you will be able to explain to the taxi driver where you need to get. In urban regions, the chances of finding someone who owns English language rise.
    • Chinese currency is only sold in China, so you need to find out where the exchange offices are. Add information about major banks to the list of major hotels you prepare for your trip. This will allow you to find the nearest place as soon as you need to change dollars or travelers checks into yuan.

How to organize an independent trip to China in 2019! Visa, tickets, hotels, food, transportation, security. How much does it cost to travel to China? Cost calculation, tips and observations.

The material was prepared on the basis personal experience independent travel to China of the author of the text: three months of living in Shenzhen, as well as trips to Hong Kong and Guangzhou.

China is huge and very diverse, so it is impossible to clearly say where what prices and conditions are. I will start from Shenzhen - the center of all electronics, a young and rapidly growing city in the very south of China, which borders on Hong Kong. I will tell you what is useful for a tourist when planning an independent trip to China in 2019, as well as my own observations about the country and travel tips.

How to apply for a visa to China

A visa to China is required for Russians, except in rare cases. A regular one-time ticket costs 1,500 rubles, a double-entry ticket costs 3,000 rubles, and a multiple-entry ticket costs 4,500 rubles. Plus, there is a bank commission of 2.5% per person.

Urgent single entry - 2400, urgent double entry - 3900, urgent multiple entry - 5400. There is also an express examination, it costs more.

It is better to stay in chain hotels, as they care about their reputation. A day in such a hotel costs from $ 30-40 per Double Room. Chain hotels in Shenzhen: Greentree Inn , Sheraton, Novotel, etc.

Adviсe:

  • Look for a hotel with good soundproofing - the Chinese are noisy.
  • Photos of hotels do not always correspond to reality.
  • Sometimes a room can be clean and comfortable, but have extraneous odors, such as dampness. Or windows overlooking the courtyard, where there is a dump or a Chinese street cafe (which produces smells no better).

Rent. If you want personal comfortable housing, look for a room, apartment or house on Airbnb. The choice of housing is huge. Renting an apartment in Beijing costs about $30-50 per day, in Shenzhen - from $27. You can rent an apartment for a month on Airbnb for $600-1500 (rooms - $500-900). The price depends on the city, area and condition of the house. For example, in Shenzhen, near the beach in the resort area, an excellent apartment was rented for $600. There are discounts for long term rentals.


Entrance to Shenzhen Novotel Watergate (Photo © booking.com / Shenzhen Novotel Watergate)

Food and Cuisine of China

Another difficulty you will encounter when independent trip to China in 2019 is food. It is very specific here, so there are problems with going to a cafe, especially if you do not know the language. But here McDonald's and KFC come to the rescue. There are also many well-known European chains where you can order food from pictures. However, their prices are much higher - for example, a side dish with meat costs from $ 6. Sometimes tea is included in the price. At McDonald's, a Big Mac (potato, cola, double cheeseburger) will cost about $ 5.

In general, in a cafe you can eat for $5 or more, in restaurants a simple dish costs from $10.

Where you can eat inexpensively and tasty in China:

  • Cafe for locals. You can have a hearty meal in them for $ 1.5, but no one guarantees the quality of the products and compliance with sanitary standards. Minus - it is difficult to order dishes, as often there are no pictures or there are few of them, and if there are, it is not clear what it is.
  • "Muslim" are local cafes run by Chinese Muslims. The food there is prepared in compliance with all norms and is really very tasty. I love their noodles and would recommend trying them. They cook it in front of you, and this process is interesting to watch. Cost from $ 1.5 for a huge portion.
  • Supermarket. A kilo of bananas costs $1-2, apples $2-3, tangerines $1-2. I do not recommend buying sausages. This is not at all what we expect: Chinese sausages are made from soy with tons of spices and additives. They taste sweet and have a specific smell, but for the sake of curiosity, you can try it once.

(Photo © Jo@net / flickr.com / CC BY 2.0)

Internet and Cellular in China

All sim-cards are sold only with a passport in specialized places. Price mobile communications quite high - from $ 20 per month, plus they charge the same amount for buying a card and choosing a tariff plan. To purchase a normal tariff and understand everything, you need to know Chinese. If you need internet in China, it's easier to use Wi-Fi while traveling - in big cities you can find it everywhere.

There is another nuisance that many people face - this is the blocking of all Google, YouTube, Instagram services. To access them, you need to install a special VPN program for yourself.


China Mobile is the world's largest mobile operator (Photo © Open Grid Scheduler Grid Engine / flickr.com)

Transport in China

With transport in China, everything is fine. The infrastructure is very developed. Airplanes, ferries, trains (including high-speed ones), buses, subways and taxis. You can get to any point without problems. Travel by bus - from $ 0.3, in the subway - from $ 0.5.

If you are going to go to China for a month, buy a travel card. A plastic card can be topped up and used on the metro and buses, and then returned and the money back. The cost is 4$. It is very convenient: you do not need to find out the cost of tickets, buy tokens, stand in lines. Accordingly, the problem of language also disappears. For trips within the same city, $ 10-30 is enough for a month.

A very common form of transportation is electric mopeds. In fact, this is a taxi, only less comfortable, more extreme and cheaper - from $ 2. The main advantage is the absence of traffic jams, as mopeds ride where they want. The only downside is the language. We need to agree on a price and a destination.

(Photo © Lαin / flickr.com / Licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

ATMs and cards

Be prepared that in many stores your Visa or MasterCard may not be accepted, since in China another payment system is UnianPay. This card can be issued at any bank for free. If you need to withdraw money from your own, then there are many ATMs for this.

Chinese mentality

Don't be surprised if in China you feel like a monkey that everyone wants to take a picture with. For a Chinese, having a photo with a European is an indicator of coolness, status, so you will always be in the spotlight. They will always turn around and, without hesitation, look at you point-blank. In addition to the increased interest, the Chinese will try to make money on the "white man". For them, we are walking money, so bargain in all stores. For example, once we reduced the price of a shirt from $35 to $5.

You can talk about the culture and upbringing of most Chinese for a long time. To give way to a girl, to let her go ahead, to let people out of the transport, to throw garbage into the bin - this is not about them. They also have no sense of tact. Do not be surprised if at the first meeting you will be asked about personal life, salary and health. The Chinese themselves are very cunning and enterprising, but at the same time good-natured.

Useful words in Chinese for the traveler:

Security in China

Do you know where the tradition of wearing a backpack in front came from? From China. Petty theft is very common there. In big cities everywhere you can meet a policeman who will gladly help in any situation. Also in all buses, subways, shopping centers, and just on the street there are cameras, so in big cities there is nothing to be afraid of, walking along the streets in the evening. From personal experience: I walked with photographic equipment, and not once did anyone try to pester.

Also in China there is an unspoken rule that animals, children and laovayam(foreigners) everything is possible.

(Photo © Today is a good day / flickr.com / Licensed CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

How much does a solo trip to China from Russia cost?

Let's calculate how much a trip to China for two for 10 days costs when departing from Moscow:

  • Single entry visa - $52.
  • Air tickets from Moscow to Beijing and back - from $586. Find a ticket >>
  • Hotel in the center of Beijing in the low season - $130. Find a hotel >>
  • Meals in eateries for locals - $ 120.
  • Insurance - $23.
  • Transport and attractions - approximately $200.

So, how much does it cost to go to China on your own? The minimum cost of the trip, if you are ready to save - about 1111$ for two for 10 days.

If you are used to living in comfort, then the trip will cost approximately 1711$ for two (accommodation in a 3 * hotel - $ 250 and meals in cafes and restaurants - $ 600). We spent $1,500 a month for two.


Fragment of a 100 yuan banknote (Photo © super.heavy / flickr.com)

Take advantage of our useful tips for an independent trip to China in 2019:

  • See how the Chinese count on their fingers before traveling. The match with our score is only up to 4, then everything is different.
  • Be sure to download the translator to your phone.
  • Take the right medicines, as you can hardly find anything familiar in Chinese pharmacies. More likely to meet a dried toad than activated charcoal.
  • Download the Baidu program and maps of the cities where you are going to live on your phone. This program will help you choose a route, time and type of transport, determine the best option way. You won't get lost with her. I highly recommend!

I hope you have a general idea of ​​​​prices and conditions. And the problem of language, as you see, is not so terrible. Travel, because there are so many interesting things in the world!

(Photo © monkeylikemind / flickr.com / Licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

Intro Image Source: © mandylovefly / flickr.com / Licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.

It's time to talk about something important. I soaped up again in China. I didn’t have time to write about the last trip, and here it is again.

What is smeared there? It's not just that I want to explore China completely. Now there are also damn cheap tickets. You need to seize the moment.

And I will tell you two ways how to do it.

*** Partner project. Text and thoughts are mine. ***


The ability to choose the right air tickets is an art. Experienced travelers know which days of the week, seasons and phases of the moon are the most free offers. Sometimes it's not necessary. Look, now on Aviasales you can buy a ticket from Moscow to Beijing for 20 thousand rubles. Directly, without transfers, by Aeroflot. Even tomorrow, even in a month. Obviously, the airline has introduced a “flat” fare on this flight, and until the conditions change, the date does not matter. This happens periodically with different directions, recently the same “things” were rolled with Vladivostok and Tel Aviv. This is life hack number one, how long it will last is unknown. You need to catch this in.

The second life hack is more interesting because it always works. Everyone knows how to buy tickets through search engines, but not everyone can use additional “chips” that make searching easier and save money. Look, I have specific dates, and today the ticket costs the same twenty thousand rubles. Two weeks before departure, and there is a chance that it will get even cheaper. Elementary on the direction, and I receive any changes in tariffs in the mail. There will also be recommendations on whether to wait for a further decline or is it better to take it until the price rises.

By the way, it's even cheaper. The guys from Aviasales gave me some statistics on ticket prices to China. That the cheapest month to fly there is January. It's a long wait until the next one, but you can catch a Moscow-Urumqi ticket for eight thousand (!!!) rubles. But since May, everything will rise in price: both seasonally and due to an increase in tariffs at Russian airports. So, even at the end of the year it is better to buy tickets in advance.

That's it, no thanks.

I will continue to talk about the amazing and fucking China. Soon!

For the third decade, our enterprising compatriots have been constantly traveling to this exotic country for the goods. If at the end of the last century they brought bags of clothes, today the clothing flow consists of electronic equipment, cosmetics and even furniture and cars. You can buy everything in China!

In addition to commercial interest, "celestial" became a discovery for Russian tourists like an unknown land rich in exclusive sights. Today it is very easy to buy a tourist ticket to any country, including China, including specially for the goods. But it turns out to be much cheaper and more interesting to organize an independent trip.

What awaits you there

It is difficult to list the sights of the country, on the territory of which one of the most ancient civilizations of the planet, in one article, we will try to mention at least the most famous in the world.

Leshan. Giant Buddha In the west of the country in the province of Sichuan, a giant statue 71 meters high is carved from the rock. There are higher structures on the planet, but this work was carved out of stone in 713.

Xi'an. Terracotta army More than 8000 warriors, 670 horses, 130 chariots carved from natural material in 200 BC. and dug out of the ground are now in three special halls of the museum. And this is not the entire army of the ruler Qin Shi Huang. Some of the sculptures are still underground.

Forbidden City At the beginning of the 15th century, one of the largest palace ensembles, consisting of a thousand buildings and walls 10 meters high. Now forbidden city became a museum and is open to tourists.

The great Wall of China. The only man-made object on the planet visible from outer space with the naked eye. It is hard to imagine a trip that would not include a visit to this colossal structure, built in the 14th-16th centuries to protect the country from attacks by northern nomadic tribes.

Transfer natural monuments China is almost impossible. Li River, Huangshan Mountains, Hainan Island, Victoria Harbor and thousands more interesting places are waiting for you.

Going to get acquainted with the places you are interested in, historical monuments, interesting artifacts, you need to be aware of natural conditions which you will be in. Sightseeing China is most favorable in spring and autumn. In summer, the air temperature here rises to 400, and in winter, on the contrary, it drops to the same temperature with a minus sign.

A huge country, of course, has a different temperature range from south to north and humidity from east to west. Best time beach holiday on the famous Chinese resort island of Hainan from October to May. And you can take part in the grandiose original celebrations of the New Year according to the Chinese calendar on New Year holidays in all major cities in China.

Need a visa

China is a visa country. You can make it through tourist agency, and independently in the Celestial Embassy. In the first case, it will be done for you quickly, without unnecessary delays and bureaucracy, but for an amount that will exceed the embassy visa by two to three times. In the second, you will have to fill out all the papers yourself, but it will cost an order of magnitude cheaper (about 2,000 rubles).

There are privileges in issuing visas for groups of tourists with more than 5 people. Also, visas are divided into tourist, business, multivisa and double entry.

On resort island A Hainan visa will be issued to you right on the spot for two weeks, but it is not a fact that you will then be allowed to move with it to other territories. This tropical island with craters has long extinct volcanoes is a special economic zone, oriented by the government of the country to beach holiday tourists from all over the world.

We fly or we go

Aviation is considered the most convenient transport that brings tourists here. Even within the country, a well-developed network of local airlines allows you to quickly and inexpensively reach any remote point.

Experienced tourists are advised to start their trip to China in Hong Kong. A short distance to the capital, an inexpensive flight and visa concessions speak in favor of just such a route.

Trains and regular buses also run between cities and regions and are quite inexpensive, however, they do not differ in the comfort we are used to. Do not be surprised if a train car, subway, bus suddenly turns out to be smoky and dirty. But the fares will pleasantly surprise you.

Do not be afraid if your trip suddenly takes you to the most remote area. There are villages in China where no one has set foot yet white man, and where all the cafe patrons will stand when you enter.

The Chinese are very peaceful and friendly to all guests. And you can get out of any provincial places by calling a taxi. By the way, do not forget to write down their phone numbers immediately upon arrival.

Hotels and others

A huge selection of hotels of different star rating and comfort explains the wide range of prices. There are hotels familiar to Russians, where all-inclusive with five stars on the facade. A day in them will cost you from 5,000 to 18,000 rubles.

If your trip is not designed for a long stay in one place, you can stay in an inexpensive hostel or hotel, spending only 1000-3000 rubles per night.

You can freely and safely use the services of the private sector. It will become even cheaper. Prices range from 180 rubles to infinity. They are comparable with price ranges Crimean offers and, of course, depend on the place and comfort.

In many hotels it is more profitable to book rooms in advance. This will not only provide tangible discounts, but will also give you a guarantee that you will not be left under open sky especially if you come on holidays. Moreover, it is recommended to make a reservation two to three months before the trip.

To eat or not to eat - that is the question

China has very spicy food. Be careful. If you want to cook your own meals, try to get raw materials for them in stores, without being tempted by low market prices. It's not difficult if you don't give in to curiosity and don't experiment with window displays. All products familiar to us and at the same price can be found in all Chinese provinces in large department stores.

The most profitable and interesting to eat in local cafes and restaurants. Of course, even if you know Chinese, you will not understand the menu that will be served to you. Do not be shy! Feel free to poke your finger into the plate, from which a white gentleman is eating on both cheeks on the next table. You can even, taking the waiter's arm, make yourself a fashion show around the hall and choose the dish on the tables that you think is the most edible. Point your finger at him, and they will bring you the same.

What do you guys have in your backpacks?

What to take on a trip is a big problem for the female half of travelers. Despite the diversity of climatic and natural zones, and hence weather conditions, in this country you can not take anything. Yes, just put your documents, wallet in the case and go light. Remember that all clothes, electronics and other necessary trifles are made in China!

If you still want to be independent of shops, look on the Internet for the climate of the place where you plan to travel. Be sure to study the weather forecast for the duration of your trip and only after that put umbrellas, swimwear or fur coats in your suitcase.