• China has a pretty confusing (and expensive) visa system. A normal tourist visa costs $140 for Americans ($30 for other nationalities).
• But, it is possible to see the…

Having travelled to China a few times, I found these apps to be pretty useful when travelling here:

• ExpressVPN: this is essential. China's internet is sealed off…

• For non-Chinese travelers, cash is king (still) in China as of 2019
• Locals now use AliPay or WeChat Pay for pretty much all of their day-to-day transactions as…

Just discovered there's free wifi provided on the high speed train in China!

• You need to provide your phone number and receive an activation code
• My guess is…

• They charge 500rmb per day for the overstay at the border when you try to go out. That's almost 100CAD
• You must pay in CASH only
• Processing time…

• Definitely try not to travel during Chinese New Year holiday period.
• Google/facebook is banned. Get a VPN to use those. Download WeChat, everyone uses it in China.
• Download…

• You can buy it online or in person from any train station, but speaking from personal experience the best way is to buy it at the train station…

Make sure to download the wechat app before coming to China because Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Whatsapp etc don't work in China. This app has it all, messaging, a…

• Trip.com is the largest online travel agency in China
• Ctrip is their Chinese brand name, but their English version is trip.com after they bought the domain last year
• …

There is no more Uber in China, however there are 2 local alternatives:

DiDi

• Has English interface
• Drivers don't speak english but there is in-app messenger with instant…