China Pre-Flight Checklist: Apps, SIM, Payments & Documents

Flying to Beijing? The single biggest mistake visitors make is arriving with a phone that cannot pay, cannot map, and cannot connect. In mainland China, Google, Gmail, WhatsApp and many Western apps are restricted — so once you are on Chinese mobile data you may not be able to download what you suddenly need. This checklist takes about 30 minutes at home and prevents most of the frustration travellers hit on day one.

Set these up before you board

Do this on your home internet, not on Chinese Wi-Fi.

WeChat & Alipay — passport verify + card link — Link a Visa or Mastercard at home and run a small test payment. Full steps in our paying-in-china guide (Paying in China as a Foreigner: Alipay, WeChat Pay and Your International Card).
A data plan: roaming, airport SIM, or eSIM — Install and test an eSIM profile before departure; a local SIM needs your passport at the airport. See internet-in-china (Internet in China for Foreigners: SIM, eSIM, Roaming and Staying Connected).
Maps & translation, cached offline — Download Amap (Gaode) or Baidu Maps and a translator with offline Chinese packs while you still have unrestricted internet.
Confirm your visa / entry status — Check 240-hour transit or 30-day visa-free eligibility at china-visa-transit (China's 240-Hour Visa-Free Transit: Who Qualifies and How to Enter via Beijing).
Book your hotel — Both KOULING hotels accept foreign cards and handle passport registration at check-in — see KOULING Ruiyue Hotel and KOULING Hotel Beijing Donggaodi.

Documents & money to carry

China runs on real-name registration, so a few physical items still matter.

Passport valid 6+ months — You will show it at immigration, hotel check-in, SIM purchase and sometimes payment.
Screenshot or print key info — Hotel address, booking confirmation, and emergency numbers (110 police, 120 ambulance) — in case data drops.
Some cash + one foreign card — Cards are widely accepted, but keep about ¥200 cash for tiny vendors and taxis. More in money-in-china (Money in China: Cash, Cards, ATMs and What to Expect).

Pre-departure checklist (tick as you go)

Alipay & WeChat Pay installed and card-linked — Do a tiny test transfer or top-up to confirm it works.
eSIM installed and tested, or SIM plan decided — Activate on arrival; do not rely on downloading it in China.
Offline maps cached for your hotel area — Cache the route from the nearest metro station to the hotel.
Translator app with a Chinese offline pack — Google Translate is unreliable on the mainland.
Visa / transit status confirmed — Lists of eligible countries change — verify yours before booking.
Hotel booked and address saved offline — Both KOULING hotels welcome foreign guests.
Power bank + Type-A / Type-C adapters packed — China uses 220V, type A/I plugs; a power bank saves you at the airport.
Emergency numbers screenshotted — 110 (police), 120 (ambulance), 12308 (consular hotline).

When you land in Beijing

Both Beijing Capital (PEK) and Daxing (PKX) are open ports for the transit and visa-free policies. At the arrival hall, look for the Beijing Service counters — they help with SIM cards, payment setup and translation devices in multiple languages. From there, the subway (tap a foreign card at the gate on Line 8, or buy a metro pass) or a Didi ride gets you to the hotel. Full airport breakdown in beijing-airports-pek-pkx (Beijing Airports: PEK vs PKX and How to Get to the City).

Timing your trip: seasons, holidays and crowds

Beijing's best months for walking and sightseeing are late March to May and September to early November — dry, mild, and clear enough for the Great Wall. July and August are hot (often above 32°C) and humid, with sudden downpours; winter is cold but uncrowded and the cheapest time to book hotels. Avoid the two Golden Week holidays if you can: around 1–7 October and Chinese New Year (late January to mid-February, dates shift yearly), domestic travel surges and Forbidden City tickets sell out within hours of release. Even in shoulder season, book the Forbidden City, Tiananmen flag-raising viewing, and Mutianyu cable-car slots on their official WeChat mini-programs or via your hotel a week ahead — same-day availability is rare. Summer visitors should start sightseeing at 8am; winter visitors can start at 9:30am and still beat most groups.

Common first-48-hours mistakes

Assuming airport taxis take foreign cards — Most PEK and PKX taxi drivers take cash or Alipay/WeChat QR only. Withdraw 200–500 RMB from an ATM in arrivals (UnionPay machines usually accept Visa/Mastercard, but fee and reliability vary), or use the official taxi queue app shown on the rank boards.
Taking the wrong airport express — PEK and PKX have separate rail links to different parts of the city (PKX serves Line 19 via the Daxing Express; PEK serves the Capital Airport Express to Sanyuanqiao/Dongzhimen). Check which airport your flight uses before setting a meeting point.
Booking the Great Wall for your first morning — Jet lag plus a 6–7am departure to Mutianyu or Badaling is brutal. Do it on day 2 or 3, and avoid the S2 train on weekends — the Badaling tourist buses or a pre-booked day tour are more predictable.
Forgetting your passport for every ticket — Attractions, trains and even some metro gates require the passport used at booking. Save its photo offline, but carry the physical document daily.
Leaving cash transfer to the last day — If you want leftover RMB converted back before flying, only major bank branches do it, and they keep roughly 9am–5pm hours with a lunch break. Don't leave it to a Sunday evening.