Useful Information for Travel in China
If you have never been to China, these are very useful information/tips that you should know before travelling to China.
Most people of Europian nationality do not need a visa to China. Please check before you come. (24 Sept. 2025)
Official website: https://en.nia.gov.cn/n147418/n147463/c180637/content.html
FAQ for this policy: https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/RLLmTiEjc0fhWT4yb8k2wA
An official guide (not that up-to-date): pdf
Travel tips about SIM card/eSIM, vpn, currency change, electronic payment, high speed train, language and translater, online maps, TAXI app etc.
From someone who can speak Chinese: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-VGkn_PNUPU
From a foreigner view point: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g1SQgc-PZno
To buy high speed train tickets (starting from 15 days before departure of the train):   trip.com (and its app)   [This is a Chinese company, one of the biggest travel company in China. It has a Chinese version ctrip.com]
payment apps (available in GooglePlay):  alipay   and   WeChat pay
News for metro in some large cities (including Beijing, Shanghai): One can tap his contactless VISA or MASTER card to ride the metro (even easier than Alipay QR code). ref1 ref2.