The Complete China Packing & Prep Checklist

China is easier to travel through when you prepare a few things before you go. Maps, payments, internet access, and other everyday tools can work differently there, and fixing them after you arrive can be difficult. Set them up before your flight, while you still have reliable internet and access to your usual apps.

This is a before-you-leave checklist, not a packing list. It covers documents, money, and the digital setup you’ll want to have ready before your trip.

Documents

Your passport needs at least six months of validity beyond your departure date from China. Airlines and border agents check this on the spot. Save a photo of the passport photo page locally on your phone, not just in your email, since Gmail and most cloud inboxes are unreachable on the mainland without a VPN.

There are two visa paths, so know which applies to you before you book:

• Standard tourist (L) visa: commonly issued with 90 days of validity and a 30-day stay per entry. The exact terms, including single vs. multiple entry and stay length, depend on your nationality and what you apply for.
• 240-hour (10-day) visa-free transit: now covers passport holders from 57 countries, entering through any of 65 approved ports across 24 provinces. It’s granted at the border, not in advance. It only works if you’re genuinely continuing to a third country (not looping back home) and you stay inside the approved zone for your entry point. Have your onward ticket ready for immigration.

Round out the folder with hotel confirmations and an itinerary copy (offline copies save real time at customs), plus your travel insurance policy number saved somewhere that works without internet. If you plan to drive, note that an International Driving Permit alone doesn’t let you drive in mainland China. You’d need a Chinese license, so your home license mostly works as backup ID.

Money & Payments

Bring a card and a little cash as backup. The real prep is digital.

Set up Alipay and WeChat Pay before you leave. Both now accept foreign Visa and Mastercard, and as of 2026, verified foreign users get a $5,000 per-transaction limit and a $50,000 annual limit. That’s plenty for hotels and shopping. Payments under ¥200 are typically fee-free, while anything above triggers a 3% cross-border fee on the whole transaction, so it can be worth splitting a payment that lands near the line.

If your trip touches more than one region, remember that mainland China uses the Chinese Yuan (CNY), Hong Kong uses the Hong Kong Dollar (HKD), and Taiwan uses the New Taiwan Dollar (TWD).

Digital Essentials

This section determines how your first 24 hours go.

Get connected: eSIM, local SIM, or both. An eSIM routes your data through international networks, so many otherwise-blocked apps simply work. ZoogVPN, our VPN pick below, also sells a Travel eSIM that covers 170+ countries, including China. It activates from a QR code and runs alongside your existing SIM, so you keep your home number for calls and texts. Order and install it before you leave, since activation requires a working connection. A data eSIM typically won’t come with a +86 number, and some Chinese apps and delivery services specifically ask for one, so if you’ll be leaning on those, a local SIM is worth carrying as well.

Then install a VPN before you fly. An eSIM only covers the data plan it runs on. It won’t help on hotel wifi, café networks, or a local SIM, and VPN websites and app store listings are themselves blocked inside mainland China, so you can’t fix this after arrival. Our recommendation is ZoogVPN. Its Shadow protocol is built for heavily restricted networks, disguising VPN traffic as ordinary HTTPS to get past deep-inspection firewalls like the GFW. There’s a free plan, so you can install it and test it at home at no cost.

The simplest setup is to use the two together. The eSIM gets you online the moment you land, for a Didi ride or a map, and the VPN covers hotel wifi, cafés, and any time the eSIM is switched off. Here’s how to set up the VPN:

1. Install and register at home. The firewall blocks VPN download pages, so download the app and create your account while you still have open internet. If you’re already in China and the main site won’t load, try the mirror address zoog.pro.
2. Choose the Shadow protocol. Open the app and select Shadow in the protocol settings, since it’s the one designed for restrictive networks.
3. Connect to a nearby server. Singapore usually gives the best balance of speed and reliability from China. Germany, the US, the Netherlands, and the UK are also available on the free plan.
4. Test it before you leave. Confirm it connects, then check that Gmail, Google Drive, and your usual messaging apps load. VPN performance in China can vary by city and network, so download a second VPN as a backup for the odd day when your first choice is slow.

Power. Mainland China runs on 220V/50Hz and uses Type A and Type I sockets. Hong Kong also runs on 220V/50Hz but uses Type G (the British-style three-pin plug), so if both are on your route, bring a universal adapter that covers A, I, and G. Taiwan runs on 110-120V/60Hz, Type A only.

Power banks. The rules changed, and much older advice is now wrong. Since June 28, 2025, China’s aviation authority has strictly enforced a CCC (3C) certification requirement for power banks on domestic flights. Security checks for the mark at the gate, and CE, FCC, or UL certification won’t save a bank that lacks it. It gets confiscated on the spot, regardless of brand or price. Capacity tiers also apply:

• Under 100Wh travels without issue.
• 100-160Wh needs advance airline approval, with a limit of two units per passenger.
• Over 160Wh isn’t allowed at all.

The rule is written for domestic flights, but travelers have reported enforcement on connecting routes with a domestic leg, so don’t assume a purely international itinerary exempts you. If your power bank isn’t CCC-marked, it’s easier to buy a certified one locally. They’re cheap and everywhere.

The Apps to Install Before You Go

A handful of apps do most of the work in China. Install them at home, not on arrival, when app stores may be inaccessible. Once each is installed, log in and confirm it works, because SMS verification codes can be slow to arrive on a roaming number.

VPN and connectivity

Install this first, since everything else is easier once your connection works. We suggest ZoogVPN.

Payments and everyday life

• Alipay: payments, and also a gateway to bike-share, city services, ticketing, and booking through built-in “mini programs.” Link your foreign card before departure.
• WeChat: messaging, payments, and mini programs. Nearly every business, guide, and tour operator uses it, and you’ll likely add contacts by scanning QR codes.

Getting around

• Amap (Gaode) or Apple Maps: Apple Maps works without a VPN and draws its China data from Amap, so it’s reliably accurate. Google Maps stays unreliable even through a VPN, because Chinese law mandates a coordinate offset on civilian mapping data that can shift your blue dot by hundreds of metres.
• Didi: ride-hailing. Foreigners can register and pay with an international card or a linked Alipay/WeChat wallet, with no Chinese bank account needed. Set it up and link payment before you travel.
• 12306 (or Trip.com as an easier fallback): train tickets. 12306 accepts a foreign passport for registration, but buying tickets online requires a Chinese (+86) phone number. Without one, you can only buy at a station counter. Trip.com accepts a foreign passport and international card directly, with no local number needed, so it’s the simpler option for most visitors.

Language

• Baidu Translate or Microsoft Translator: use these instead of Google Translate, which shut down its mainland service in October 2022 and won’t load on Chinese networks without a VPN. Download offline language packs for whichever you choose, for the moments you have no signal.
• Pleco: a widely used Chinese dictionary that’s handy for reading menus and signs.

Food and discovery

• Meituan: food delivery and more. It runs more smoothly with a +86 number, which is a good reason to grab a local SIM for stays of more than a few days.
• Dianping: restaurant reviews and ratings.
• Xiaohongshu (RedNote): a popular source of local tips, cafés, and things to do.

Health & Basics

Keep this short. A basic kit covers most needs: something for travelers’ diarrhea, any prescriptions in original packaging with a spare supply, and the usual painkillers and antihistamines. Most mainland hotels supply the basics free, but Hong Kong hotels no longer provide complimentary single-use toiletries after its April 2024 plastics ban, so bring your own if Hong Kong is on your route. Deodorant is hard to find outside major supermarkets, so pack it. Add sun protection and a compact umbrella, since intense sun and sudden rain are both common. If you’re heading north or west, bring moisturizer for the dry climate.

Clothing

Pack for the season. Summers in the south are hot and humid, and aggressively air-conditioned indoors, so bring a light layer. Winters in the north are cold and dry, and layering beats bulk. Bring comfortable walking shoes, since distances between sights are bigger than the map suggests. Chinese clothing sizes run smaller than Western standards, so don’t count on buying replacements locally if you’re above an average frame.

Traveling with Kids

A favorite toy or book helps in an unfamiliar environment. Stick to your child’s usual formula or food brand where you can. If you’d rather buy diapers locally, Pampers and Huggies are stocked in international supermarkets in major cities. Tap water isn’t safe to drink untreated anywhere in the country, including for mixing formula, so boil it or use bottled. Most taxis and Didi rides don’t come with a car seat, so bring your own or check whether your tour operator can supply one. For long high-speed rail legs, download entertainment ahead of time, as onboard wifi tends to be patchy.