China Travel Survival Guide
Practical intelligence for independent travelers in China.
China is an incredible country to explore — but traveling independently can be surprisingly complicated when you don’t know how things work.
Eastern Compass helps you solve the practical problems that can turn a great trip into a frustrating one.
Start PlanningChina Is Easier When You Know the System
Many travelers discover that the difficult part of China isn’t deciding where to go. It’s figuring out how to do everyday things once you arrive.
- How do you pay when everyone is using QR codes?
- How do you get reliable internet?
- Which apps do you actually need?
- How do you book a high-speed train?
- How do you get around a Chinese city?
- What happens when something doesn’t go according to plan?
Eastern Compass focuses on these real-world travel problems — and explains how to solve them.
Start With What You Need
Don’t read hundreds of generic travel articles. Start with the problem you need to solve.
Paying in China
Learn how foreigners can use Alipay, WeChat Pay, bank cards and cash in China.
Learn about payments →Internet & eSIM
Understand your connectivity options before you arrive, including eSIM, SIM and Wi-Fi.
Get connected →Essential Apps
Find out which apps are useful for payments, transport, translation, maps and everyday travel.
See essential apps →China Trains
Learn how to book train tickets, understand Chinese railway stations and travel by high-speed rail.
Plan your train journey →Getting Around
Understand taxis, DiDi, metro systems and other ways to move around Chinese cities.
Explore Chinese cities →Travel Survival
Practical advice for the situations that can catch independent travelers by surprise.
Travel with confidence →Your Phone Becomes Your Travel Toolkit
In China, your smartphone can become your payment method, translator, map, transport assistant and communication tool.
That’s why preparing your phone before your flight is one of the most important things you can do.
Prepare Your PhoneBefore You Fly to China
- Set up your payment apps
- Check your international card
- Arrange internet connectivity
- Install essential travel apps
- Prepare offline translation
- Save important addresses in Chinese
- Carry a backup payment method
- Keep some RMB cash as a backup
Travel Information Should Be Practical
Eastern Compass is not designed to be another website telling you that the Great Wall is worth visiting or that Shanghai has impressive skyscrapers.
You can find that information almost anywhere.
Our job is different.
We want to answer the questions that appear when you’re standing in a Chinese railway station, trying to pay for dinner, looking for your hotel or wondering why an app isn’t working.
We focus on the practical details that make independent travel easier.
Don’t just know where to go. Know how to travel.
Ready for China?
Start with the practical information you need before you board your flight.
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