moondog

I managed to escape successfully yesterday. Following are a few insights (PVG departure in my case, but I assume other exit points are similar):
1. You only need a 48 (or 24) hour green code to access the airport (not really any different than a subway station)
2. To get into the China customs area, you need to fill out this form: https://htdecl.chinaport.gov.cn/htde...dex/index.html (hard to open from non-China IP). If you don't do it in advance, you can scan a QR on the spot and input the info using your phone (no big deal)
3. Plan on waiting for a considerable amount of time to check-in and get through exit immigration. The lines were not long, but Chinese nationals were subjected to intense questioning by both the airline and immigration...and, being non-Chinese didn't really help because the lines weren't segregated by nationality. And, as travelinmanS mentioned last week, eChannel is on pause
4. It honestly didn't take me *that* long to get from curb to gate, but standing in around in lines made me quite hungry. And, there is almost no food on offer in PVG T2-international section. I did spot a few beverage vending machines though. Moral to story: load up on snacks before you go

YariGuy

When I flew earlier in the year on United the Air China lounge was open and had food and alcohol.

But no other F&B was open inside the terminal.

boat stuck

I know someone who flew out of PVG on Nov. 7 and it was routine, no one got questioned, they got in a car, drove up to the terminal, checked in and flew, almost like the pre-Covid days.

What a difference 3 weeks make.

narvik

Thanks for info. Plan on heading back to US before Christmas from PVG.
Can't leave now...just too much excitement at the moment!

Palal

What moondog describes above is the same process as I experienced in early October. Really nothing out of the ordinary, except the long time to get through the process, and the deserted international area of the terminal.

travelinmanS

I went through it today at PVG T1. Was just as moondog described but the MU lounge in t1 was open and serving a decent noodle soup.

All in all much better than my trip out during lockdown last May.

gaobest

will you return to China?

moondog

For sure. I might wait until March 2023, though (unless it becomes really easy to go back and forth between now and then; mom's bday is in late Feb).

gaobest

the way you said that you escaped, I couldn’t detect if you wanted to return. What are the current joys of living there and how often are you testing for Covid during a week? I saw in an Omni pr China thread that one FlyerTalk member needs to have a negative test within the past 48 hours in order to enter shops and malls for spending money. I probably haven’t tested for Covid since September.

moondog

-I tested whenever I passed by testing places without lines (usually not twice in the same day, though). The idea is to try to keep the number at 48 or less (though 72 is usually fine)
-Most swabs are really half ... so I doubt they catch much, but simply getting my code scanned is the main objective
-TMK, PCR tests have never been required in the absolute sense, and many stores/restaurants don't care, but as long as they're easy and free (this part might change on January 1), there's no reason not to get them

​​​​​​

vanabb

I was asked to leave China asap on Nov 29, and left via Xiamen and Taipei on Nov 30 (Xiamen air from Hefei). I thought this was really unnecessary, I never felt unsafe or at risk, but anyway. My Hefei colleagues thought it was funny (face palm). No issues at all to leave China. Xiamen security was actually very relaxed compared to PVG entry. In Xiamen I still had to leave the secure part of the terminal, I could not simply 'stay in transit'. My local QR code was still green however on arrival, and after one last test suddenly I was outside, then I had to work my way back in to the gate. Without the green code this would have been a nightmare. Exiting China required filling out an online form and getting a QR code. But all in all it was seamless.

gaobest

Who or which organization asked you to leave on 11/29 and how much was the flight at what I assume is short notice pricing?

moondog

By shear coincidence, I left China on 11/28 (and started this thread on 11/29). I pretty much pulled that date out of thin air a month or so prior, but in mid November, there were hints that changes were in the works and by 3-4 days prior, the writing on the wall suggested that positive cases were likely to explode. Being positive would have seriously messed things up for me under the old rules because I wouldn't have been allowed to even set foot in the airport. I gather that's not such big deal any more, but we certainly didn't know they were going to pretty much decimate the health code system (that had been gospel since March). As such, I think my timing was smart based on what we knew beforehand. Tmk, there was not a noticeable spike (or drop) in airfares.

gudugan

HFE-XMN-TPE on MF is US$352 for today's flight

gaobest

ah I thought they only transited xmn / tpe and were ending up in Europe. I was trying to imagine a next day fare that’s tpac or maybe tpac / tatl (??)