Preparing for Beijing: Tips & Hints

1. It is not common to leave a tip to service personnel in Beijing hotels. If you definitely want to please a maid, a pair of Yuan would be enough.

2. Bargaining is natural on the local markets. Do not hesitate to do this as sometimes it can bring the price down sufficiently. Of course, no bargaining is possible in stores. However, there is another advantage – you can easily exchange the defective product.

3. You should be pretty careful on transport crossings. Local drivers often do not bother to follow traffic regulations, so keeping an eye on the cars around you is always a good idea. However, quite often pedestrians can be allowed to go even in the wrong place.

4. People can always talk to local residents and, for example, ask to show the right way. Of course, language barrier is quite often a real obstacle in communication. However, if you face this problem there is a simple solution – show a map to the local taxi driver and specify the point you need to get. Any driver will bring you to the desired point of interest within minutes.

5. Tourists are recommended to learn names of main attractions and main metro stations. This will make travelling around the city much easier.

6. The majority of excursion sites and museums are available for publics starting from early morning. However, they are also closed quite early – something around 18:00 is the latest.

7. Banks and other government agencies operate five days a week. Saturday and Sunday are days off.

8. All hotels in Beijing, including the facilities belonging to the budget category, provide guests with excellent service. Thus, even a standard room of a budget hotel certainly has a private bathroom and all necessary equipment. Capsule hotels are increasingly popular in the city. However, those tourists, who expect to stay in Beijing for quite a long time, will not find them comfortable.

9. We also recommended checking the compatibility of appliances and electronics you plan to take with you before the trip. The voltage in Beijing is 220 V.

Other articles about Beijing:
Traditions and lifestyle
Beijing sightseeing
Best restaurants and cuisine
Beijing attractions and leisure
Beijing cityguide
Photogallery of Beijing