What to Pack for China Travel

What to Pack

If you are planning to go to China for traveling, there are some things which must to be packed. Hereunder are some tips on packing just for your reference. Remember that the packing should be light and compact. Leave more space to make your trip comfortable and pleasant.

The Basics
1. Passport & Visa
2. Air tickets to China
3. Emergency Card with your detailed contact information including full name, address, phone number…
4. A guide book with Chinese translation (Beijing Map attached)
5. Money: Traveler's cheques, credit card or cash - cash must be changed for RMB at Beijing Airport; suggest you come to China with a sum of about US$ 2000 (all cash or half cash/half TC); bring with you a debt Card (Visa is a good one – MasterCard is well used too).
6. Use only the ATM of Bank of China and withdraw the maximum every time (to save the tax).
7. A water bottle
8. First-aid, especially protection against leech-bite.

Clothing
We suggest you pack as few things as possible. Everything necessary can be bought easily in China. Things are not very expensive and the quality is generally good. What kind of clothes you have to pack depends on the season.
In summer: light and comfortable clothes that can be easily washed and dried such as T-shirt, pants…
In winter: Down garment or winter jacket, hat, scarf, gloves…
In spring and autumn: Sturdy, warm and washable clothes, maybe a comfortable jacket, sweater, casual coat…

Shoes
It all depends on the season. But a good pair of comfortable and waterproof walking shoes, sandals, running shoes, hiking-type boots or maybe dressy shoes (if you plan to be present at some formal occasions) will be necessary.

Other Items
Camera, films and batteries
A knife used to peel fruit
Stationery like pen, notebook…
Toiletries

Useful Resources:
Travel to China with children: Where to go and things to do with children in China... wall climbing, Chinese dragons, bike riding, kite flying, lion dances...

Comments and Questions

Hi, I'm going to Beijing from 9/9/2012 - 16/9/2012, with my little girl and aging parents. Please advise what I should prepare and pack? Our tour is only cover five days, the rest will be free n easy trip, what's your advise?
Thank you.

Reply5/3/2012 5:51:36 PMangelia, Malaysia

Bill :5/3/2012 7:45:32 PM

summer clothes and sun-glasses, as it is still hot in beijing.
also a thin coat is necessary as it may rain.
for the free day, if i were you, i will go to the wholesale market to buy some gifts for friends.

Hallo
If we will buy train tickets from http://www.beijingtrip.com/china-train/
can those be picked-up from your office,
because we want to take the train 2-3 hours after arrival and we will have no accomodation in Beijing.
Thank you!

Reply3/31/2012 4:53:07 AMCat, Spain

Grace :3/31/2012 7:33:56 PM

yes, you can pick up the ticket from the office of Beijingtrip.com.
but you'd better state your situation clearly when booking the ticket and contact with the operater of the website when you book the ticket.

We will be in Beijing in another week. How has the weather been? Looks rainy.

Also, do you know how close Camp Woodward is to the city center?

Reply3/16/2012 5:15:33 AMEmily Huhne, United States

Ted :3/16/2012 8:48:51 PM

no, mostly sunny.
the camp is located in Daxing District, very far from the city center.

we plan to Beijing on 1.6.2012 to 7.6.2012 with my children .help me and tell me what i should pack ?

Reply2/13/2012 2:23:28 AMkalaiwani, Malaysia

Norm :2/13/2012 7:30:45 PM

it will be hot summer then, and you only need to take your summer clothes, and maybe a hat and some sunscreen.

kalaiwani :2/17/2012 4:41:46 AM

thank u

i'll be travelling to beijing on feb, 19th, 2012 till 24th of feb. how's the temperature and what should i bring?

Reply2/8/2012 11:39:02 PMRirin, Indonesia

Mars :2/9/2012 5:42:14 PM

it is very cold in Beijing, the lowest temperature could be -8 C, so take warm clothes like down jacket, scarf, gloves, and boots.

I booked a tour for Beijing & Shanghai Feb 19-26, 2012. What type weather should I expect in the 2 cities? Will it snow? And.... are there mostly squatter-type toilets or will I easily find western style bathrooms? Thanks.

Reply1/4/2012 1:07:35 PMDaphne, United States

Susan :1/4/2012 6:39:23 PM

usually it is cold in the two places, so you'd better take warm clothes, like down jacket, and scarf and gloves are also necessary.
Shanghai would be much warmer than in Beijing.
it may snow Beijing, but I'm not sure, you konw, it's hard to predict the weather, so you can check the weather forecast three days before your departure.
toilets in hotels are usually western style, but some public toilets are squartter-type.
there are also western style toilets in the airport, so take it easy.
good luck!

Hello. We booked a tour for 10/9/12 & was planning to arrive in Beijing on 10/5. Since the nat'l holiday is the 1st & most people take the whole week off would the city be super pack, there is another cruise on 10/25. Are we better off changing our cruise to 10/25?, which is the better time, weather wise?

Reply11/4/2011 8:37:00 AMMarilyn, United States

Bobby :11/4/2011 6:11:38 PM

Yeah, I think you should change your tour to Oct 25, since it will be rather crowded both in Beijing and most of the attractions in other Chinese cities during the 7-day National Day Holiday.

Please recommend what to pack on 23Nov-28Nov 2011, Beijing travel. what kind of clothing, shoe, skin protection. TQ

Reply10/23/2011 9:22:18 PMGraceMoo, Malaysia

Emily :10/24/2011 7:59:55 PM

the GraceMoo,
the temperature could drop below 0 degree Celsius, so wear long johns, thick sweaters, down jacket, and boots.

Will be travelling to Beijing tomorrow can you recommend what to pack?

Reply9/26/2011 4:37:21 AMPearl Mokoka, South Africa

Candy :9/26/2011 7:16:11 PM

hi Pearl,
pack some warm clothes, for it's getting cold now.

Hi
what is the best way to buy a train ticket, I have heard it is very hard to do this at the train station, will a travel agent in Beijing be better.
Thanks

Reply9/1/2011 7:49:28 PMGuy palmore, China

Susan :9/4/2011 8:05:30 PM

yes, it is usually hard to get a train ticket. you can ask an agent to buy the tickets for you.
you can book the ticket here on this page:
http://www.beijingtrip.com/china-train/

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