Category: Chinese Culture

In places, the Chinese capital's lack of colour puts the beige in Beijing. It's not the greenest of cities, but at least it has a multitude of parks to offer solace to the soul. Whether you're looking for a sense of community or a respite from the urban rush, you can find it in one of Beijing's parks. Parks are perfect places to be alone, or with family, friends or lovers.

Many tourists say that they usually do not know what to buy when they are touring a place. Regarding the tourism shopping, the director-general of the National Tourism Administration of China Shao Qiwei once said, "Many tourists will definitely buy watches in Switzerland, buy leather goods in Italy and buy small electrical household appliances in Japan. I suggest that tourism regions of China should learn something from these countries and have their own special tourism commodities."

In places, the Chinese capital's lack of colour puts the beige in Beijing. It's not the greenest of cities, but at least it has a multitude of parks to offer solace to the soul. Whether you're looking for a sense of community or a respite from the urban rush, you can find it in one of Beijing's parks. Parks are perfect places to be alone, or with family, friends or lovers.

In places, the Chinese capital's lack of colour puts the beige in Beijing. It's not the greenest of cities, but at least it has a multitude of parks to offer solace to the soul. Whether you're looking for a sense of community or a respite from the urban rush, you can find it in one of Beijing's parks. Parks are perfect places to be alone, or with family, friends or lovers.

1. Do I need a visa to China (not including Hong Kong & Macau)?
Foreigners who visit China are generally required to apply for a visa before departure, but some aliens are exempt from a visa to Mainland China, for example, ordinary passport holders from Singapore, Brunei and Japan enjoy visa free access to Mainland China for up to 15 days.

2. Where can I submit my visa application?
For entry into China, aliens should apply for visas from Chinese Embassies or Consulates. Each Embassy or consulate has its own consular districts. Usually, applicants are required to lodge their application to the relevant Embassy or Consulate according to consular districts. For example, if you live in Idaho, you should submit application to Chinese Embassy in USA.

Applicants who reside or travel away from their country can apply for visas at a local Chinese Embassy or Consulate.

3. Can I apply for a visa at entry ports?
It is very difficult to get a visa on arrival at the entry ports; however, you can get such a visa in real urgent situations which are listed in details on Visa on Arrival (Visa Issued at Entry Ports)

4. Can I get a visa on arrival to Shenzhen or Zhuhai?
Shenzhen and Zhuhai are the Special Economic Zones; they can issue a special economic zone tourist visa to aliens at the entry ports. Shenzhen issues Single-Entry Tourist Visa with 5 days of stay in Shenzhen at the entry ports. Aliens can also apply for Zhuhai Single-Entry Tourist Visa with 3 days of stay in Zhuhai at the entry ports.

5. When is the best time to submit my visa application?
Please apply for the visa only 1 or 2 months (at least 2 weeks) before your planned date to enter China. If you apply for the visa too late, you may not have enough time for the application. If you apply for the visa too early, the visa may become invalid before your departure for China. Generally, the validity of a single-entry visa is 3 months, counted from the date of application.

6. Where can I get the Visa Application Form of the People's Republic of China?
The easiest way is to download the Visa Application Form of People's Republic of China (Form V2011 A) and Visa Application Form of People's Republic of China (Form V2011 B) from internet, but the form is in PDF, you should have installed the software of Adobe Reader. The Visa Application Form is also offered by the embassy or consulate for free.

7. Do I need to make an appointment to submit application? It depends upon the embassy or consulate. More than 90% of the China embassies and consulates don't ask applicants to make an appointment. However, you need to make an appointment for visa application at China Embassy/Consulate in Nigeria. The Chinese Visa Application Service Center has been in operation in UK, Italy, Australia, India, Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia, which also requires applicants to make an appointment in advance, so check with your nearest embassy or consulate before you go there.

8. If I can't go to the embassy or consulate in person, can I entrust someone else to submit my visa application and pick up my visa on my behalf?
Yes, the visa application can be presented by someone else, such as your friends, relatives, visa agency or travel agency, but the visa application form should be completed and signed by yourself. Someone else can pick up your visa for you as long as he can show the "Pick Up Form".

9. Can I send my visa application by mailing?
More than 98% of Chinese embassies and consulates don't accept visa application by mailing. You should visit the official website of Chinese embassy or consulate to check whether it accepts application by mailing or not. Even though the Visa Mail Service is available, the embassy or consulate is not responsible for the loss or damage of your passport and other documents due to mishandling by mail service.

10. How long does it take for the visa application?
Generally speaking, it takes 4 working days for processing the visa application. Many embassies or consulates also provide 1 working day service or 2 – 3 working days service, but you need pay extra money for the service.