China Travel Costs

These daily figures leave out long-distance travel. Add the train or plane fare for each move: a typical two-week route of four or five hops adds 2,000 to 3,500 yuan in second-class train seats, more if you fly. Our China itineraries give route-by-route totals.

Hotels are where China is best value. Domestic chains such as Hanting, Home Inn, Jinjiang Inn and JI Hotel offer clean, modern rooms for 200 to 350 yuan (US$30 to 50) in most cities; upmarket Chinese chains such as Atour run 400 to 700 yuan; and international five-stars that cost US$400 in Europe go for 900 to 1,800 yuan, especially at weekends in business cities. Hostel dorm beds cost 60 to 120 yuan, and courtyard guesthouses in Beijing’s hutongs or Lijiang’s old town 300 to 800 yuan.

Not every hotel can take you. Hotels must register foreign guests with the police through a separate system, and for years only “foreigner-licensed” hotels could do it. Most cities have since told all hotels to accept foreigners, and in Beijing, Shanghai and other big cities this now generally works, but small guesthouses and budget hotels in smaller towns still turn foreigners away at the desk. Book through Trip.com or a hotel’s own site, where listings show whether foreign passports are accepted, rather than walking in. See our China visa guide for how registration works.

Prices rise sharply in Chinese New Year week, the October Golden Week (1 to 7 October) and the May Day holiday, when doubling is normal.

Eating is cheap unless you choose otherwise. A bowl of noodles, a plate of dumplings or a jianbing breakfast crepe costs 10 to 30 yuan (US$1.50 to 4.50), and a filling lunch in a local restaurant 30 to 60 yuan. Dinner in a sit-down restaurant with a few shared dishes runs 80 to 150 yuan per person, hotpot 100 to 150, and a whole Peking duck in a well-known Beijing restaurant 250 to 400 yuan for the bird.

Food streets in tourist zones, such as Wangfujing in Beijing or the Muslim Quarter in Xi’an, charge double the price of the same food a few streets away. Tap water is not drinkable, but hotels supply kettles and many give free bottled water.

Entry fees are moderate, many museums are free with a booking, and nearly every major sight now needs an advance online booking with your passport number. Prices below are for adults in 2026 and many sites charge less in winter.

The Forbidden City is closed on Mondays (except public holidays), caps visitors at 40,000 a day and sells no tickets at the gate: book on the official Palace Museum ticketing site with your passport, as summer and holiday dates sell out days ahead. Avoid the agents selling “skip the line” tickets outside. Visitors over 60 get free or half-price entry at many sights including the Forbidden City, and full-time students with ID often pay half.

Trains are the best value in the country. High-speed second class costs roughly 0.45 to 0.5 yuan per km: Beijing to Shanghai is 550 to 660 yuan (US$80 to 100), Beijing to Xi’an 515 to 650, Shanghai to Hangzhou about 75. First class is about 60% more, and a soft sleeper berth on an overnight train costs about the same as a budget hotel room. Domestic flights range from 500 to 1,500 yuan one way, cheaper than the train on very long routes if booked ahead. Our getting around China guide covers booking.

A travel eSIM with 10 to 20 GB costs about US$15 to 30 and keeps Google, WhatsApp and Instagram working without a VPN; a local SIM with data costs 60 to 150 yuan at airport counters with your passport. A Tibet tour with the compulsory guide, permit and vehicle typically costs US$100 to 200 per person per day in a small group, more for private trips. Travel insurance, and a VPN subscription if you rely on one, should go into the budget before you leave.

Shows and experiences are reasonably priced: an acrobatics show in Beijing or Shanghai costs 180 to 600 yuan, and a Li River bamboo raft or cruise from Guilin 200 to 450 yuan.

Almost everything is paid by Alipay or WeChat Pay with a linked foreign card. Payments up to 200 yuan carry no fee; above 200 yuan, both apps add a 3% fee, so a 1,000-yuan hotel bill costs you 30 yuan extra, and your own bank may add its foreign-transaction fee on top. Pay big bills such as hotels, flights and train tickets with a no-fee credit card where accepted, and use the apps for everyday spending. ATM withdrawals at Bank of China, ICBC or China Construction Bank work with most foreign cards; some Chinese banks charge a withdrawal fee on top of your own bank’s, so take out larger sums less often.

Tipping is not expected in mainland China and staff in ordinary restaurants and taxis may try to return the money. Upmarket hotels and restaurants often add a 10 to 15% service charge to the bill instead. On private tours, guides and drivers in tourist areas do expect a tip, usually 100 to 200 yuan per day for the guide and 50 to 100 for the driver.

• Book trains early: flexible fares mean the same seat costs more on peak days; Tuesday to Thursday departures are usually cheapest.
• Avoid holiday weeks: Chinese New Year, May Day and Golden Week double hotel and flight prices and fill every train.
• Use domestic hotel chains: clean rooms at 200 to 350 yuan beat hostels for two people sharing.
• Eat where locals eat: one street back from the tourist food street, the same dumplings cost half.
• Use the free museums: the National Museum in Beijing and the Shanghai Museum are free with a booking.
• Pay small and often: keep app payments under 200 yuan where you can.
• Take the metro from airports: Beijing’s and Shanghai’s airport metro lines cost a fraction of a taxi.

Per person, sharing a room, excluding international flights:

The two-week backpacker figure assumes high-speed second class between all stops, one domestic flight and around 20 paid sights. A mid-range traveller in a 400 to 600-yuan hotel who eats out properly and uses DiDi freely lands near the middle of the range.