r/travelchina

Qiandao Lake is honestly perfect for a weekend from Hangzhou!

Day 1

Took the high-speed train from Hangzhou to Qiandao Lake Station (about 45 mins). After arriving, there was a hotel shuttle bus directly from the station to the hotel. I bought the ticket on site (15 RMB pp).

I only got half a day so rented an electric scooter and rode around the lake area, stopping at Xiushui Square, Manner Coffee, the Beer Town, and the lighthouse. For dinner, I had local Chun’an bighead carp (this is the signature dish and one big head is definitely enough for 2).

Day 2

Enjoyed the lake view from the hotel for the whole morning. Went to the southeast lake area pier and took a boat to Huangshanjian. You can buy tickets on-site (very expensive like 200 RMB pp). The boat ride took around 20+ minutes.

To be honest, there isn’t a huge amount to do on Huangshanjian besides taking photos at the classic “天下为公” viewpoint, but the view from the highest platform is amazing and totally worth it. One of the best spots for overlooking Qiandao Lake and taking photos.

I will take a business trip to Xi’an.
As a young man how can I enjoy this city to the most? Tell me places that you enjoyed in this city please.

Hello everyone,

I’m going to Chengdu in September and I have my eye on a certain hotel: Cat Hotel (Chengdu Chuanda Wangjiang Campus Subway Station Store)

https://www.trip.com/w/1hBDLsu3PV2

Trip.com says the lobby is staffed until 23:30, and after that they have self check-in kiosks, but a few of the reviews mention that the kiosks do not accept foreign passports/guests.

My flight arrives at Chengdu at 23:00

Should I just find another hotel? Any suggestions?

Hi all, I've seen a few attractions on Trip.com that are marked as having extremely discounted prices, with a tag that says "Trip.com discount." Just wondering if those discounts truly are unique to Trip.com, or is that just a marketing ploy and you can get that price anywhere (Dianping, at the door, etc).

So I bought a ticket from Shanghai Hongqiao to Beijing Daxing on trip.com, it gives me the details to check my flight and reserve my seats etc. on the China Southern Airlines website, but when I go to check it the wbesite tells me to reserve seats and check in on trip.com when I can't! Any help would be appreciated. Passenger details scribbed out of course

P.s I already reserved my seats for a flight from Heathrow to Daxing on CSA with no issues but the tickets were bought on British Airways

Put together a 10-day run from Beijing down to Xi'an that leans into the older, quieter stuff rather than just the big hitters. Rough idea: a few days in Beijing including the wild Jinshanling wall instead of Badaling, then Datong for the Yungang grottoes and the Hanging Temple, Pingyao for the walled old city, and Xi'an to finish with the Terracotta Army and the Muslim Quarter food. And made a little routemap of it :)

Anyone done this Shanxi stretch? Curious what you'd add, cut or reorder, especially around Datong and Pingyao.

Before visiting Wudangshan, I honestly thought Tai Chi was just slow movements people did in parks.

Then I went to the mountain where it came from.

Red temples, misty peaks, Taoist monks, endless stairs, incense, silence… it felt like stepping into a completely different China. Not futuristic cities or neon lights, but ancient, peaceful, and almost unreal.

I even tried a Tai Chi lesson there, and it made me realise it’s not just “slow kung fu.” It’s balance, breathing, patience, and control. I was terrible at it, but I finally understood why people dedicate their lives to this place.

I went there joking that I might become a monk.

By the end, I kind of understood why someone would.

I filmed the whole journey here: https://youtu.be/PQhswiM4i9w

So I'm going to travel to China for 20 days, and I'm thinking about getting the Trip.com eSIM. I have a few questions:

1. Will it bypass the Great Firewall in China? Will TikTok work? I saw some people saying TikTok still won't work even with the eSIM. (I've already turned off location services in TikTok.)

2. Should I buy and activate the eSIM before I travel, or should I wait until I land in China?

3. What's the difference between the normal 100 GB plan and the unlimited high-speed plan? Is the difference significant?

I had 1 day in Hnagzhou, took the bullet train on the previous night from Shanghai, about 45 min. Wasn't sure it'd be worth it since West Lake gets hyped so much but it actually delivered.

My Day:
Morning: West Lake, went early before the crowds, rented one of the shared bikes (Meituan, paid like 0.8 euro for a week of access, insane value) and just rode the causeways - the plan was that i can cover the whole lake on the bike
Midday: Lingyin Temple, old Buddhist site with these carved grottoes in the cliffs, incense smoke through the pine trees, take the ticket online ahead of time on trip.com as it tends to sell out!
Afternoon: tea near the plantations, this is literally where Longjing tea comes from and seeing the plantations is just amazing. Go and buy the tea you get free tasting usually - no need for overpriced tea house ;)
Evening: Qinghefang Old Street, silk shops, roasted chestnuts, red lanterns...

Important:
- Book Lingyin Temple tickets online the day before at least, weekend slots fill up
- Go to West Lake before 10am for a less crowded experience
- Stay near the lake not downtown if you can, makes the whole day flow so much easier