Solo Travel in China 2027: Trains, Hotels and How to Get Around

For the first-trip setup, see the first-time visitor checklist. For safety advice for women travelling alone, see how safe is China for solo female travellers.

Can you travel around China on your own?

Yes. Foreign visitors can buy train tickets, stay in hotels and pay with a linked card without joining a group tour. Entry rules depend on your passport. Check the visa-free entry guide and the visa-free transit guide before you book.

How do you take trains and stay in hotels when you travel alone?

Buy tickets on 12306, the official China Railway site, with a valid foreign passport. Tickets usually go on sale 15 days before departure. Board with the same original passport you used to buy the ticket. For the full booking steps, see 12306 tickets for foreigners.

Hotels register foreign guests at check-in and send that record to the local police. If you stay with friends or in any other non-hotel home, you or your host must register you with the police within 24 hours of arrival. You can do this online on the NIA website or in the NIA 12367 app. The first time you register at an address, ask your host to help. After that, you can register yourself online when you stay at the same place again, or when you stay in a home you own. A local police station can also help.

Foreigners aged 16 or over must carry their passport, or a stay or residence permit, and show it if the police ask.

The busiest travel weeks in 2027 include Spring Festival, 5 to 13 February, and National Day, 1 to 7 October. Trains and famous sights are often packed then. Book as soon as ticket sales open if you have to travel in those weeks.

How do payments and apps work on a solo trip?

You can register Alipay with an overseas phone number before you fly, then link an international card. In Alipay and WeChat Pay, foreign users can link Visa and Mastercard. Cash and bank cards still work as a backup. Step-by-step setup is in Alipay for foreigners and WeChat Pay for foreigners. For a first-day order of payments, a SIM or eSIM, and the metro, see the first-day China guide.

Is China safe for solo travellers?

Keep a simple plan. Stay in a hotel that can register foreign guests, and carry your original passport. Save police 110, ambulance 120 and fire 119 in your phone. For crime, scams and advice for women travelling alone, see how safe is China for solo female travellers. For a wider overview, see is China safe to travel. What to say on a call is in China emergency numbers.

How do you plan the days when you travel alone?

On a route such as Beijing, Xi’an and Shanghai, plan each transfer from hotel checkout to the next hotel, including the station journey at both ends. Alone, you carry your own luggage and do your own navigation. Add a pickup or a guide for the days you would prefer help, and keep the other days independent. If you take a hotel room to yourself, the hotel may charge a single-person rate, so check this before you book.

LocalKey plans private trips for one person or a small party, at two levels under private China tours: Independent and Private Guided. Independent includes planning, booking and all-day backup in the app; a local guide, a car and driver, and an airport pickup are optional add-ons on the days you choose. Private Guided includes a private guide and a car with driver across the trip.

Sample routes:

• First Time in China, 9 days: Beijing, Xi'an and Shanghai.
• Hangzhou and Huangshan, 7 days: Shanghai, Hangzhou and Huangshan.
• Yunnan culture and landscape, 10 days: Kunming, Dali, Lijiang and Shangri-La.
• See all our China tours.