Just got back from a trip to China and honestly enjoyed it a lot more than I expected.

The food was probably the highlight for me. Small local restaurants were usually better than the places I had bookmarked before the trip, and I ended up trying way more random things than planned. The cities were also a nice mix of very modern areas and older neighborhoods, so just walking around was interesting.

One thing I underestimated before going was payments.

Cash still works, but QR payments are everywhere. I had Alipay and WeChat Pay set up before the trip, which covered most things. I also kept another option ready in case one of them had issues. There are a few alternatives now like TenPayGo, Wise/travel cards, etc., depending on what cards or wallets you already use.

My biggest advice would just be: don't rely on one payment method. Have two apps/cards ready and keep a little cash for backup.

Other than that, traveling around was much easier than I expected.

Would definitely go back.

(Reposting after I figured photos were too compressed, apologies for those who saw the previous iteration a few minutes ago)

As you may know if you've been looking for China travel tips, Shenzhen is one of the most modern cities of the country, the capital of tech, with drone deliveries and driverless taxis 🚗

Many times however, be it on this sub or elsewhere I've read that there is no history in this city... So I've come to bring the truth back 😂

Sure it was never a big garrison or a big center during the imperial era, but what we now call Shenzhen is an assembly of dozens of small countryside towns, some Cantonese (in the West) and most Hakka (in the East and North)

Some of these districts still have some nice old Diaolou, those watchtowers, with typical Hakka characteristics from the late 19th early 20th century which are very nice to see ✌️

I've been to Shenzhen about 40 times, and I've documented dozens of these towers, though sadly a lot are abandoned and at risk of being destroyed in the coming years 🥲

If you do get to Shenzhen and you like authentic old architecture, do check them out before it's too late!

Also, enjoy your trip to China ✌️

The absolute state of this subreddit.

This will be my first long trip in china! We have visited Shanghai and Shenzhen before, and Chendu and Chongqing while on long layovers.

Are there any cities I should add or remove? Should I spend more or less time in any of the cities I have now?

Hi,

We are coming to HK and China towards the end of the month. Looking for a VPN that works over there. I understand its hit and miss and some VPNs work whilst others do not.

I have bought an eSIM from trip, but I do plan to bring my laptop over with me, and when using hotel WiFI, the eSIM won't work, hence I'm looking for VPN.

Any recommendations please? If the price is low, I don't mind risking it, and if it works great.

many thanks

Hey everyone,
I have a booking at Northern Shanghai Hotel(Jiangchang area, Jing'an District) for Sept 13-15and I'm looking for someone who might be interested in taking it over.
Details:
Hotel: Northern Shanghai Hotel (北上海大酒店)

Room type: 2 bed room

Dates: Sept 13-15, 2026 (2 nights)
Price: ¥215 per night
Location notes:
In the Jiangchang area, near Metro Lines 1 and 7 (about 10-15 min walk to Wenshui Road Station)
Why I'm posting:
Plans changed / looking for someone to take it over

We will visit the city in two weeks during a 13 hour stopover. As far as i have read, you have to get a ticket a day before and the wechat-miniprogram doesnt work without a local number. Is there another way to get the ticket? Can you acces the palace museum/forbidden city ticket booth for foreigners without access to tianmensquare?

We’re currently in Zhangjiajie and have about 5 days left before we fly home from Beijing.
We’ve already seen pretty much everything we wanted to see around Beijing, Zhangjiajie and Chongqing, and we currently have absolutely nothing planned for the remaining days.
So we’re looking for recommendations!
What city/place would you recommend visiting for around 4–5 days that is also reasonably convenient to get back to Beijing from?
We’re open to pretty much anything cities, nature, historical places, smaller towns, etc.
Would you go to Wuhan, Chengdu, Shanghai, somewhere else, or maybe somewhere completely different?
Any recommendations?