The number of international tourists visiting China has been rising rapidly, and increased to 40m last year from just over 30m in 2018, the Japan National Tourist Organisation said earlier this year.
We want to leave you a selection of 10 tips to make a trip to China easier that we believe will help you both in the preparation of the trip and once you are there.
1. Ask questions with a smile
The Chinese are very friendly, so if you walk down the road and someone comes up to you and talks to you, don't be afraid. At the same time, once you have a problem, just smile and ask any passerby for help and they will be very happy to help you.
At that time, as we were not familiar with the ways, we had to ask the locals for help. Only then did I realize the difference between the mandarin in real scene and the mandarin we had learnt in school.
2. Don't randomly order a menu if you don't know what that is
You might think that this statement is exaggerated, when you order in a restaurant, in most of them the menus are not in English, try to bring an offline translator or better yet. Some drawings of the most generic dishes/foods like vegetable, chicken, meat, egg...
We are sure that it will be of great help to you when that moment comes when you are in front of a menu in Chinese, with 50 options to choose from and you don't even know where to start. Otherwise, you may order a terrible insect dish.
They said insects can be a good source of protein, vitamins and minerals, and eating insects would reduce the consumption of meat.
3. Speaking Chinese, a real help on a trip to China
If there is one country where only the local language is spoken. So it is something to consider and raise some solution such as learning Chinese online to make the trip to China easier and much more complete.
In some foreigners eyes', the learning of Chinese has become the most difficult thing for them. In 2013, I came to Beijing Language University to study Chinese, When I arrived, I felt Chinese people were very kind, studied hard and had a lot of wisdom.
Statistics show, at the end of 2008, more than 40 million foreigners around the world were learning Chinese in 3,000 schools in 100 countries. So learning Chinese, not only can make your journey more convenient, maybe you will use it later.
4. Toilet
Have you heard of the Asian squat? It's when the squatter keeps their heels firmly planted on the ground instead of rising up on their toes.
Even though most hotels now have toilets. But in public toilets, or in small towns, it's rare. You have to learn to squat in Asia. It's not a joke!
5. Don't believe the size of the map
This is something to keep in mind especially when you are in big cities and looking at the guide you plan a visit to that temple that seems to be so close to your accommodation. That closeness will probably turn into a 1-hour walk.
You can choose to travel by subway or take a taxi, and you can also call DiDi online, the Chinese version of Uber.
This also applies to the time when you are planning your trip, as distances are very important when managing visits and schedules for the day, so keep this in mind!
It's best to plan your travel itinerary a month in advance. For example, I look online at travel tips and I know where the most attractive places are, and where to stay. I also hope these tips will work for you.
Have a good trip!
