Off to China on hols, any tips?
Discussion
Hi all,
So. going to China with Mrs WR for fourteen days in October, flying to Shanghai from Manchester, via Amsterdam.
Itinerary is basically four day cruise on the Yangtze river, bullet train. terracotta warriors, pandas, Great wall and Beijing
It is an organised trip with Wendy Wu tours.
The thing is, I am very fussy with my food, I don't like Chicken, Pork, Eggs, Lamb, but I do like Beef Curry and Chips
and I suppose I could live on boiled rice if I had to,
My ideal meals are beans on toast and puddin' chips peas and gravy.
Any tips gratefully received
Cheers.
So. going to China with Mrs WR for fourteen days in October, flying to Shanghai from Manchester, via Amsterdam.
Itinerary is basically four day cruise on the Yangtze river, bullet train. terracotta warriors, pandas, Great wall and Beijing
It is an organised trip with Wendy Wu tours.
The thing is, I am very fussy with my food, I don't like Chicken, Pork, Eggs, Lamb, but I do like Beef Curry and Chips
and I suppose I could live on boiled rice if I had to,My ideal meals are beans on toast and puddin' chips peas and gravy.
Any tips gratefully received
Cheers.
The wrong trip for you?!
On a business trip to China a decade or more ago, the only recognisable items on the hotel breakfast buffet table were cigarettes and eggs, and I didn t want to try the eggs in case that were the 1000-yr old ones or have embryos inside!
But seriously if you really are that fussy then all the usual US/Euro fast food outlets abound!
On a business trip to China a decade or more ago, the only recognisable items on the hotel breakfast buffet table were cigarettes and eggs, and I didn t want to try the eggs in case that were the 1000-yr old ones or have embryos inside!
But seriously if you really are that fussy then all the usual US/Euro fast food outlets abound!
Edited by quarryman111 on Wednesday 26th August 14:37
I find China pretty hard to find normal food. I remember thinking the menu looked more like a map around a zoo. So asked for just chicken and rice. They just bring al the bits we'd throw away, like beak and feet. Plenty of fast food about. Easiest though in buffet type places where you can we the food before commit!
Edited by Mabbs9 on Wednesday 26th August 14:45
I'm not a fussy eater, but I can think of twice where I simply could not eat the food,
- On a China Southern plane, where the inflight meal appeared to be gristle in black bean sauce.
- In a restaurant in Hong Kong, where a portion of chicken feet was swapped with a local for their cake. I don't speak Cantonese, but I definitely understood the "look at this stupid tourist, wasting good chicken feet!"
I'd imagine an organised tour will be as western as they can possibly get the food. Maybe vegetarian options would work?
- On a China Southern plane, where the inflight meal appeared to be gristle in black bean sauce.
- In a restaurant in Hong Kong, where a portion of chicken feet was swapped with a local for their cake. I don't speak Cantonese, but I definitely understood the "look at this stupid tourist, wasting good chicken feet!"
I'd imagine an organised tour will be as western as they can possibly get the food. Maybe vegetarian options would work?
Make sure AliPay works before you go and have multiple cards setup on it. Payments were the biggest pain we had for our China trip this year.
Make sure you have an esim ready to go and don’t bother trying to use WiFi.
Ensure you know how to use Apple Translate or Google Translate.
Be aware that everything is ticketed and you’ll probably end up paying small fees everywhere.
Use Didi as it’s incredible.
Make sure you have an esim ready to go and don’t bother trying to use WiFi.
Ensure you know how to use Apple Translate or Google Translate.
Be aware that everything is ticketed and you’ll probably end up paying small fees everywhere.
Use Didi as it’s incredible.
Get an esim and set it up before you go. I tend to use Holafly with a built in VPN.
Download AliPay and WeChat and set them up with your credit card (again before you leave).
I find it better not to ask what the food is.
I assume you have a full itinerary as its a guided tour, so you will be seeing all the popular sights anyway?
Download AliPay and WeChat and set them up with your credit card (again before you leave).
I find it better not to ask what the food is.
I assume you have a full itinerary as its a guided tour, so you will be seeing all the popular sights anyway?
Traveled a lot in China,before I retired .You are going to struggle with that list of requirements big time . There is bad western type food in big cities, usually high priced,low quality and limited choice. The local food does have a lot of eat all the animal content.
If you are genuinely fussy I think you may have to make some compromises.
I don't want to eat lung and brain, and I did a few times however generally I had a few nice meals choosing more bland stuff like penis and scotum
Your on a arranged tour with lots of westerners. You will be fine . There will be a fair bit of recognisable stuff . Albeit do check it is a sausage.
If you are genuinely fussy I think you may have to make some compromises.
I don't want to eat lung and brain, and I did a few times however generally I had a few nice meals choosing more bland stuff like penis and scotum
Your on a arranged tour with lots of westerners. You will be fine . There will be a fair bit of recognisable stuff . Albeit do check it is a sausage.
Edited by cliffords on Wednesday 26th August 15:15
Edited by cliffords on Wednesday 26th August 15:52
I'll never forget the 'seafood cauldron' I once had in Hong Kong many years ago. It contained (amongst various unidentifiable specimens) baby octopus. Fully formed but babies. When we nipped into China to see a small Terracotta Army exhibition the buffet car on the train was interesting. From memory there were around 6 choices, all Chinese so I had to take pot luck. The steamed rice served from a plastic bucket on the floor took up most of my intake. The onboard toilet was a hole in the floor straight onto the track, I expect conditions may have improved.
My wife is a fussy eater and has survived. If it's a recognised international hotel chain they will cater for westerners and it (almost) impossible to mess up boiled noodles. Watch some YT travel vlogger videos of where you're going to get an idea what's out there.
We were planning on going to Japan and South Korea later this year including bullet train but there were a few internal flights involved and the frequency along with writing off most of a day flying and transiting through airports I decided against it so we're off to Singapore and Vietnam instead. I've come to like private escorted tours, so far the whole process has been seamless and well organised. Yes, I could probably do things cheaper but I'm at the age I'd rather someone else does all the work.
Good call re payment Apps, I was recommended Moreta Pay and Grab for taxis watching YT travellers. There will be similar for China.
My wife is a fussy eater and has survived. If it's a recognised international hotel chain they will cater for westerners and it (almost) impossible to mess up boiled noodles. Watch some YT travel vlogger videos of where you're going to get an idea what's out there.
We were planning on going to Japan and South Korea later this year including bullet train but there were a few internal flights involved and the frequency along with writing off most of a day flying and transiting through airports I decided against it so we're off to Singapore and Vietnam instead. I've come to like private escorted tours, so far the whole process has been seamless and well organised. Yes, I could probably do things cheaper but I'm at the age I'd rather someone else does all the work.
Good call re payment Apps, I was recommended Moreta Pay and Grab for taxis watching YT travellers. There will be similar for China.
Been to China twice this year.
On the food front - it varies a LOT between regions - but in all the major cities you will find many western brands and 7/11 etc.
So you can get burger and fries and stuff like that very easily. Pizza is easy to find too. KFC is everywhere - but very hard to order because you need a local number to use their app (also not an issue as you dont like chicken).
In terms of how the local food compares to British "Chinese" food... it simply does not compute or even come close.
For example, in Beijing you will struggle to find fried rice. Its hot pot, noodles and more hot pot!
Veg dishes are quite popular.
I suspect you might need to do sandwiches from 7/11 a fair bit - because most local places are going to be mostly chicken or pork. Neither of which you like.
I am sure you will be fine though - you can find most stuff there - it just comes down to getting your phone out and translating to check exactly what it is. Xian is one of my favourites and they have kind of spicy (mildly so) pasties which are usually minced beef. If you like food on a stick then Xian is your dream - just check its not lamb though when its red meat as its usually either beef or lamb.
Logistics.
You 100% need.
E-sim from Trip.com so you don't need an VPN.
Alipay and Wechat accounts.
Google translate
Be aware the language barrier is real. Most people will speak zero English but google translate will work ok - it does become tiresome though.
You can withdraw cash (rarely needed) from China Bank or CCB. Just walk in, go straight to the cash machine and select "foreigner" or "English", after that its pretty much like using a machine in the UK.
Be aware that your credit card might well be locked out. Even if you tell them before you go. Also be aware that you will need to be able to navigate between your banks own app and ali/ wechat to approve payments. It can cause significant problems.
If you want to use any local apps or local mini apps then you will need a local number - so be aware. That said you probably wont on a guided tour.
For entry into everywhere you will need your passport. Again on guided tour they will sort it.
Check you dont try and take stuff on the train you are not allowed to take and also check all your chargers etc are CCC approved.
There is probably loads more I forgot but on the whole its just about knowing the rules and having a good connection to the internet.
On the food front - it varies a LOT between regions - but in all the major cities you will find many western brands and 7/11 etc.
So you can get burger and fries and stuff like that very easily. Pizza is easy to find too. KFC is everywhere - but very hard to order because you need a local number to use their app (also not an issue as you dont like chicken).
In terms of how the local food compares to British "Chinese" food... it simply does not compute or even come close.
For example, in Beijing you will struggle to find fried rice. Its hot pot, noodles and more hot pot!
Veg dishes are quite popular.
I suspect you might need to do sandwiches from 7/11 a fair bit - because most local places are going to be mostly chicken or pork. Neither of which you like.
I am sure you will be fine though - you can find most stuff there - it just comes down to getting your phone out and translating to check exactly what it is. Xian is one of my favourites and they have kind of spicy (mildly so) pasties which are usually minced beef. If you like food on a stick then Xian is your dream - just check its not lamb though when its red meat as its usually either beef or lamb.
Logistics.
You 100% need.
E-sim from Trip.com so you don't need an VPN.
Alipay and Wechat accounts.
Google translate
Be aware the language barrier is real. Most people will speak zero English but google translate will work ok - it does become tiresome though.
You can withdraw cash (rarely needed) from China Bank or CCB. Just walk in, go straight to the cash machine and select "foreigner" or "English", after that its pretty much like using a machine in the UK.
Be aware that your credit card might well be locked out. Even if you tell them before you go. Also be aware that you will need to be able to navigate between your banks own app and ali/ wechat to approve payments. It can cause significant problems.
If you want to use any local apps or local mini apps then you will need a local number - so be aware. That said you probably wont on a guided tour.
For entry into everywhere you will need your passport. Again on guided tour they will sort it.
Check you dont try and take stuff on the train you are not allowed to take and also check all your chargers etc are CCC approved.
There is probably loads more I forgot but on the whole its just about knowing the rules and having a good connection to the internet.
I would definitely say that if you are there with someone else then you both should add multiple cards to AliPay and WeChat. If your cards don t work it s a real problem. Do not wait until you arrive in China to do this. They might work a few times then stop, or they might work for days and stop. We had a lot of issues with this when I was there earlier this year. If you get card issues resolving them in China isn t going to be simple.
Didi is like a way better Uber and we used it more than 60x in three weeks.
Didi is like a way better Uber and we used it more than 60x in three weeks.
Yep defo get it tested before you go. There are some online places that let you try it out for literally pence. Worth it to test and get a payment done in the UK first.
The DiDi mini app for taxi in Alipay will work ok without local number. But if you try and use it for food delivery it wont work.
If you want to do food delivery to your hotel then go to your hotel reception and ask them to order and then wechat them the money plus a little tip.
We had pizza twice on our last visit no issues with the reception staff ordering on their phones for us.
FWIW my wifes card was blocked after about 3 days on our first trip. Its defo a lottery!
Having a backup of a back up is a serious recommendation!
The DiDi mini app for taxi in Alipay will work ok without local number. But if you try and use it for food delivery it wont work.
If you want to do food delivery to your hotel then go to your hotel reception and ask them to order and then wechat them the money plus a little tip.
We had pizza twice on our last visit no issues with the reception staff ordering on their phones for us.
FWIW my wifes card was blocked after about 3 days on our first trip. Its defo a lottery!
Having a backup of a back up is a serious recommendation!
Yes I think most things can be handled if you have a way to pay, but if that goes wrong it rapidly becomes a nightmare. It's very easy to have payment issues in China and I would definitely not underestimate this. It will seemingly random stop working and then maybe start again. You have to pay for things all the time. Every little thing they'll want money for. Even once you're inside an attraction they'll want money for every little thing. The stress of not knowing where AliPay will actually work every time you try and pay for something isn't great.
We found western food to be very expensive. Almost like western prices whereas local food was usually much cheaper.
We found western food to be very expensive. Almost like western prices whereas local food was usually much cheaper.
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