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Travel guide

Visas: often, you don't need one

China's entry rules have loosened a lot. Two schemes matter for most visitors — but eligibility depends on your passport and your exact flights, so treat this as orientation and let us verify your case.

Visitors and tour guides in the courtyard of the Hall of Supreme Harmony in the Forbidden City, Beijing, on a clear day
Most visitors on our routes now enter visa-free or on the 240-hour transit — we verify your passport and flights before you book.

1. Visa-free entry for many nationalities

China now grants 30-day visa-free entry to ordinary passport holders from 50 countries — including Canada, the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, South Korea and most of Europe — who can stay up to 30 days for tourism (Canada and UK: currently valid until December 31, 2026). US passports are not on this list. If your passport is on the list, visiting the tours on this site can be as simple as booking the flights.

2. The 240-hour (10-day) visa-free transit

Travellers from 57 countries can transit China visa-free for up to 240 hours when travelling from one country, through China, to a third country (Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan count as separate destinations for this rule). Key points:

  • You must enter and exit through eligible ports (Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu, Xi'an, Guilin and Zhangjiajie airports are among the designated ports — check your exact airport).
  • Your onward ticket to a third country or region must be confirmed.
  • You may travel within the permitted regions during the stay — our multi-city tours are designed with this in mind, and the 10-Day Classic China can fit the 240-hour window if your flight times work — we check this for you before booking.
  • A return ticket to the country you came from does not qualify — the routing has to be A → China → B.
Shanghai skyline at night with the Oriental Pearl Tower lit up across the Huangpu River
Shanghai is one of the main gateways the 240-hour visa-free transit works through — arrive here, leave for a third country, and the days in between are yours.

3. If you do need a visa

Apply at a Chinese visa centre in good time, with your itinerary and hotel bookings — which the operating agency supplies as part of your confirmed booking paperwork.

How we help

Send us your passport nationality and rough flight plan on WhatsApp before you book anything. We'll tell you which scheme fits — or that you need a visa — so the trip is planned on solid ground. Rules change; always double-check against your nearest Chinese embassy or consulate before travelling.

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