China Favorite Tips by MikeySoft

Free Wi-Fi in China

Favorite thing: I found it relatively easy to get free wi-fi but it does depend on where you travel. In China, the law requires the government to know the identity of everyone connected to the internet. This is ignored by many Chinese places like food cafes with free wi-fi. They just post the password for everyone to use.

However, in foreign places such as McDonalds and Starbucks, you must register using your mobile phone to use the free internet. Passport info is required to get a local SIM card for your phone as they will know who you are when registing for the internet.

The only foreign places I found in China that does not enforce the ID law are Apple stores. The one in Shanghai is in a main tourist area and I just walk in and connect my iPod to the Apple internet. Notice all the people on the bench using Apple's free internet in my photo.

Many of the hotels / hostels also have wi-fi. It is usually free at hostels and less expensive hotels. You uesally have to pay extra at more expensive hotels.  Some Chinese hotels may only have wired Internet in your room which can connect to your computer.  I bring a small wireless routher so I can connect to my iPod Touch and do email and stuff.

How long can tourists stay on a regular visa?

Favorite thing: I'll only talk about a tourist visa because that is my experience.

My last tourist visa (2007) was a single entry, 90 days, valid for 1 year. I'll expanse below.

You can get a single, double, and multiple entries tourist visa. This is the number of times you can enter Mainland China while the visa is valid. Note, going to Hong Kong or Macao is considered leaving Mainland China and you will use a new entry should you wish to return.

The duration of each entry on the tourist visa can be 30, 60, or 90 days. Meaning, if you get a 30 entry visa, you must leave within 30 days form the enter date.

The tourist visa can be valid for 6 months, 1 year, or two years. This is given as a date. After that date, you can no longer enter China without getting a new visa.

They have raised the visa price several times since 2007. The price also depends on your citizenship. For US citizens, the price is the same no matter the number of entries, duration of entries, and the duration of the validity of the visa. So I recommend applying for the Max meaning, a multiple entry, 90 day per entry, valid for 2 years.

There is no guarantee they will give you this. However my friend got the Max, including valid for 2 years for his tourist visa, this was in late 2007. In early 2007, my application said I would be in China for 34 days and they gave me 90 days entry valid for 1 year.

My trips to China were before the visa requirements were change because of the Olympics. Someone posted the visa requirements are returning back to what they were before in late Oct this year. For the Olympics, you had to have bookings into and out of China and room booking for every night in China. This was not the requirement when I got my visas and hopefully it will soon no longer be a requirement.

Update October 24, 2008
Reports are coming in that flight and hotel booking are no longer required for China Visas. :)

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China Visa

Favorite thing: China Visa for US citizens, may be the same for others.

They have 30, 60, and 90 days. Over 30 days are sometime hard to get. Put a lot of places on your application to get over 30 days. I was in china 6 weeks in 2006 and only had a 30 visa. I got an extension in zhongdian, Yunnan. It took about a day to get a visa extension but I heard it can take a week in other places.

Do not over stay your visa! Fines are large when you leave.

Visa extensions are a new visa and cancel your current visa. So if you have a duel entry visa, the second entry will no longer be valid when you get an extension.

I recommend trying to get a 60/90 day visa for longer stays or a dual/multiple entry visa. You can always go to HK in the middle of your trip and then reenter the mainland on a dual entry visa.

Chinese consulates and embassies in the US no longer accept mail visa applications. You must go in person, meaning you must take time off from work. Or you can pay a travel agent to take you visa application and passport to a Chinese consulate. Most travel agents in Boston's China town charge $25.00 to take your application to NYC.

It is interesting that US citizens must pay $100.00 (see update below) for a single entry visa while many non US citizens only pay $30.00. Even they the same location in the US is giving the visa.

Do not forget, if you go to Hong Kong in the middle of your china trip, you will need an dual entry China visa or a new visa to reenter mainland China.

See the following US Chinese web site for more information.
http://www.china-embassy.org/eng/hzqz/zgqz/default.htm

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Fondest memory: Jut a note:
I just received my passport with my Chinese visa for my 2007 trip. I said I would be staying in China for 34 days. They gave me a 90 days visa.

Update:
The price for a single entry visa for a US citizen is now $130. However the price for a single, double, multiple are all the same, $130. So I recommend applying for a double or multiple entry. Just put Hong Kong on your list of places you will be going.

I have friends who got multiple entry visas for China good for 90 days for each entry and the visa is good for 2 years.

The price for a single entry visa for non US citizens is still $30.00 when applied for in the US.

http://www.nyconsulate.prchina.org/eng/lsqz/t399474.htm

Update May 2008:
It seems the rules are changing for China Visas. Most likely because of the Olympics. It now seems harder to get longer stay and multiple entry visas. And it appears no longer possible to get a visa for China in Hong Kong unless you live in HK.

Check with the Chinese embassy/consulate in your country of residents and forums about China travel to get later information.

http://www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntree/thread.jspa?threadID=1589843

Update September 2008:
Someone said the visa requirements are going back to the old requirements in late Oct, lets hope so.

Update October 24, 2008
Reports are coming in that flight and hotel booking are no longer required for China Visas. :)

Please rate this tip and my other tips when you find it useful, interestings, or like the photos.

SIM cards for mobile phones

Favorite thing: I thought I had a tip on this but I didn't. So I'm writing one. :)

You can get SIM cards in China for GMS phones. Your phone should be unlocked, meaning, you can use SIM cards from companies other then your provider. Most providers in the US will unlock your phone for free after you own in for 90 days. Call customer service. They will try to sell you international roaming but tell them you want your phone unlocked.

Your phone must also support the 900 MHz and/or 1800 MHz. 900 is better if you only have one of the international frequencies. For example, on one trip to Shanghai, my phone did not work in the Metro because it only supports 1800 MHz. 1800 should work in big cities, but may not in other areas which may only have 900 MHz

The SIM cards comes with a small amount of minutes, you can always add more. You buy the SIM cards and additional minutes at small shops. The price varies a little depending on the number you get. For example: 8 is a luck number, so a number with several 8's are more expensive then numbers with lots of 4's. 4 is an unlucky number.

I'm not sure of the latest rules but I believe incoming calls are free and outgoing calls are very cheap in the city you got the card, but you pay additional roaming when you go to an additional city.

I've always got China Mobil SIM cards.

If you don't have a GSM phone,
there are many small shops where you can buy SIM cards and used phone in Shanghai. The shops are all over the place but I did not see any in the main tourist places. I'm sure other cities like Beijing also have these shops.

I got a quad band tmoble phone in the US for only $30. It is a prepaid phone and came with a small number of minutes and a free $25 refill card. The service is only good in the US but Tmoble will unlock it after you have it for 90 days and add minutes. The add minutes was free with the free $25 card. So I was able to get a new unlock quad band blue tooth GSM phone which I can use in China for only $30.00.

Fondest memory: PS

I've also seen China SIM cards for sale on the internet. You can buy a card before you leave. The advantage is that you know your number before you leave. Your family, friends, business can call you once you in China as soon as you arrive. You also save the time of buying one once in China.

The disadvantage is the cost. The last time I checked, the cards you buy before you leave arearound $100 USD while the same card in China is only around $10.00 USD. You may also get a card for a different city when where you are spending most of your time. Local calls will be more expensive because of this.

I paid 50 RMB in 2006 and 55 RMB in 2007 for a SIM card. I think I overpaid in 2007 because the number had several 4s and he smiled when I took it. :)

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Independent Travel

Favorite thing: Many people don't believe me, but China is not too difficult to travel independently, without prearrange hotels, tours and airfares, especially if you just plan to go to the main tourist area. Like Shanghai (and surrounding cities), Beijing, Xi'an.

However, the new visa rules may make this difficult. But most believe these new rules will go back to the old after the Olympics. The new rules require exit airline tickets (or train) and hotel bookings.

Assuming the old visa rules apply when you go, a lot depends on how you like to travel. Internal airfares are usually cheaper the closer to departure. China Youth Hostels and some small hotels speak ok English, have private rooms, they can book a hostel for your next dentition, and may be able to help with train or air tickets. They may also be able to help with local day tours.

It does take some research. Also it may take a little longer to see things but I feel the rewards are worth it.

Oh, something will go wrong during the trip but it should not be that bad. :)

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Learn basic Chinese Mandarin from the internet

Favorite thing: It always fun to know some basic greetings when you travel.

I recommend
http://www.chinesepod.com
You can download free mp3 mandarin lessons.

I also found
http://www.activechinese.com/
But they have less free content then chinesepod

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