I'll be going through HKG (business award redemptions to Asia are back, finally!), so I'll just get it there for HKD499/$60. Not great, but I feel like it's enough under $100 that the cost is tolerable. The uncertainly is the more annoying aspect, so I'm hoping they get rid of the requirement within the next 2 months. Everyone already got it anyways.

My May 2022 drill: required one week stay in the Bay Are ($1,000 hotel) plus 4 COVID tests at one of two approved testing site for $660.

At that time, SFO-PVG Y Class was $6.600, Premium Economy was $8.500 and Business Class was nearly $20,000.

Or, 400K miles for Y award and 800K miles for J award.

Then after landed in Shanghai, my welcome package was 14 day forced quarantine plus 7 additional days of quarantine after Shanghai when I arrived at another city. Total 21 days quarantine cost was nearly 10,000 CNY.

As a comparison, a family member flew to Shanghai last week. No quarantine cost. Only $125 PCR test fee.

Bought $1,500 coach ticket BOS-SFO-PVG and upgraded to business class using UA Plus Points.

Life is so much easier now.

You don’t need a test if you’re leaving HKG via land border. I know they say you do but nobody checks it. I heard they aren’t checking on flights to the mainland either.

not 100% accurate. If you have not been outside HKG for the 10 (or 14?) days before entry to the Mainland, no COVID test or vaccine. But if you fly to HKG to go to the Mainland, you need to have a PCR test within 48 hours of initial flight.

I did it after landing at HKG, it cost HKD499 and I only had to wait about 3 hours for the results. Much cheaper than most places in the US and in the US, most testing places are not open 24/7

True, nobody seems to check, But you have to fill out the WeChat form for China Customs, and declare that your test result was negative.

HKD499 and a few hour wait is nothing compared to being caught cheating at Shenzhen Bay border crossing. Life's too short.

(although I admit I really really would like to say eff it and not get a test)

Has anyone posting above successfully used the Visa on Arrival at Lo Wu or other checkpoints? Or did you all manage to get fresh visas?

Still can't get any feedback whether it's back, it was supposed to be "in a few weeks" in January...

what happens, potentially or in theory, if you’re caught cheating at the shenzhen borders crossing? Return flight home?

If Chinese passport, I wouldn't be surprised if you weren't detained for a couple hours or days. Maybe not but quite possible

As a non-Chinese on a family reunion Resident Permit, I just don't want to find out. I wouldn't be surprised if they didn't just send me back to Hong Kong, since needing a PCR test itself is ridiculous at this point.

I did confirm that a suitcase full of bottles of red wine went through the arrival x-ray machine and nobody said anything :-)

So does China allow tourists already?

My dad being very old would like to go to China one last time to visit his siblings and relatives. He's still a holder of PROC passport, but he wants our entire family to go with him, and we are holders of Philippine passports. Can we already apply for visit visas?

Asked our travel agent and was told issuance of travel visas still on hold. But according to the website below, visiting relatives is allowed. But there's a note at the bottom saying visa applications related to travel and medical treatment are still suspended currently.

New?Requirements for China Visa Application

Visitor (Tourist L) Visas are still suspended. You can apply for Q1 or Q2 which would allow for family visits.

Apparently VOA is only available for humanitarian travel (e.g., death of a close relative), not tourism.

Does your dad have a valid Chinese ID? If so he can simply invite you all as his relatives. If not you'll need to get your dad's sibling to send you a letter of invitation, along with a copy of their Chinese ID.

A few other categories (e.g. F, M, X) are on offer too, but it does appear Q might be best in his case.

No, he doesn't have Chinese ID, just a Chinese passport.

We'll just ask for invitation letters from the relatives. Thank you.

The consulates are being very picky about the exactly family relationship, so you may have to try more than once. As of two weeks ago:

PRC citizen inviting his sibling with a foreign passport - Q2 issued
PRC citizen inviting his sibling's spouse, also with a foreign passport - Q2 issued
PRC citizen inviting his sibling's children - Q2 denied, because they aren't issuing Q2s for "more distant relatives yet." The solution was to have the PRC citizen's mother (the sibling's children's grandmother) issue the invitation letter, since grandkids are considered closer relatives, apparently, even though there's no difference between a grandparent inviting a grandchild vs an uncle inviting a niece.


Anyways, the official list of allowed relatives is:
"Family members" refers to spouses, parents, sons, daughters, spouses of sons or daughters, brothers,sisters,grandparents,grandsons, granddaughters and parents-in-law.

But there's some wiggle room since sibling's spouse is apparently okay even though that's not in the list.