[QUOTE=mike_plat;15639433I would advise you get the multiple entry visa even if it's more $. It's valid for a year and will guard against unplanned stops in China.[/QUOTE]

I just picked up my Chinese visa from the consulate in Chicago yesterday. For US citizens, the cost for a multiple-entry visa is the same as a single-entry visa. The only added costs are the costs for mailing or for expedited service (I flew up to Chicago over my weekend and needed my visa quickly, and so spent the extra $30 for same/next-day processing). As long as you follow the directions on the visa applications—something that most people applying for the visas apparently failed to do—the process is fairly easy, even though the lines are long.