China is like New Zealand, in that nobody tells you it’s going to be pricey and it therefore feels a lot more expensive than it perhaps is in the grand scheme of things. Even though the food and drink is almost as cheap as, say, the more expensive parts of South East Asia, the accommodation is a bit of a surprise because it is a lot more expensive in comparison… as is the cost of a train journey (although this makes sense if you consider the very long distances you are travelling). The entrance fees to parks and excursions aimed at tourist are expensive, so budget accordingly.

As always, if your trip to China is not part of a RTW or longer trip, you will probably consider it a reasonably priced country.
 

Visas

As you might remember, we had to get our tourist visa for China from Thailand, as it can only be applied for within three months of travel (maximum). We chose to apply for the Visa in Bangkok, as the one day process is affordable at 2300 BHT or €52 (American citizens pay more). The only problem is that not everyone is eligible for the same day service (e.g.: British citizens are permitted to use this service, whereas Spanish citizens are not).

The embassy gets extremely busy, so make sure you get there around 8 - 8.30 to get a place in the queue. If not, you can expect to spend over an hour or more waiting around. Get a ticket as soon as you go in if there are already a lot of people waiting, and start filling out your form!

 

Prices and Services
See the different services available in the Chinese Embassy of Bangkok (updated May 2014) below:
Same day service 2,300 THB
2 - 3 working days service 1,900 THB
4 working days (the normal service) 1,100 THB

 

We went for the 4 working day service, as Isma’s Spanish passport couldn’t be processed in 1 day and were returned our passports and Visas within 3 days despite a bank holiday the same week. You will be given a ticket with the exact day that you need to return to collect your Visa and must ensure you’re there on that day.

 

Requirements

Although the process for a tourist visa for China is fairly straightforward in Europe, as long as you have a job, this is not the case in Thailand, or at least in Bangkok. The requirements for obtaining a tourist visa are:

1. A photocopy of your passport
2. A photocopy of your Thai Visa / Thai immigration stamp
3. A photocopy of any previous Chinese Visas.
4. A photocopy of a bank statement
5. A letter from your company stating that you have permission to go to China (if you are self employed you need to write a letter stating that you are going for pleasure and have sufficient funds to support yourself throughout the trip).
6. A full itinerary of your entire stay in China with additional details of:
a) departure from Bangkok (without definite evidence of this you may be refused a visa)  
b) arrival into China, whether it’s by land or air
c) departure from China
7. Hotel reservations in China (Simplify the journey as much as possible if you don’t have a detailed itinerary as the cities you visit once you are there are of no interest to the authorities).

 

Extra help

And once you have all of this you will be granted a Visa! If you need any templates etc. for employment letters, itineraries etc. please feel free to get in touch with me via email mika.kohli@gmail.com. We had to spend a whole evening trying to demonstrate a two month route from Bangkok to Beijing (as we were visiting 3 countries before entering China), and it would be great if it could help someone else get things prepared quicker.

 

Accommodation

We were in triple rooms for most of the trip, as we had a friend travelling with us, which made rooms a little cheaper. We also spent many nights on trains, which saved on a few nights of accommodation. In total, the two of us spent €300 on 11 nights of accommodation - €28 a night for two people in total.

A couple of recommendations:

Trippers Carpe Diem in Yangshuo: 40 CNY €5 / night for 1 bed in a 4 bed dorm.
Zhangjiajie Yanran Inn: €9 / night per person, or €24 for a triple room. This place is walking distance from the National Park.
 

Food and Drink

The food in China is very reasonably priced with plenty of filling snacks to suit a backpacker’s budget. It is worth noting that in many Chinese take-aways or restaurants we often have a variety of dishes from different parts of China. This, of course, won’t be the case when you’re actually in China! As with any country, each region has its own speciality dishes, so try the “Chinese hamburgers” in Xi’an made of mince pork / chicken (in the Muslim Quarter they’re made with beef) in a toasted bap (mollete) or the "Peking duck" which is more than just shredded duck pancakes when you’re actually in Beijing.

A normal lunch of noodles and pork or similar should cost around 20 CNY or €2, depending on what part of the country you’re in. Dinner tends to be more expensive, and is likely to cost double this, including beer which should be between 15CNY and 20CNY for a 1.5ltr bottle (€1.50 - €2.40).

Steamed buns can be found pretty much anywhere and are a filling and cheap snack. If travelling by train remember to make the most of the boiling water found in the carriages by purchasing instant noodles sold in the stations and supermarkets beforehand . This costs next to nothing and will keep you going on those long overnight journeys.
 

Transport

The trains in China are nowhere near as cheap as neighbouring countries such as India, despite the quality being of more or less the same standard. The night trains will, however, save on accommodation costs and “dinner money”, as instant noodles can be bought beforehand for very little and are big enough to fill you up.
Book tickets at least a couple of days in advance to get a choice of bed (lower, middle or upper sleeper) and go for the hard sleeper unless money is not an issue. Contrary to the name, the mattress is good enough to sleep on comfortably.

We had the pleasure of sleeping in a soft sleeper cabin on one of our trips due to no other availability and although it was a lot more expensive (see below), the general level of comfort was incomparable (there were upper and lower bunks in a quiet, 4 bunk cabin).

We also had the misfortune of “sleeping” in a hard seat due to zero availability, and it was probably one of the most uncomfortable nights of my life. It was literally a hard, uncomfortable seat that didn’t even slightly recline in a cramped carriage full of men smoking away at all hours. Avoid having to do this at all costs - it’s an experience you really don’t need to have and should be a lot cheaper than it was.

Night train Guangzhou to Guilin: 214 Yuan / €26
Night train Guilin to Zhangjiajie (via Liuzhou) 206 Yuan / 24€ each  
Night train from Zhangjiajie to X’ian: 160 Yuan / €19 each
Night train from X’ian to Beijing: 400 Yuan each / €48 each
 

Excursions
This is where most of the money goes on a trip to China. There are many attractions to see and some of them are a little expensive, but they are generally worth it. Things here are done on a BIG scale, so you do feel like you’re getting your money’s worth. Some examples:

Safari Park 250 CNY (€30) each
Yangshuo Light Show 238 CNY (for seats without obstructions) (€30)
Wuligyuan 248 CNY for a three day pass (€30)
Silver Cave + Moon hill 157CNY (€18 each)
bamboo boat ride in Yangshuo with space to take bikes: 166 CNY for two (€20) - requires negotiation
Great Wall of China 45 CNY (€5.40)

 

Money makes the world go round

Like India, China is a place where you can haggle for pretty much anything, but remember there are limitations unless you look and speak Chinese (which is unlikely unless you actually are Chinese). Unlike India, market vendors start extremely high (they will state European prices to begin with despite the goods being imitations), so buying anything can often be time-consuming if you like a good bargain. Remember to always state a third less than the amount you really want to pay, building up to it slowly and walking away once you have given your “final price”. If they come after you (they probably will) regardless of whether or not they then agree to your price at first, you will get what you wanted. If they don’t call you to come back, you might have gone too low - try the next place and go a little higher. Remember that the sellers will never make a loss by selling you something for the price you finally agree on, despite the stories they will tell you about their cost price etc. At the same time, it’s important to remember that it is all a bit of game and you should put prices into perspective before getting carried away and not buying things you like because of a few pennies!

 

So how much?!
Visas: €25 (European citizens) from Bangkok embassy of China - see local embassy for current price.
Accommodation:  €28 a night (for two people) see more detailed breakdown above.
Food and drink: €15 a day (including beer)
Transport: €118 see routes above or check out seat61.com for other popular routes, times and fares