China is completely app-driven these days. Everything is handled by one app or another. Here are some of the most essential.
Payment
Cash is rarely used in China. Even the smallest street vendor takes payment via app. Credit cards are not widely used, and you should not depend on them being accepted. Carry a small amount of cash just in case if you go to very remote areas. Most tourists will never need cash at all, everything is app based.
There are two main apps used for payment in China: Alipay and WeChat. Alipay is by far the most common, WeChat is your backup if Alipay fails somehow. It is essential that you download both apps before you leave home, as they use sms verification and also require that you upload an image of your passport to get verified. Better to do at home than at some street vendor in Shanghai.
Alipay
Alipay is the most commonly used payment app. There are three basic modes, all using QR codes:
- Scan. The vendor directs you to a QR code and you scan it with Alipay. You then fill in the amount (or have the vendor do it) and approve with your pin code. Show the confirmation screen to the vendor to verify that you paid
- Pay. Your phone shows a QR code, and the vendor scans it, or you present it to his card reader. Done.
- Transportation. In many cities you can load their metro card into Alipay. You then get a QR code that you simply scan at the turnstiles and the amount is automatically withdrawn.
For this to all work you need to register one or several payment cards with Alipay. Again something you want to do before you leave home. Register two or three cards to be safe. I had great luck with Apple Pay via the Apple card.
When you use Alipay an exchange fee is applied to each transaction. However, you get a grace period where no fee is charged. In my case that was 90 days, more than enough to cover my entire trip. But beware of this and don’t use Alipay at home months before your trip (to book a hotel for instance) as your grace period starts on first use.
The second essential app is WeChat. It is basically an everything app, even though it started as a chat app. Inside of WeChat there are also many mini-apps for everything from hailing a DiDI (China’s Uber) to buying a train ticket.
The procedure for WeChat is largely the same as for Alipay. After downloading the app log in and upload your passport information. Verification can sometimes take a day or two, so do it well in advance of your trip. You can then register credit or debit cards, just like with Alipay.
To pay you scan the vendors QR code. Note that when the vendor has two QR code signs, the green one is for WeChat and the blue one is for Alipay.
Transportation
The three modes of transport you will most likely use in China are:
- Train
- Subway
- Taxi or DiDi
For intercity travel Chinese trains are extremely fast and comfortable. The fastest trains run at 350 km/h so an intercity trip is often much faster than flying, if you consider the shuttle to the airport, checkin, security, etc. As an example I took the train from Shanghai to Xian, a distance of 1750 km, in under six hours from city center to city center.
You need two apps for transportation, 12306 and DiDi.
12306
12306 is the official app for China Railways. You book all the trains with this app. A good thing to know is that trains can only be booked 15 days in advance, and if you are traveling during any chinese holiday, book as early as possible.
There are different classes of trains. The G trains are the fastest at up to 350 km/h, followed by the D trains at roughly 250 km/h. There is an HSR checkbox when you book that selects only the high speed trains. Note that the price is based on the distance traveled, so a slow train on a more circuitous route can be more expensive than a fast train on a straighter path for the same city pair, so don’t assume a more expensive ticket is better.
Once you have selected a particular train you are directed to a payment page with many options. Alipay or WeChat both appear on this page, but no western banks or credit cards.
Once you have paid you get a confirmation with your coach and seat number. A-B-C are three seat rows, D-F two seat rows. You usually don’t get to pick your seat, they just assign it for you, but if the train is not fully booked you can move once aboard (but prepare to show your passport if you do).
At the station, just look on the big displays for you train number and departure gate, just like at any airport. Boarding usually starts around 15 minutes before departure. Your passport is your ticket, be sure to stand in a line that is manned by an attendant that can scan your passport. The other turnstiles only accept Chinese id cards.
Look at the displays to see how many coaches are in your train, usually 1-8 or 1-16. Then find the corresponding sign on the platform with your coach number and line up to board. Trains run on time, you can just look at your watch to determine when to get off. But everything is of course announced in both Chinese and English on displays and speakers. Very worry-free.
DiDi
Didi is the Chinese version of Uber. Dowload the app and everything will feel very familiar, except the prices. DiDi is incredibly cheap, you can sometimes ride all the way through town for less than $2. Response time is usually pretty quick, but budget 10-15 minutes worst case. And just like Uber, DiDi will try to upsell you by offering faster pickup for more money. It is usually unnecessary, just skip it.
Note the license number and color of the car. 99% of the cars are electric, most of the time of a make you have never heard of.
Once the ride is over you will get a message to pay and review the driver. Unless it was truly awful, be nice.
Subway
Most major Chinese cities have extensive subway systems nowadays. They are very efficient, spotlessly clean, and with very frequent service. Everything is signed in Chinese and English, so navigating the system is a breeze. Stations are announced in English, and live maps show you where you are at all times. In large cities taking the subway can often be faster than a taxi, especially with rush hour traffic.
Payment systems differ, but you don’t need any additional apps. In Shanghai you can just tap your credit card or phone, but in other cities you may need to pay with Alipay, see above. Just install the local metro card for the city you are in into Alipay, and pay with QR code. Fares are very low, starting at only a couple of yuan.
Maps
Google Maps does not work in China. Apple Maps works, but not reliably since the Chinese authorities offset map data by a few hundred meters at random. This may not seem much, but when you are wandering around looking for your hotel it is.
Amap is a map app that works more reliably. Download before you leave home since you need to verify with sms or email. Baidu maps is the Chinese version of Google maps, but it is mostly in Chinese and not easy to navigate (no pun intended).
The maps to your hotel in Trip.com also seem to work reliably for finding your hotel. Copy the hotel address in Chinese into one of the map apps for turn-by-turn directions.
Hotel booking
The app that has the largest inventory in China is Trip.com. Booking.com also works, but it does not have as many hotels. Agoda is another app with reasonable inventory.
If you travel on a budget, make sure to look for hotels that let you cancel your booking without penalties if your plans change. And of course scour the reviews to see if there is anything wrong with the hotel. Make sure you get a room with a window.