We did our first trip to China in October 2024, and wanted to share some of the things we learned. While our trip was through Viking and included both land-based exploration and coastal cruising the South China Sea, most new travelers to China face the same hurdles and we’re glad to share what we learned.
Background on the PRC Financial Systems: One thing you will learn, as our guides in Hong Kong and Macau frequently reminded us, is that the PRC operates under a “One Country, Two (Financial) Systems” situation. The greatest portion of the country operates under the PRC (communist) economic system. When the Republic of Hong Kong was returned to PRC control by the UK in 1997, and Macau by the Portuguese in 1999, the PRC agreed to let those economic systems remain as capitalistic for 50 years. Both have thrived, each with their own monetary system, with Macau becoming the gambling and gaming center for all of Asia. Mega Casinos, many with familiar names (Sands, Venetian, Parisian, MGM, etc.) but Chinese majority control dominate the skyline of Macau. While the currencies may differ between Macau, Hong Kong, and mainland China, it operates as a relatively cashless society. The official currency of the PRC is the Renminbi, more typically called the Yuan. At the time of this writing, 1 USD was equivalent to just under 7 Yuan (1 Yuan = 0.14 USD). But most purchases are made electronically, either with credit card or more commonly phone apps such as Alipay. We had installed the Alipay app on our phones (linked to one of our credit cards) and typically used that or our credit cards for purchases throughout the PRC. We carried a small amount of Yuan, primarily for tipping our tour guides, tour drivers, and interpreters. One note: Visa, MasterCard, and Discover are more commonly accepted than American Express in China (due to service costs), however AMEX was often accepted in larger cities.
Tipping: tipping is not common in China, as Chinese culture emphasizes hospitality. Most firms expect employees to provide outstanding service as part of their job requirements, and tipping can even be viewed as rude and insulting. However, as more and more Westerners visit the PRC, the mores are gradually changing, at least in some situations. Tipping is uncommon in restaurants and bars, although some upscale restaurants may add a service charge to the bill. Tipping of bellhops/skycaps is becoming more common at luxury hotels. Tipping is also becoming more typical for tour guides and drivers for group tours. By the way, both Macau and Hong Kong are much more Westernized and one is expected to follow Western tipping policies when visiting there.
Visas: unlike fairly simple-to-complete online Electronic Travel Authorizations (ETA) for travel to Canada, UK, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, etc., China requires submission of a complete Visa application, including submission of your passport and passport photos that meet PRC requirements. For USA citizens the cost in 2024 was $140 USD and the visa is good for 10 years, even if your passport changes during that period. Many travelers utilize private companies to complete the Visa application, and costs for full service may exceed $1000 USD. One can, however, complete the process themselves, as we chose to do. The application can be filled out online, the biggest impediment is that the application needs to be dropped off at one of the Regional PRC Consulates or Embassies, and if not completed properly or lacking all the required materials (passport, evidence of residence, photocopy of passport, photos, online submission of application form, $140.00 application fee) it will not be accepted. If accepted, the process typically takes 4-5 days, and requires a claim check (given to you when your application was accepted) to pick up your USA passport with the completed Visa stamp in it. We live in the southeastern USA and our application needed to be submitted at the Visa Application Office at the PRC Embassy in Washington DC. I fortunately had a trip scheduled so could submit it in person and make sure all materials were present, however, I was not going to be in Washington DC to pick it up. We utilized Oasis Visa Services, located adjacent to the PRC Visa Office, to pick our passports up with my claim check and FedEx the passports back to us (cost was $95 USD). From my description of what we went through, you can see why many people chose to use a private application service provider – although it means your passport will be out of your hands for 4 – 6 weeks (less if paying extra for expedited service) and you are trusting a private firm with very detailed personal information. One final note – the visa application form requires identification of arrival and departure dates and the addresses of your lodgings while in the PRC, so can’t be submitted until you have all your travel details and flights finalized.
Savy Senior Travelers 
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