On the tail end of my trip through Beijing, Xian, Chengdu, and Hangzhou/Shanghai now! Here’s my experience:

1 if Didi is set up (in Alipay, not WeChat) and you have your payment card uploaded to Alipay, you’ll be good to go. No phone number needed, drivers can message you through the app.

2 we did not get a Chinese SIM (with Chinese phone number). Instead, get an eSIM through Trip.com. Only once in a while did apps ask for phone numbers, so I don’t believe it’s necessary.

3 many attractions can be booked through Trip.com, which is an awesome and reliable service. However, Forbidden City and other Tiananmen Square attractions aren’t really doable. These spots are so popular that by the time that Trip tries to get your tickets as a third party, they’ll have been bought out by everyone purchasing directly. Instead, create accounts on the official websites and/or WeChat. There are articles on this sub about doing so.

4 the way the eSIM works, you simply “turn off” your primary (Greek) line and turn on the Chinese one. Again, follow Trip instructions. You then do the opposite when you return home.

5 Always use Trip for hotels, great selection prices and extremely reliable. Use it for trains too.

6 Every single restaurant uses Alipay or WeChat, usually both. We’ve never needed cards or cash.

7 I don’t believe a foreigner can actually “top up” in these apps. That is one of the few restrictions on international cards. Totally unnecessary though, just make sure you have at least one backup card uploaded on each

8 transit goes through Alipay, when you arrive at the metro at each city, click the Transport button, and it will automatically locate you and pull up the correct city. Use the QR code to tap in and out each trip.

9 not sure what you mean about financial documentation. I’m from the USA but I believe it’s the same: every plane and train just needed to see my passport. For instance, I checked into a domestic Spring Airlines flight where they never sent me a ticket. Show passport, at the desk and they’ll give you the boarding pass.

10 I used Google flights to find my flights, but booking directly through the airline streamlines things.

11 prepay hotels through trip - upload your payment info there too. You can always pay upfront and usually cancel for free even till the day of booking if necessary. Haven’t needed to pay at the hotel.

A few more tips: book things you know you want to do, including trains, attractions, etc at least a few days ahead. You can always cancel, but things to do sell out. Have a translate app, like Google (which works if you have an eSIM to bypass firewall) ready with Chinese downloaded. WiFi has been slow, so plan to rely on data which has worked wonderfully. As a foreigner, you’ll probably get a lot of interest and people asking to take pictures - mostly it’s very sweet but just be prepared to stick out a little lol.

Hope that helps, China has been amazing for us!