Hi all may be this information might help some people: apply for Chinese visa in your home country strictly. Chinese don't like to give out visa to foreigners for example in Mongolia and Hongkong. It always depends on country to country relations plus other factors. Also note that in some cases like mine they even created trouble entering the 72 hrs non visa transit permit. So as far as you are obedient enough and don't want to go to xintiang or tibet you might have no troubles... good luck with traveling and bare in mind China is not designed for backpackers solo travelers- it's hard to control them :-))
1
mvbergen
Do you think it's possible to ask for a visa without booking (all) your accommodations in advance ?
Backpackers travel.
Thanks.
Michel
2
violets
China is a terrific country for solo travellers. The public transport is good, there are lots of good hostels and cheap hotels and a population of helpful people. And it's quite inexpensive.
To apply for a visa, don't panic. All you have to do is make a few unconfirmed bookings on websites like bookings .com and then change your bookings as it suits you once tou have the visa. No one is going to check that you stayed in the places you said. I have never paid for a flight or made bookings for accommodation before I got my visa, just listed accommodation and booked a confirmed flight. Some agencies are tougher than others in how rigorous you have to be, but even then it's not really difficult.
4
tibetlover
Af # 2. In many countries like mine (Holland), you need to show your flight tickets into China and as proof you are leaving China again. Not showing a copy of your e-tickets means not getting the Chinese visa. And yes, you can make the hotel bookings at f.I. Booking.com. And cancel them after getting the Chinese visa. Once you are in China nobody checks these bookings.
5
flumy
Actually, Chinese authorities are now asking flight tickets as a prerequisite for visa issuing in most countries, especially the outbound one. Anyway, even this detail is not such a huge problem. By the time when one plans to travel, he/she will have a ticket to China and if the return ticket, i.e. for travel that takes you out of mainland China, is a problem, you can enclose some cheap ticket like the one to Hong Kong or some other nearby destination costing less than 100 EUR. They are definitely not so strict as some people report.
By the way, China is not enforcing any measure against backpacker way of travel. The only entity that really tries to block the entrance and sojourn of backpackers is Macau. Speaking generally, I definitively agree with @violets because China is a country quite suitable for solo backpacking travel and I would like to add just one good reason to visit it and it is high level of safety.
6
mvbergen
In fact, I'm from Belgium and I want to go there as independent traveller.
I don't want to book my accommodations in advance because I've never done in the past for my different travels and I will not be free to move as I want.
Michel
7
mvbergen
Thanks.
To be honest, I will check later because I'm focused now on my two next trips (autumn).
My aim is to visit "only" Yunnan next spring. At least of part of it because it's huge and I want to visit properly.
Best regards.
Michel
8
flumy
Actually, at the time of your application you will have to show your accommodations along with a short intended itinerary. Anyway, this is not a problem, but in reality just a formality. There are several agencies (Booking.com, Ctrip...) that have fairly liberal cancellation policy, so after you receive your visa, you will just cancel all of your accommodation bookings and proceed in China to explore Yunnan in the way as you wish. You are right about this Chinese province because it is larger than Italy and has also comparable population.
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