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WeChat in China: 3 walls every foreigner hits β and how to get past them π¨π³
It's not just a chat app here. It's your menu, your wallet, your ticket in.
One Trip.com mistake that costs real money: treating 'Booked' as a ticket. After you pay, Booked or Processing just means your order is being handled. Don't head to the station until it says Issued β or the confirmation email lands. βΆοΈ youtu.be/F3DcGC7E-cI
You paid for your train. Trip.com says 'Booked.' But you don't have a ticket yet. 𧡠How Trip.com actually works for foreigners in China β trains, hotels, and 7 mistakes to avoid. βΆοΈ youtu.be/F3DcGC7E-cI π howtocnapps.blogspot.com/202β¦
π¨ Hotels: by law, hotels must register foreign guests, so bring your original passport β a photo won't do. Before you pay, check the policy or message the hotel and ask if they accept foreign passports. First night? A big chain is the safer bet.
π Changes: one change per ticket, online 8amβ10pm Beijing time. Refunds: free 8+ days out, then 5%/10%/20%. Stuck? From your booking β customer service β type 'Transfer to an agent' for a human, 24/7. βΆοΈ youtu.be/F3DcGC7E-cI
12306 for foreigners, in one video:
Sign up with email.
Name exactly as your passport.
Get verified early.
One change per ticket.
Staffed lane at the gate.
youtu.be/9rJNaLUbeII
Booking trains in China as a foreigner?
12306 is the official site. No booking fee. English version.
But a few steps trip people up.
Full step-by-step video:
youtu.be/9rJNaLUbeII
You can't buy until your passport is verified.
12306 doesn't publish how long manual review takes.
Travellers report minutes to days.
So verify when you book your flights, not the night before your train.
At the station, your passport is your ticket.
Bring the original.
Foreign passports use the staffed lane.
Rules can change, so check the app before you go.
Video: youtu.be/9rJNaLUbeII
More guides: howincn.com
Meituan SMS code never arrived? Check your spam/blocked folder before you give up.
The codes usually come from numbers starting with 106 β half the "Meituan doesn't work with foreign numbers" stories are just a blocked text. π±
Full guide: youtu.be/GIIfuhfjo4Q
Ordering food in China with Meituan is easy. Getting it the last 50 metres is not: the SMS code, the payment, the rider calling in Chinese, the hotel lobby.
Here's the whole chain, wall by wall π§΅
Refunds: look for two labels before you buy β ιζΆι (refund anytime) and θΏζθͺε¨ι (auto-refund when expired).
Unused vouchers with that label refund within 7 working days after expiry. Redeemed ones don't qualify.
Plan B if Meituan won't cooperate: its mini-programs inside WeChat and Alipay, Ele.me inside Alipay, or Dianping β which shares one account with Meituan.
Full 7-min walkthrough πΊ youtu.be/GIIfuhfjo4Q
Written guide π howtocnapps.blogspot.com/202β¦
