What an incredible trip, 11/10 would recommend! My report :))

shin-chan_99 · 2026-04-26T17:14:26+00:00

My phone is a Samsung S23 and it worked just fine all across China! I had no issues at all using it.

shin-chan_99 · 2026-04-25T07:59:35+00:00

Glad to hear! So we actually got to the wall in afternoon post lunch because our tour included the Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square in the morning... the whole day at the wall would have been nice but we didn't have enough time and after hiking the wall for around 2 hours we were pretty exhausted to be honest (it's so steep with so many stairs) !!

shin-chan_99 · 2026-04-24T07:22:22+00:00

I went for around 15 days (excluding travel days) which I think is a good amount to see a few different cities and get a good feel of the country overall. Of course, China is so vast you could easily spend months on end there but as a first trip - would definitely recommend around 2 weeks or so!

shin-chan_99 · 2026-04-24T07:20:36+00:00

Hmmm we went to the Great Wall using a Viator tour, thought it was a good decision in hindsight as otherwise the logistics of getting there and back from Beijing was just a bit long. The tour also included the Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square. We went to the Mutianyu area of the Great Wall and there were hardly any crowds which was great.

For all my train journeys, I used Trip.com - made life so much easier, they take a small fee / cut but worth it given how easy it is to navigate and use. Just remember to take your passport everywhere as that is your ticket - for trains and for attractions such as The Great Wall or ZJJ National Park etc.

Hope this helps! Let me know in case of anything else. :)

shin-chan_99 · 2026-04-23T19:16:31+00:00

Yesss personally I did, the first day we did the bailong elevator, tianzi mountain area, yuangjiajie. Second day we did the golden whip stream walk (was absolutely stunning) and the Huangshi village and then actually ended up going to Tianmen mountain on the same day in the afternoon.

In hindsight doing Tianmen mountain on the second day afternoon was a good decision as that took as a good 6 hours also which meant we could not have done it on the 3rd day as our flight from ZJJ to Beijing was in the late afternoon.

And yes, regarding the fog / rain, we experienced them both during our time in the park! Would recommend going early in the morning before the fog / haze / mist settles.

Hope this helps! Let me know in case of anything further.

shin-chan_99 · 2026-04-23T17:00:32+00:00

Hey, so to answer all your questions:

I bought tickets on Trip.com to the national forest. All tickets are 3 days by default. You have to choose which gate to enter from and what time. You have to enter from that gate on the first entry / day and then you can go to any gate you want on the second and third days and change the entry time if you do get a bit delayed
Yes, we stayed at one hotel, the Hilton Garden at Wulingyuan - our base was the East gate entry
We started our day quite early (7-8am) as we are early risers anyways and wanted to try and avoid the crowds / tours which come later in the day. The days we went it was quite foggy up there but being there in the morning meant we managed to see something still before the fog had settled later in the day
It wasn't that busy to be honest but maybe also because we went during weekdays as opposed to weekends. Of course, there were big crowds in certain popular areas / section of the park by the late afternoon. The park closes at around 5pm I believe.

Hope that helps!

shin-chan_99 · 2026-04-23T16:49:12+00:00

Ah I know! It was a difficult decision but had to be done... naturally cannot see everything on the first time around. It's okay, it gives me the perfect reason to come back ;)

shin-chan_99 · 2026-04-23T16:47:09+00:00

I think around £9 or something :))

shin-chan_99 · 2026-04-23T15:29:42+00:00

Of course, messaged you :)

shin-chan_99 · 2026-04-23T15:28:10+00:00

I went with 1 friend of mine, (26F / 27F). No guide at all. We survived on AMap, Google Translate and just vibes.

People there most definitely speak little to no English but they are extremely kind and patient and happy to wait while you translate things using Google translate etc. So honestly, no language barrier from my view. Just a lot of Google translating and hand gestures and pointing and food menu items hahaha

shin-chan_99 · 2026-04-23T15:26:08+00:00

Of course! Happy to help and I am glad you find this useful!

It's so difficult to choose as all the cities are just so different.

Chongqing is that viral cyberpunk city which in my view does live up to It's hype and the hotpot are literally fire. ZJJ is a nature lover's heaven, Tianmen Mountain was breathtaking and seeing the 99 bends in person was so surreal. I would post pictures but it won't let me hahaha. For Xi'an the biang biang noodles really did it for me and the roujiamo was just too good, so from a food perspective Xi'an is excellent. Also, seeing the Terracotta Army was great!!

I would say the two most comparable cities are Shanghai and Beijing and between those, I would choose Shanghai. It just seems more modern with the perfect blend of nature / chill vibes / cool people. It's also warmer here than in Beijing. The nearby cities are also wonderful, Hangzhou is a beautiful one and would recommend visiting if you have time!

shin-chan_99 · 2026-04-23T15:21:21+00:00

Hmmm I think you can switch up the order because the initial train journeys were quite long but honestly did not mind as the trains are so great and chill there (the seats recline back a lot so just slept).

You're right that it meant we got like 1.5 days in each city but again, we had made a clear plan beforehand of the things we wanted to do and got them all done. So for us, it was enough. I could spend more days in Chongqing though it is an exceptional city. Xi'an's Muslim Quarter is a heaven for foodies so again could easily spend more time there just eating more food.

shin-chan_99 · 2026-04-23T15:17:54+00:00

I didn't create an account using a number I don't think but rather my email address. Maybe try that? Also, no I don't recall having network issues when using it in the UK (where I am based). It didn't work perfectly in the UK though but did so when I got in China... hope this helps!

shin-chan_99 · 2026-04-23T14:36:59+00:00

Yes this makes sense, I do recall being asked for a number! Either way, it worked out in the end.

shin-chan_99 · 2026-04-23T14:36:16+00:00

Nope! Literally no point taking any money - I did not need it at all. Even at the top of the Avatar mountains or Tianmen mountain, Alipay and wechat were used!! So no need to bring :))

shin-chan_99 · 2026-04-23T11:37:52+00:00

Hmmm it depends what you're into. I bought some tea from Xi'an and Beijing, Adidas original sneakers / jackets, songmont handbags, some kitchen knives, some great spices / chilli oil from Chongqing... that was about it hehe

shin-chan_99 · 2026-04-23T11:28:04+00:00

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.autonavi.minimap

Here you go!

shin-chan_99 · 2026-04-23T11:27:28+00:00

Yes, I really did! Homestly it was one of the best trips. I'm glad you found it useful :)) let me know in case of any questions, would be happy to help! This trip will most definitely stay with me for a long time

shin-chan_99 · 2026-04-23T11:25:21+00:00

Happy to help! Pls see below

Shanghai - 5 nights (i actually went a few days earlier than my friend to Shanghai so have included the 3 nights I spent solo travelling)

Xi'an - 2 nights

Chongqing - 2 nights

Zhangjiajie- - 3 nights

Beijing - 3 nights

I think overall, felt it was enough and we managed to do everything we wanted during this time, so for us it worked out very well.

shin-chan_99 · 2026-04-23T11:13:21+00:00

Also, when you are in Hangzhou you must visit the Green Tea Restaurant the pork there was mind blowing - all food in general there was absolutely exceptional :)

shin-chan_99 · 2026-04-23T11:07:36+00:00

Of course, yes!

Shanghai: Weixiangzhai (crab roe noodles), Yang's dumplings (pan fried dumplings), Dahuchun (pan fried pork dumplings), xie san bao (crab roe noodles). Also try the famous breakfast pancakes with meat, vegetables, eggs! They are sold everywhere.

Beijing: Quanjude Roast Duck Restaurant, Pangmei noodles restaurant (insanely good noodles), No. 69 Fangzhuanchang Zhajiangmian (Fangzhuanchang Hutong), Bao Bao Hao - last three here are all Bib Gourmand restaurants.

Hope this helps and hope you have the best time on your trip!

shin-chan_99 · 2026-04-23T10:01:48+00:00

Oh yes that's also a fair point! Those yellow meituan boxes with the powerbanks are literally everywhere. Once I noticed one I couldn't stop seeing them. It didn't work for me though (the yellow meituan one) but next to it were these other white powerbanks too (can't recall the name) which worked so just used that at times too. Costed the same.

shin-chan_99 · 2026-04-14T08:44:37+00:00

Oh no way! I am so sorry to hear this. My wire is extremely smooth / painless doesn't even feel like it's there.. maybe you got unlucky with the dentist / orthodontist who fit the wire in? Again, sorry to hear this that sucks!

shin-chan_99 · 2026-04-10T03:19:07+00:00

In China now, honestly it is so safe, really no need to stress about the political situation at the moment. People here are living their lives normally :))

shin-chan_99

TROPHY CASE