How Much Does it Cost to Take a Vacation in China?

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People ask us, is it cheap or expensive to travel in China? You can do it on any budget. China can be an incredibly cheap place to travel, and also a very expensive place if you want it to be. The choice is yours. From food, to transportation, to hotels, to everything in between.

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Living in China for so long, we would like to share some of the comparisons that we have found between China and the west, and shed some light on the situation.

Every week, we take you to a new place in China on our bikes, cover a topic, and reply to your questions.

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[SimplyHolisticASMR]

you guys are the BEST youtubers/content creators ever im pretty sure. you care so much about editing your videos aesthetically, creating a 'theme' for your adventures via "I remember you" and the different remixes. The drone shots are BEAUTIFUL.

[Trazynn]

It'd still be a good idea to slap a, I don't know, 20% scam premium on top of the total amount.

[brian]

It really is impressive how much your guys editing has improved from the beginning. The hard work shows.

[dominoscr]

My Grandparents went on a river cruise in China about four years ago and loved it. They got to see the Great Wall, the hanging coffins of Guangxi Zhuang and the Terra Cotta Warriors. The food and accommodations were included. They said that it was super fun and even though it was very tourist oriented they got to see many things that were not. They had a blast and got to meet many English speaking Chinese people who were wonderful. Their stories are what made me want to learn more about China and led to me finding your channel. 😀

[timppatimo]

A pretty good hotel in Shenzhen (Luohu) costed me only around 18 EUR. per night couple of months ago. A crappy subdivided flat cubicle in Sham Shui Po would cost more, if counting per month. China is generally super friendly to tourists, prices wise - just leran some phrases in Chinese and it can be a very good vacation!

[merinsan]

I love taking the trains in China.
Before they had the fast trains, we took a train from Beijing to Shanghai, and had the soft sleeper for the family (4 of us). Very good memories.

[antimonycup]

Wow, judging by the dislikes there are a lot of evil uncles out today

[ChocManus]

In a few months I will be taking a 9-day train journey around Southern China purely as a railway enthusiast. I never really paid attention to this country and originally was only going to spend 3-4 days in it for this exciting railway infrastructure. Now I am all of a sudden excited about visiting China for more reasons, I have extended my trip to include things outside of railways. Both of you men have been a large part of my discovery of China. I am beginning to believe that once I have visited, I will want to return.
I would love you to take advantage of a few pieces of Chinese infrastructure in future Videos.

[dallaspowwi]

China middle of road travel can be $1500 to $2500 depending on season and how much you see. Also what cities you want to see. If you like to experience budget travel is best to travel during Sept-early Dec or March-early May. I just traveled to two great cities spent 15 days and spent less than $1500. I stayed in great hotels or quality hostels in private rooms. Experienced nothing but wonderful people and tasty food.

[bena]

I just paid $140 us for each visa for my family. Round trip air fare was $610 per person from Chicago to Beijing. Less than 50 days til we leave! You guys have been fantastic! Definitely helpful with your videos!

[niklavslizbovskis]

You can also go super-cheap in China. Last October I spent around 350$ in 23 days while crossing China from Kazakhstan to Laos + 100$ for visa. Hostels start from 4$ (25RMB) a night, food is cheap and hitchhiking works great in China.

[adamburns]

Tbh Japan is one of the places I’m visiting soon and I love the whole electronics side of it so I’d probably say Shenzhen is a place I’d like to visit because of what I’ve seen in your videos on your own channels. China was never a place I’d have even considered before watching you guys, but I’d honestly just love to explore any of the big cities, and venture a little into the wilderness, it looks like a really beautiful country! Cheers guys for these vids :)

[GraemeBray]

Definitely a conservative estimate here, it can be done much cheaper. Domestic flights in China are sold differently than other countries, there is a cost per kilometre base fare, with a set percentage discount given by the airlines. If you buy a ticket far in advance, you can pay full base fare, but 6 to 8 weeks prior the departure date the discounts are applied of 30 or 40%. They then increase in price with only a 20 or 10% discount closer to the flight date and possibly full fare again just prior to travel. This varies on the route and seasonal demand naturally. So it pays to research a route up to 6-8 weeks in advance of the current date to see what cheap price you may get and when to purchase your own ticket. As for conventional trains, choose Soft Sleeper class every time if possible for security and comfort, never Hard Seat or Standing ticket (not good for a 40+ hour trip).

[FalstadWildhammer]

"If you see a black guy driving a taxi, don't go with him" LOL

[TymczasemwChinach]

Guys, not saying you are lying. Prices are legit. However it's not must. In 2016 I travelled around China for 4 months. I was spending like 500$ per month for everything. Cheap trains, hitch-hiking. I was staying in extremly cheap offers from Qunar (in Lijinag hostels for 1RMB, GZ for 30RMB). Food is cheap. Don't take a taxi, take a metro or a bus. It is all posibble but it is so much harder. But money should never be limiting you. Ofc. if you can afford going by taxi and staying in hotel - PERFECT. But if you are young and willing to see China - it is still possible!

[christianatraeger]

I spent just under a month in China (Beijing, Zhengzhou, Hangzhou, Huangshan, and Shanghai) this past summer on a study abroad program with my university, and it cost $5000 USD, not including tuition. We stayed in the nice hotels, took nice flights and trains, and had lots of booked tours throughout the trip. (But the very best meal I had was $2!)

[jameskempf]

Definitely agree that the lower middle range is usually worth the extra money. For hotels I find that going on Ctrip and seeing what the cheapest hotels in the area are, then adding about 50 percent or doubling it can be pretty comfortable. So you could stay at the cheapest for 12 dollars, but if you spend 20 you will have a pretty nice room.

[sceptile]

I just wanted to let you guys know that at least in Australia Chinese airlines are winning the price wars by a huge margin, and some of the really nice Chinese airlines like Hainan air are super cheap. you can fly from Melbourne/Sydney Australia to Xi'an for $190 Australian dollars ROUND TRIP when they have a sale on, and $350 return to Xi'an/Hainan(Haikou)/ and Changsha regularly. These cities also make for great holiday cities if you want a more authentic Chinese holiday. I just wanted to let YouTube know to look at these Chinese airlines. also Airbnb in China is dirt cheap (but I think it's illegal). me and my friends had an 8 day beach holiday in Hainan for less than $1000 Australian dollars INCLUDING paying for flights.

love the video btw

[ilovethismightyfineplace]

The last time I went to China, I costed me about $4-5k. I stayed mostly at 7 Days Inn. I spent about 2 weeks in the Hunan Province, around the Changsha and Zhangjiajie areas. Seems like the prices haven’t changed much from about 4 years ago.

[Ferdawoon]

Me and a group of friends went to Beijing and Shanghai to visit various companies and see how they operate and the general busines culture in China. We needed to take a high-speed train out (about 1.5-2hr ride) to another place to visit one of those companies. We were a bit late so checked around where the company could pick us up and where the trains could take us. A bit of debating back and forth, and not really understanding the tickets, we managed to get onboard the train with one ticket each, all of them going to separate places. No one noticed during check-in or even the seller. Getting a refund was also a huge hassle... We had been spread out so had to run from traincar to traincar to find everyone and get off the train before it left the station. Eventually we got proper train tickets and the trains were really comfortable and the view was very interesting!