Foreign tourists traveling in cashless China

2024-12-07
The complex matrix rules of who can pay from what, where, to whom and for how much, keep changing, use this article as a guide.

Equipment needed

-Primary phone: Need cell phone with eSIM capability. Dial *#06#, eSIM capable phone will show a 32-digit long EID number.
If your phone is eSIM capable, install Airalo app and purchase an Airalo China data-only eSIM before travel. See this link.
You need mobile/cellular data constantly for shopping, restaurant, ride hailing, paying for taxi, taking metro ride, buying food, using voice/camera for translation, using maps, etc.
-Auxiliary phone that has 4G LTE Band3 1800 MHz (or 5G Band 78 for newer phones, e.g. Pixel 5a). An old phone (with 4G LTE) will generally suffice.
Order a prepaid physical SIM card from https://www.3gsolutions.com.cn/ with local (Chinese) phone number. 3G Solutions accepts PayPal only. A 30 Day SIM card with a Chinese phone number and 100 texts costs $33.50
The auxiliary phone is used to receive SMS/texts on a Chinese phone number. SMS is often needed for booking tourist attractions, ordering food, using free WiFi on high speed trains, etc. Major international airports in China has upgraded their authentication system so that they can send SMS to a "overseas" number (not just China) to authenticate user, or use a passport scanner at kiosk.

Download and install 7 essential apps on your primary phone

Alipay - register using passport and link a Credit Card.
WeChat - register using passport and link a Credit Card.
DiDi Ride Hailing in China - Register using your mobile phone number and link a credit card just like Uber.
At home, using a browser, go to https://www.12306.cn/en to create an account using your email and passport information.
Gmail is blocked in China, therefore it is better to use outlook.com or other non-blocked email address. If necessary, Gmail can be used because outbound Gmail sent by major entity like China Railway can bypass the firewall. Individual Gmail cannot bypass unless you play the cat and mouse game of using VPN.
12306 China Rail app.
Trip.com: The Swiss army knife for travel bookings in China.
Translator: Apple Translate (iPhone), Google Translate (Android) or Microsoft Translator (iOS and Android).
Mobile map: Gaode Map 高德地图 (best) if you can handle some Chinese pinyin. Next, Apple Map but the quality of data on Apple Map is mediocre. Google Map is blocked (unless you use Airalo eSIM or other firewall bypass VPN) but even than, Google has left China for over 14 years, the content on Google Map is badly out dated.

What are these apps for

Alipay - mobile payments in China. Optional "real name registration" using passport data and selfies will increase the spending ceiling.
WeChat - chat (like WhatsApp) and mobile payments in China. Optional "real name registration" using passport data and selfies will increase spending ceiling.
DiDi - ride hailing (Uber's equivalent in China).
12306 - book China Railway's high speed train tickets for inter-city travels, e.g. Fuxing CR400AF traveling between Beijing and Shanghai can cruise at 350 km/h. You can also use trip.com to book ticket.
Trip.com - English-friendly online tour company that can book hotels, flights, trains, attractions.
Translator - its use is obvious: you can speak, text or use the camera for bidirectional translations.
Mobile map - handy for keeping track or knowing your location while traveling.

Optional - add fund to your WeChat/Alipay wallet/balance

If you have relatives or trusted friends from China, they can transfer money to your AliPay/WeChat Wallet in person using QR Code.
WeChat can transfer money between "WeChat friends" using Chats, "+" button, "Transfer". The personal-wallet to personal-wallet transfer is allowed between friends up to some limits.
Mobile payments using balance from personal-wallet avoid credit card's foreign transaction fee and unfavorable bank exchange rate. It waives the 3% service fee charged by WeChat/Alipay using credit card over 300 ¥. Total savings could be about 8%.

If you don't have rich relatives hence your wallet is zero, your Alipay/WeChat can draw funds from your linked credit card to pay merchants in China.
Most foreign tourists (shown on YouTube) use this payment method for convenience.

There are two modes of mobile payment

(1) You scan me          (2)  I scan you. 

Observe what others do. There are YouTube videos on how to use mobile payments in China.

Mobile payment (Visa/MasterCard linked) may not be universally accepted in China.

Some rural merchants still can't accept WeChat/Alipay-Visa/MasterCard payment scheme. These issues are more pronounced in areas with few tourists. However, increased tourism from Hong Kong and Taiwan to these areas could accelerate wider acceptance of WeChat/Alipay-Visa/MasterCard payment scheme.

Carry adequate cash in case the mobile payment scheme fails.

How to

Book domestic flights 
use trip.com

Book high speed trains tickets  use trip.com or 12306, booking opens 14 days in advance of travel. Popular routes fill up quickly so plan ahead to avoid disappointment. After the ticket is booked, you receive a QR Code, on the day of your travel, arrive at the correct station very early. Shenzhen has 5 stations, Shanghai has 4 stations, Beijing has 5 stations, etc.  Find the "passport holders" line and have your passport verified by a staff. Your train ticket is linked to your passport.

Metro rides
WeChat - "Me", "Pay and Services', "Travel Service", select city from drop down (use Pinyin, e.g. Beijing), tap green icon that looks like "G", next you are in "Service Provider" page, select city from drop down (again), a QR code appears (if this is the first time you are in that city, "Go to activate", select payment method). Present the QR code to the metro turnstile scanner to enter and exit.
Alipay - At the top left corner of main screen, select city you are in. Type "metro" in the search box. Tap the subway icon (if this is the first time you are in that city, tap the Get Now icon), a QR code appears. Present the QR code to the metro turnstile scanner to enter and exit.

You can use cash (yes, cash) to buy metro ticket from ticketing machines. These machines accept small denominations. You may even find a ticket booth with a human inside.

Taxi
Taxi are found at airports and train stations. They accept cash but generally do not have cash for any change. Use your Alipay or WeChat to scan the taxi's payment QR Code. You cannot flag a taxi, as many that appear vacant are actually pre-booked via DiDi. I tested WeChat payment by scanning a taxi's QR Code and paid using linked Visa card.

Ride hailing
Outside of airports and train stations, DiDi is probably the only way to hail a ride. When the ride shows up, the driver needs the last 4 digits of your phone number (the phone number you used to register the DiDi app) before he allows you to enter his vehicle. For example, if the last 4 digits of your phone number is 2347, use a translator app to talk to the DiDi driver.


Hotels
If you book a hotel using trip.com and prepay using Credit Card on file, you can avoid the payment hassle at check out. Hotels in China may accept Visa or MasterCard, if not, try Alipay, select "Pay using Credit Card" option. It is helpful to visualize Alipay is a credit card with a QR code instead of magstripe/EMV/NFC. You can also use WeChat Pay but most foreigners found Alipay is a bit more English friendly.

Restaurants
On restaurant table, there is a QR code, open WeChat or AliPay and scan the QR code to launch the menu. Select dishes and pay using WeChat or Alipay, the food will be delivered to you by a server or a robot.

Gift shops and Food stands
Typically there is a QR code posted on the stand. Use WeChat Pay or Alipay and scan the QR code, type in the amount to pay the merchant, the merchant will receive a confirmation on their mobile phone and give you the items or food.

Tourist attractions, theme parks, entertainment
You can use trip.com or a Mini-app inside WeChat/Alipay to pre-book attractions. Major attractions during peak seasons require 1 to 7 days advance mobile booking. Many attractions do not sell tickets at the entrance. The entrance is used to check passport and scan the QR code of pre-book tickets.

Modern China has transformed from a cash society to a cashless and QR code centric society.

Carry adequate cash in case the mobile payment scheme fails.

Note:
Merchants are required by law to accept RMB cash, but many don't have any cash to give you change. Many will simply refuse service or refuse selling you goods if you use cash.