China has extended visa-free entry for Russians. What tourists need to know
China has extended the visa-free regime for Russian tourists until the end of 2027. They can stay in the country for up to 30 days. China has many attractions and is suitable for any type of holiday. At the same time, trips to this country require special preparation. What you need to know about tourism in China is in the Izvestia article.
Special features of trips to China
• Russian citizens can visit China without a visa until December 31, 2027. The country's authorities have extended the visa-free regime, which was previously in effect until September 14, 2026. You can enter China for up to 30 days if the purpose of the trip is business meetings, tourism, visiting relatives and friends, exchange programs, or transit to third countries.
• Trips to China have a number of features that independent tourists usually do not encounter when visiting other countries. So, before departure, the issue of payment of expenses should be resolved. In China, almost no cash or bank card payments are used. Accepting cash yuan can either be refused or accepted without change, and there are almost no terminals for using the cards. Instead, QR code payments are common through the AliPay ("Zhifubao" in Chinese) or WeChat ("Weixin") applications.
• Both apps have two payment modes. The first is the internal balance in yuan. It is quite difficult for a foreign tourist to replenish it, you will need the help of trusted intermediaries who will be able to do this with the payment of a commission. In the case of AliPay, the replenishment service is also provided by some Russian banks. The second method is to link a bank card to the application. For this purpose, Visa and Mastercard cards issued outside of Russia or Russian cards of the Chinese UnionPay payment system are accepted. Payment over 200 yuan with a QR code through the card will be carried out with a commission, but you don't have to pay it if you agree with the seller to split the payment.
• Payment via apps is not possible without a working mobile internet connection. You can connect to it in China using a virtual SIM card (eSIM), but only the most modern smartphones have this feature. You can check its availability using the dial *#06#. If the EID number is displayed on the screen, then this phone supports the use of eSIM. If not, you will have to use roaming or buy a Chinese SIM card to connect to the Internet. They are sold by China Unicom, China Mobile and China Telecom operators both at airports and in city communication salons. You will need a passport to purchase physical SIM cards. They cannot connect to services blocked in China without a VPN, but they provide a phone number where you can register in local applications.
• The Internet will also be needed to use translators. Apps such as Baidu Translate and Microsoft Translator can translate signage and have voice translation functionality needed to communicate with locals. Built-in translators are also available on AliPay and WeChat. Translation from Chinese to English may be more accurate than direct translation into Russian. In the most difficult cases, DeepSeek's Chinese AI model can help with translation.
• For trips to China, it will be useful to install local applications with geographical maps. The Amap and Baidu Maps services have much more accurate information than international ones, but most of the information about organizations and addresses is in Chinese. Installing AliPay is enough to use transport. This application issues QR codes for paying for public transport in major cities, gives access to the DiDi taxi aggregator and sells train tickets through the official 12306 service. AliPay also contains mini-apps for booking hotels, delivering food, and buying tickets to attractions.
Main directions
• Russia and China are connected by a well-developed air travel network. There are direct flights from 13 Russian cities. From the European part and the Urals, planes fly from Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kazan and Yekaterinburg. From Siberia and the Far East, you can reach China via Novosibirsk, Krasnoyarsk, Irkutsk, Chita, Yakutsk, Khabarovsk, Vladivostok, Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk and Blagoveshchensk. The latter is located on the opposite bank of the Amur River from the city of Heihe, it can be reached by car or boat, and in 2026 they will also be connected by a cable car.
• Most often, flights from Russian airports travel to Beijing, Shanghai, and the city of Sanya on the tourist island of Hainan. Flights to Xi'an, Guangzhou, Chongqing, Chengdu, Shenzhen, Harbin, Manchuria, Hailar, and Dalian are also less common. China itself has a well-developed network of air and rail routes, so you can get to any part of the country through major centers.
Main attractions
The symbol of the country is the Great Wall of China, which began to be built in the 3rd century BC and continued to be built until 1644. Today, only 8% of the 9,000-kilometer wall is in good condition, the rest of it is in ruins. Tourists usually visit the Badalin and Mutianyu sites. They are an hour and a half drive from Beijing and connected to the capital by public transport, but they are overloaded with crowds of visitors. Less popular but more secluded are the Jinshanling and Jiankou sites.
• In Beijing itself (it sounds like "Beijing" to the Chinese), the main attraction is the imperial residence "Forbidden City". To visit it, you need to buy a ticket online no more than seven days before the trip. This ticket also gives you the opportunity to visit Tiananmen Square, which houses the mausoleum of Mao Zedong and the National Museum of China. A separate square can be visited only after pre-registration, there is no free access to it. If it was not possible to buy a ticket to the Forbidden City in advance, the only ticket office near the eastern moat is open for foreigners.
• In the capital, it is also worth visiting the Temple of Heaven, a temple complex where Chinese emperors prayed for a rich harvest and prosperity of the country. Tourists are also attracted by the vast park of the Summer Palace, notable for the Changlan Gallery with 14,000 drawings on Chinese history and a Marble Boat. Other attractions in Beijing include the Yonghegong Buddhist Monastery, the main pedestrian and shopping street of Wangfujing, and the skyscrapers of the business part of the city.
Shanghai is a more modern city, whose futuristic appearance can be appreciated either from the Bund, located in the old center, or from one of the many high-rise observation decks. Tourists also travel to the financial center of China for the amusement parks Disneyland and Legoland. At the same time, Shanghai has European neighborhoods in the area of the French concession, and the classic Chinese Yuyuan Garden.
Xi'an is famous primarily for the Terracotta Army located 40 km away, a collection of 8,000 clay warriors who were supposed to guard the peace of the first Chinese emperor Qin Shi Huang. All the figures were made more than 2 thousand years ago and are unique, but they were discovered only in 1974. Xi'an itself is notable for the city wall encircling its center, the Muslim quarter, one of the world's largest musical fountains and the Large Wild Goose Pagoda, which overlooks the city.
• Chongqing is one of the most unusual cities in the world because of its steep terrain. It turns any walk into an attraction when, after leaving one building, you can find yourself on the roof of another. Tourists must visit the Lizba monorail station, built into an apartment building, and the embankment in the Jifanbei business district. Near Chongqing there is a complex of temples and caves of Dazu with 50 thousand rock sculptures.
Harbin stands out from other Chinese cities with its architecture, which was influenced by the Russian presence in the early 20th century. However, in China itself, it is known primarily because of the festival that is held every winter. During it, Harbin is building the world's largest ice town with replicas of famous structures, sculptures, labyrinths and slides.
• Hainan Island is the main destination for beach holidays. It is located in the South China Sea and is famous for its warm climate, even in winter the temperature on it stays close to 30 degrees. The island has a well—developed tourist infrastructure for a carefree holiday, and its most famous attraction is a glass bridge over a 400-meter precipice. There is also a spaceport on Hainan, thanks to which you can watch the launch of spacecraft and satellites directly from the beach.
• China is also rich in natural attractions. Zhangjiajie National Park attracts tourists because of its thousands of thin stone pillars, which can be reached by a 326-meter-high elevator and a 430-meter glass bridge. Jiuzhaigou Valley consists of many colorful lakes and waterfalls that freeze in winter. The most picturesque place in China is the Li River and its hilly shores, which can be admired during a cruise from the city of Guilin. In Sichuan Province and its capital Chengdu, you can watch pandas in abundance, both at their breeding bases and in nature reserves.
Why is visa-free travel still important?
• The visa–free regime with China will have a significant impact on the economies of both countries, not only through tourism, but also through new business opportunities at various levels, from SMEs and large industrialists to shuttle logistics and parallel imports. The regions of the Russian Far East will also receive a boost in development due to their proximity to China.
• Reducing transaction costs and creating a Russian-Chinese business space with a low entry threshold will lead to a change in the architecture of the Russian market itself: if earlier the business was focused on the West, European standards and contacts, European logistics and the American currency, now there is a global turn to the East, which accelerates and facilitates the decision to extend visa-free regime. Access to Chinese factories, productions, technologies and digital solutions is being facilitated. An entire segment of Russian brands may appear in Chinese production. The Chinese share of goods on marketplaces, which no longer need intermediaries for supplies, will continue to grow.
• Experts also predict the emergence of a new generation of entrepreneurs with knowledge of the "Chinese base": They will know how to build relationships with Chinese partners, work with WeChat, master the basics of the language and know Chinese production cycles.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
