Tips for China Travel

China is a great country.

You get to see the wonder of the world, and the natural beauties when you visit different parts of China.

The China travel experience changes as you travel across the country.

Your China travel experience in Beijing is vastly different from that of Guizhou province.

You will feel that you are going to two different countries instead.

If you want to make your China travel experience enjoyable, there are a few things you have to bear in mind.

1. Toilet paper

It is possible to find toilet paper in the public toilets in big cities or popular travel destination.

If you are traveling to remote parts of China, you better bring along toilet paper.

The usage of toilet paper, and the flushing of toilet paper into the toilet bowl, has not entered the mind of most Chinese people yet.

Most of the toilets in China are the squat type.

2. Chinese tea

It is natural for tourists to buy Chinese tea when they visit China.

If you want to buy Chinese tea for daily consumption, you should buy them from the supermarket.

The Chinese do not buy the tea leaves from tourist destinations, since the price is meant for tourists, and not residents.

You can drink premium tea from the tea houses.

3. Chocolate

Bring chocolate from your home town. It is hard to find good chocolate in China.

The chocolate does not tastes like chocolate. The good chocolate is too expensive.

You need energy when you go for a hike in the mountain. Chocolate is the best energy food under the circumstance.

4. Coffee

If you are a coffee drinker, you need to bring your own coffee.

It is better to bring instant coffee, especially the 3-in-1 instant coffee. It is hard to find sugar to make coffee.

The concept of adding sugar into beverages is very foreign to most Chinese.

They do not add anything into the Chinese tea.

5. Medicines

You need to bring medicine to lower fever and stop diarrhea.

You will experience diarrhea if you are not used to the spicy food in certain parts of China.

The Chinese has strong stomach. They can eat practically everything. You are not made in the same way. You are likely to have an upset stomach after a hot and spicy meal.

The food is nice in China. The Chinese has the skill to cook practically everything and makes it nice.

You can eat snake, ants, scorpions, eels, and sparrows within a week in China, especially when you visit the Western part of China.

6. Money

Never ever flush your money around.

You must have enough cash to spend. You must change enough cash if you are traveling to little known provinces in China.

The concept of credit cards is very foreign to the minorities living in China.

They recognize cash. However, you need to keep them close to you, and never ever let the money and passport leave your sight.

7. Hand sanitizer

The idea of washing your hand before you eat is laughable in the countryside. Even the concept of washing hands after using the toilet is not practical across the country.

You cannot even trust the water quality. The cooked food is all right since cooking kills the bacteria.

However, the water that runs from the tap or the well may not meet your standard of hygiene.

It is best to bring your hand sanitizer. You will not regret the decision. You may even use it to clean your hands 20 times a day.

8. Join the local day tour

The best way to save money on China travel is to join the day tour.

Even if the tour guide does not speak English well, you are assured of your safety when traveling with the locals.

Nearly all tour guides in China speak English. The problem is in the command of the language.

The local day tour usually has more than 20 tourists. They do not practice giving tips to the tour guide.

You will eat as they eat, and you will see how the locals travel.

You are likely to set off at 6 am for the day tour, and return to the hotel at 9 pm. The fellow tourists are likely to speak English very well.

They are the businessmen on business trips with a day or two to spare, students on student exchange or locals joining the day tour to get out of the city for a day.

About me:

Scheng1 is a passionate blogger from Singapore. Rich in every sense reveals my deep desire in enjoying life, and be rich in every possible ways. Personal Finance is about money, from making money to investing money.  Retirement in Asia contains resources on retirement planning.