Originally Posted by
YuropFlyer
No you can't! Well you can, but if you cancel your flight to ICN, and just show up 5 days later in PEK, you'll get deported. You (or the airline) will get a big penalty, and you certainly won't be allowed to enter the Peoples Republic of China easily in the future.
Either fly the flight to ICN (Or HKG, or whatever) as you planned, or get a Visa. It's no the hardest thing in the world, it's actually pretty easy to get. Still much easier than for a Chinese than to get a EU or US tourist visa..
From time to time both here and on other web-sites there are
anecdotal reports about people doing this and getting away with it. As far as I know none of the regulars here have ever met anyone to verify this.
Maybe you would get away with it. The information that you had been in the country for 5 days continuously would certainly be in their computer system. Maybe it might flash up on the screen. Maybe it might rely on the person at the desk doing the mental calculation and figuring out you had tricked the TWOV system. The outcome might also depend on whether the person checking you passport was in a good mood, or was having bad day...
The bottom line, as you can probably guess, is simply don't try it. Get a visa, or use some miles to book a one day return to Hong Kong or Seoul (if you really have a strong reason for not wanting to apply for a visa).
Originally Posted by
horsewithnoname
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Somewhat confusingly, there was a row of desks labelled "international connections" before the health quarantine desks (the health screening seeming to be taken about as seriously as it usually is). I didn't go to them, but went through the health quarantine, and then to the international connections queue. Is the first set of desks for people who need to get boarding passes?
Thanks for the update. The desks you saw are indeed meant for collecting boarding passes, though in all the times I have flown into PEK I can only recall seeing them staffed once or twice (maybe there is a phone or a button to call someone - I'll take a look next time I arrive back if I can remember to do so).
Originally Posted by
jiejie
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However, I've never been able to grasp the logic about exactly how prohibiting these cities for inclusion on a double-stop transit (but single-stop is OK) accomplishes anything meaningful from a Chinese viewpoint.
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This limitation on certain cities for US/Canadian citizens is indeed totally weird. Your suggestions for the reasoning behind this sound plausible - though of course I am using the word "reasoning" here in its Chinese context ...