Air ticket taken, backpack ready, travel itinerary sketched and a lot of enthusiasm to discover a new culture. Nothing is missing, right? It’s not really like that.

A trip to China requires a minimum of preparation: the difficulties to be faced are many, first of all the language barrier and the reluctance of people in providing help.

Here is the complete list of the essential things to do in view of a trip to China to avoid being unprepared.

1. VISA

To be able to enter China it is necessary to have obtained a visa. You can apply to the Chinese consulate or one of the many visa agencies that will take care of the entire practice.

Visitor visa allows a stay in China for 30 days. The request must be presented in advance but not too much: the visa has, in fact, a validity of three months from the date of issue. We therefore recommend that you submit your visa application one or two months before the scheduled date of the trip.

Pay attention to the expiry date of the passport: it’s necessary that the passport does not expire before 6 months. Otherwise, you must first apply for the renewal of the passport for safe beings to obtain a visa.

It’s not necessary to apply for a visa if you are going to Hong Kong, Macao or Hainan. If, on the other hand, you make a stopover in China, you can request a temporary visa for the transit of 24, 72 or 144 hours directly at the airport.

2. APP LOCALIZATION: MAPS ME

The application Maps me, which can be downloaded for free, has the advantage of working offline: it’s sufficient to download the maps of the areas that you intend to visit and zoom in on the areas of interest, the app will make an additional download that will be saved on the phone even in the absence of internet connection.

The maps are very detailed, with indication of the panoramic and commercial points as well as public transport stops.

3. INSTANT TRANSLATION APPLICATIONS

Let’s start from a fact: in China no one, if not a very small percentage (which we have not found!), speaks English! Is the same in the large cities: English is off limits! Apart from some indications translated into English, you will find yourself faced with a difficult language barrier to overcome and the reluctance of people to give you a hand.

But nothing is impossible! With the help of several translation applications it’s possible to start a basic communication to find the necessary informations and organize the trip by yourself.

We tried a bit, but only two were really helpful during our trip.

Here are the apps that have literally saved us during our trip .

– Google translate

The application allows instant translation, also via camera and voice playback, to Chinese (to choose the “Simplified Chinese” version). This application requires internet connection .

– Pleco (off line application)

It’s ideal for simple translations of individual words. It also allows you to manually enter Chinese symbols and find the corresponding translation. In this last case, you need the latest generation of smartphones, where you can draw the symbols with your finger.

Point in favor of the app is the ability to work even without using the internet.

4. VPN

In China some sites and social networks are blocked and inaccessible (Google, Facebook, Whatsapp). To use them it is essential to use a Vpn (virtual private network).

There are several versions on the market. After several consultations on the net, we opted for Express vpn. The cost is around € 10 per month, with the possibility to request a refund within 30 days from payment. So, if you are planning a trip to China less than a month you can download the application and then request a refund. The app works well and connects quickly.

5. SUBWAY APPLICATIONS

Beijing, the great Chinese capital, can be a good starting point for your travel itinerary to discover China (look our travel itinerary in China).

Visit this metropolis only on foot is impossible: the city stretches for more than 16.000 kmq and the places of interest are scattered in different areas far away each other.

It’ s a good idea use the efficient subway, which counts as many as 16 lines!

Signals and directions in the subway are translated into English but it can be helpful to use the free Beijing subway app: just indicate the departure and arrival point and the app calculates the route to follow, which metro line use and time to use. The same version can also be downloaded for Shanghai.

6. WE CHAT

WeChat is the messaging app par excellence in China.

It may be useful to download it in order to get in touch with any local guides.

We had difficulty downloading it once we arrived in China: access was blocked by several “security tests”. It’s better try to download the application before the departure.