mecabq

Exactly; why would you fly all the way to China and not at least spend a day or two?

I have a new personal rule to never transit a country that I cannot enter; I made the mistake of trying to transit India (COK) with no visa and, though I eventually made it, it was a real headache.

slocouple

Can you say Maglev? Hey, it's quick, not cheap, but an experience -- I mean, more than a simple MR can provide. Just check the timetable carefully before you leave the US.

rankourabu

Thats wrong and misleading.

You can most certainly board without a visa if you satisfy the third country transfer criteria (24h PEK, 48h PVG, same day CAN, etc.)

Santander

It is a good experience to try the Maglev, but it's not particularly useful since you're still way out in Pudong and have to transfer to get further in the city. Personally I prefer SHA but I suppose PVG beats PEK for a layover-type visit.

n8onUA

I found flights into PVG that have 0 day turns possible.

Land at 14:50
Depart at 17:00

Is this feasible? Would I have time or an issue with clearing customs?

Would I still need a Chinese visa?

I've done a few same-day turns at DME on United in the past and never needed a transit or Russian visa. Is that possible here?

Global321

Unless something has changed in the last 9 months, YES, you must clear (regular) customs. (Unlike Beijing which has a transfer desk.)

NO, you do not need a visa. You just need to show your return ticket.

Most of the time, clearing customs in PVG is relatively quick. BUT, there have been the occasional 1 hour lines to clear. So that would make your turn time questionable.

Good luck!

BallardFlyer

AFAIK, You need a visa or you need to be transiting PVG to a 3rd country. You will get shut down by the TA or GA in the US without one of those conditions met. It will be hard to book a fake award for PVG-somewhere that will count since your main ticket is an immediate turn so the fake 3rd country ticket wont be believeable. I guess you could always say you booked RT in F since it was cheaper then OW

Global321

Less than 24 hours, no visa needed. Even when transiting to 3rd country. (Soon to be expanded to 72 hours.)

I have done this - even switching airlines/alliances. Show the gate agent your connecting/return ticket. Once the gate agent was refusing, got a supervisor involved. I showed them the actual rules.

UPDATED:

From the China Embassy...
Visa
Visas are not required of aliens who hold air tickets to the final destination and have booked seats on international airliners flying directly through China, and will stay in a transit city for less than 24 hours without leaving the airport.

Transit Visa
"Foreigners who have confirmed onward tickets and seats on international flights and directly transit through China and stay for no more than 24 hours within the airport boundaries shall not need to apply for a transit visa."

Returning to the USA would be the "onward" ticket.

Colin

bad advice

n8onUA

If I have a valid Chinese Visa (say the tourist one for 3 months), I'm assuming I wouldn't have any issues with the TA or GA?

Going from 2950 to 3100 for the fare + Chinese Visa does not seem like a deal breaker to me.

I just want to make sure I don't have any issues with a same-day turn even with a Chinese visa.

Global321

Not sure why it is bad advice. The facts are the facts.

Global321

With a Visa - no issues. (Without, you may get someone uninformed from airline and need to show them the regs, respectfully. But again, for those of us that have done this many many times, it has not been a problem.)

dvs7310

It's bad advice because you must be transiting to a "3rd country", not returning to the same country in which you originated.

Going LAX-PEK/PVG-HKG with no visa, no problem
Going LAX-PEK/PVG-LAX with no visa, and it's a no go

n8onUA

Are people paying the ~$150 visa for any same day turns to PVG?

Has anybody added an outbound stopover to NRT or HKG from PVG to avoid the visa?

Global321

Not needed. You can do this without a visa. (See below)

With respect, you don't know what you are talking about.

I - and several others - have done it on mileage runs before to both PVG and PEK. (PVG is a favorite for mileage runs due to the less expensive premium fares.)

In this case, the 3rd country is the returning country. (When they create these transit rules, they don't think about us doing mileage runs.)

(Another example.... Russia - visa required, unless you are returning immediately.)

Moderator - please delete these posts (including this one) and lets get back to premium fares.