Originally Posted by
robyng
1) The airline people told me I didn't need a visa for China if I was going there from the United States for less than 15 days. True or not?
2) I've also read that we should carry our passports during our daily travels in China (some tourist places seem to require that you show your passport). Is a photocopy of our passports satisfactory in this regard (so we can leave our original passports back in the hotel safe)?
3) Also - an idea I had which might be of value to some people. It is recommended that people from outside China only drink bottled water when traveling in China Having been to countries like Egypt before - I don't know whether the water in countries like Egypt or China is "bad" per se - or whether water in different countries just has bugs that people from outside the countries can't tolerate. Whatever (this is a practical - not a health care/political point!) - I like ice in my drinks in my hotel room in the early evening. And plan to bring an ice tray so I can make ice cubes using bottled water in the mini bar if possible. Worst that happens - I can't make bottled water ice cubes (no freezer section). OTOH - plastic ice cube trays are small and very light - easy packing. Robyn
1)
What? Citizens of Japan, Brunei and Singapore can visit visa-free for up to 15 days, but US citizens generally need a visa.
There are a few airports - PEK, PVG, CTU, and CAN - where US citizens (and those of many other countries) can stay in the city for up to 72 hours, and there is a group package deal regarding Hainan island and not needing a visa, but for your trip, you
definitely need one.
2) You're supposed to carry around the passport with you, but getting stopped by the fuzz/robbed is highly unlikely. I always carry it around, particularly if I'm going to buy a train/plane ticket, but I'm not sure about the tourist attraction aspect that you mentioned.
3) Drinking the water in China augurs no good news. I'd always look for a hypermart - eg, Carrefour or Tesco - and grab a liter from an unpacked box, or one that's way in the back of other bottles on shelves.
3.5) Hypermarts are good places to make change. They rarely give you guff. Also, I look for old, worn bills as opposed to new ones, because I've had much less issues with counterfeits that way.