Transport in China

Use Trip.com or the official 12306 app (set language to English). You'll need your passport number — the same one on your visa. Book 2–3 weeks ahead for popular routes (Beijing–Shanghai, Chengdu–Xi'an). At the station, show your passport at the counter or use the self-service machines (select 'Foreign Passport'). High-speed trains sell out fast during Chinese holidays (Spring Festival, National Day) — book early.

Where it usually goes wrong: Ticket name must EXACTLY match your passport name. A missing middle name or typo can get you turned away at the gate.

Yes. Go to the station ticket counter with your passport and ticket. You can change to a later train on the same route for free once, subject to availability. If you miss the last train of the day, you may need to buy a new ticket. Online changes via 12306 must be done at least 30 minutes before departure — after that, only the station counter can help.

Where it usually goes wrong: Changes are only allowed for trains on the SAME route. If you want a different destination, you must refund and buy a new ticket (refunds incur a fee closer to departure).

DiDi requires a Chinese phone number to register. If you don't have one, options: (1) ask your hotel to call a taxi for you; (2) use the DiDi mini-program inside WeChat/Alipay — sometimes works with a foreign number; (3) hail a taxi on the street and pay with cash or Alipay. Taxis are metered and generally honest, but always confirm the meter is on. Car seats are the weak spot: they are offered in some cities but availability is unreliable, especially for larger child seats. For a toddler many parents bring a lightweight travel seat or pre-book a private transfer for airport runs.

Where it usually goes wrong: Early morning rides (before 6am) are hard to get in tourist areas like Wulingyuan. Pre-book through your hotel the night before. Order at the pickup pin shown in the app — drivers cannot stop at the terminal exit and will cancel.

Landing at 04:40 at PEK, you clear immigration and walk out around 05:30–06:00 — allow 50–80 minutes including baggage. From there the Airport Express plus the subway is usually the fastest way into the centre in the morning, especially in traffic; a Didi is easier with luggage but sits in the same jams. As a rule, give yourself three hours from touchdown to be sitting anywhere central.

Where it usually goes wrong: Do not book a timed tour for the same morning you land unless it is refundable — one delayed flight or a slow immigration queue wipes out the entire buffer.

Yes if you can clear immigration, but price the trip honestly: 40–60 minutes for entry, 45–90 minutes back through security and exit formalities, plus 45–75 minutes each way into the city on the airport express or metro. A ten-hour layover leaves roughly three usable hours — enough for one sight and a meal near a metro line, not a Great Wall run. Set a hard turnaround time before you leave the terminal.

Where it usually goes wrong: Check-in closes 45–60 minutes before departure and re-entry queues are unpredictable — if your inbound flight is more than an hour late, drop the plan at the gate.

Usually not. Staff match the passport number first, and name-order mismatches on foreign passport bookings normally pass after a manual look. Still, don't gamble with a train you can't miss: arrive 30–45 minutes early and ask at the ticket office to correct or reissue it, or cancel and rebook on Trip.com with the name exactly as printed in your passport. Bring the passport you booked with — its number is what gets read at the gate.

Where it usually goes wrong: The same mismatch on a domestic flight is treated far more strictly: airlines reject it outright and same-day rebooking is charged at full fare.

Inside a city, Didi is reliable and cheap. The risk is the return leg from a remote sight: trailheads, lakes and villages have few drivers nearby, so you can wait half an hour or get nothing at all. Ask your drop-off driver to wait and pay waiting time (agree the hourly rate before he leaves), book a round-trip car through your hotel, or check the scenic area's own shuttle bus and its last departure before you set off.

Where it usually goes wrong: Mobile signal drops at exactly these places — screenshot the shuttle timetable and your pickup point while you're still on hotel wifi.

Transit codes are city by city. In Alipay（支付宝）, switch the city selector at the top of the Transport（出行） page to the city you are physically in, then try again — it usually fails while you are still somewhere else. If it still refuses, skip the code: metro stations have ticket machines that take cash or an Alipay（支付宝）/WeChat Pay（微信支付） QR, and the staffed counter sells single rides or a reloadable transport card（交通卡） if you show your passport. Carry small cash notes for buses.

Where it usually goes wrong: A code opened in Chengdu does nothing at the Chongqing gate — you add a new one in every city, and the first attempt fails often enough that you should test it at the hotel, not at the barrier with a queue behind you.

Three options, easiest first. Leave the bags with the hotel you just checked out of — most hold them for the day if you slept there. Use the left-luggage counter（行李寄存） at the train or bus station: hand over your passport, pay by size and hours, keep the collection slip. Or send the suitcase ahead by courier to your next hotel and walk around with a daypack. Whichever you choose, photograph the bag and the claim ticket before you leave the counter.

Where it usually goes wrong: Station lockers fill up by mid-morning on public holidays and close overnight, and remote trailheads have no storage at all — sort the bags out in town, never at the trail.