What things actually cost

Real fares, real entry tickets, real daily budgets — and where visitors quietly overspend.

Prices in China are low enough that most people stop checking them, then discover their budget ran out on airport taxis and cable cars. The figures on these pages are the ones people ask about afterwards: second-class rail fares to the yuan, cable car upsells, ice-festival entry, and what a normal day of food and transport costs.

Where a price depends on season or class we say so rather than printing a single number. Treat every figure here as the right order of magnitude — then verify it against the official source listed on the page before you book.

The Beijing skyline at dusk seen from a distance

Beijing: How To Arrive, Where To Sleep, And How Many Days It Deserves

Arrive at the right airport, sleep inside the Second Ring Road, and give the Wall its own day.

The Pudong skyline across the Huangpu river in Shanghai

Shanghai In Three Days: Arriving, Sleeping Right, And Spending Well

Stay on the Puxi side, ride the metro not the maglev, and treat Pudong as a visit rather than a base.

Sandstone pillars rising out of the forest in Zhangjiajie

Zhangjiajie: Ticket Prices, Cable Cars And How Many Days It Takes

Sleep in Wulingyuan, buy the four-day park ticket, and start before the tour groups.

Snow sculptures at the Harbin ice and snow festival

Harbin In Winter: Ice Festival Prices And How To Stay Warm

Two nights, three if you ski. Everything else is a matter of layers.

The city wall and rooftops of the old town of Pingyao

Pingyao: A Walled Ming City You Can Sleep Inside

Stay inside the walls, buy the through-ticket once, and walk the full circuit at dusk.

A QR code payment display at a shop counter in China

Paying In China: What Actually Works At The Counter

Alipay and WeChat Pay with a foreign card, plus the handful of places where you’ll still need cash.

The Great Wall running across a forested ridge

First Time In China: What Surprises Almost Everybody

Everything that feels like a barrier turns out to be a five-minute problem, once you know it is coming.

High-speed train carriages outside the platform edge of a station

Booking Train Tickets In China: The App, The Window, And The ID Rule

Buy it the moment your plans are firm. Popular services really do sell out.

A high-speed train at a Chinese station platform

Beijing To Shanghai: High-Speed Rail Vs Flying, With Real Numbers

Take the train unless your onward flight leaves from Pudong.

Limestone peaks along the Li River near Yangshuo

Guilin To Yangshuo: River, Rail Or Road

Take the boat down once and the bus back — and check where Yangshuo station actually is.

Cyclists riding along the top of the restored Xi’an city wall

Xi’an To Shanghai: Train Or Plane, And What Each Really Costs

Fly when your time is short. Take the train when you want the day, not the airport.

Icy-framed European-style buildings along a snowy pedestrian street in Harbin

Harbin To Beijing: Night Sleeper Or High-Speed Day Train?

Sleeper down if you can sleep on trains; high-speed if you cannot.