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China Practical Travel Info

Visa rules by nationality (genuinely complex here), money, safety, and the Great Firewall.

China's visa rules are unusually nationality-dependent — see our full visa table before anything else. Bring both a Visa/Mastercard for Alipay's international mode and a little cash; China runs on mobile payment (Alipay and WeChat Pay) far more than cards or cash. Download and set up a VPN before you land, since Google, WhatsApp, Instagram, and most Western apps are blocked by the Great Firewall. China is very safe from a crime standpoint — the real risks are connectivity friction and a handful of well-known tourist scams, not danger.

This is the section that actually determines whether your trip goes smoothly: whether you need a visa at all (the answer depends entirely on your passport, more so than almost anywhere else you'll travel), how to pay for things in a country that has largely skipped past cash and cards straight to phone-based payment, and how to get online when huge chunks of the internet you use every day are switched off by default.

China Visa & Entry Requirements (2026)
Practical Info

China Visa & Entry Requirements (2026)

The real answer, broken down by passport — this one varies more than almost any other destination.

Money, Safety & Getting Online in China
Practical Info

Money, Safety & Getting Online in China

Mobile payments, real safety risks, and the Great Firewall — the practical stuff that actually trips people up.

Questions people actually ask

Do I need a visa for China?
It depends heavily on your passport — see our full visa & entry table. Many nationalities (most of the EU, UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, several Gulf states, Brazil, and China's Southeast Asian neighbors) currently get 30 days visa-free through the end of 2026. Others, notably the US and India, still need a full visa arranged in advance.
Do I need a VPN in China?
Yes, if you want to use Google, Gmail, WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook, most Western news sites, or many mapping apps — all blocked by China's Great Firewall. Install and test your VPN before you land; VPN provider websites and app stores are themselves blocked inside China.
Will my credit card work in China?
Inconsistently. International Visa/Mastercard is accepted at big hotels, international chains, and some tourist-facing shops, but small restaurants, markets, and taxis run almost entirely on Alipay or WeChat Pay. Set up Alipay's international tourist mode before you go, and carry some cash as backup.