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Cheap Flights → Countries → China

Cheap Flights to China (CN)

What is the most exotic destination you'd ever contemplated for a vacation? Is it China? Many people have finally noticed China as a true tourist destination since the 2008 Olympics and today you can find tickets on cheap flights to China and out with us at TravelPapa.com. If you've always wanted to visit this land of diverse scenery and culture, now is the time to do it. China is finally getting the recognition it deserves as a top travel destination and you owe it to yourself to discover why.

China is filled with scenery so diverse that you will never stop pictures. Tibet is an area filled with wide open spaces and native flora and fauna. Shanghai is a bustling city where you will find just about anything you can imagine – and some you can't. Sichuan is where you visit to eat dishes that make you feel like a volcano has exploded in your mouth. And beer in a bag? That's the seaside city of Qingdao. China is a country that is filled with culture that is so diverse you will want to experience it all.

From the Great Wall of China to villages high in the mountains that date back to the Ming Dynasty, you are in for an adventure when you book tickets on cheap flights to China and visit the country. It is the country with the oldest continuous civilization that is known to man as well as an area full of history no matter where you go. From museums packed with rare and delightful artifacts to excavations of the largest dinosaur fossil site in the world, you need to experience China. And that is before you even find out what life in the country's bustling cities is all about.

To get started planning your China vacation, stop and see us at TravelPapa.com. We will help you find really cheap tickets to China no matter where you are coming from. Our user friendly interface will allow you to enter your destination, when you plan on traveling and for how long. From there we will research airline flights from all of the major airline operators and present you with a list of cheap flights to China meeting your needs. You can choose from there which flights to take and get the best rate you can possibly find. We really do take the guesswork out of traveling.

What if you want to visit more than one city in China and you're not quite brave enough to get on that crowded bus for the trip? No problem. When you research your flight options at TravelPapa.com, add the extra travel destinations to your itinerary. We will research all of your options for traveling around China by plane and include them in the low price we come up with. It's that simple.

Don't miss out on your chance to see the Terracotta Warriors, Ming relics, or taking a walk on the Great Wall. Cost is no longer a factor when it comes to flying. We will make sure you get the best and cheapest flights to China so you can do the things you want and see this beautiful country.
 

Book Cheap Flights to China:

San Francisco, CA to Shanghai (SFO to SHA)
$695.70
Seattle, WA to Guangzhou (SEA to CAN)
$707.55
San Francisco, CA to Shanghai (SFO to PVG)
$718.70
San Francisco, CA to Beijing (SFO to PEK)
$752.70
New York to Shanghai (NYC to SHA)
$754.27
New York to Guangzhou (NYC to CAN)
$797.20
Minneapolis to Shanghai (MSP to SHA)
$798.70
New York to Shanghai (NYC to PVG)
$822.42
Ho Chi Minh City to Guangzhou (SGN to CAN)
$179.58
Bangkok to Guangzhou (BKK to CAN)
$190.59
Hong Kong to Shanghai (HKG to SHA)
$200.41
Seoul to Shanghai (SEL to SHA)
$201.53
Singapore to Guangzhou (SIN to CAN)
$201.86

 

Top Cities of People's Republic of China:

Beijing
cheap flights to Beijing$490.64
Chengdu
cheap flights to Chengdu$629.52
Dalian
cheap flights to Dalian$646.21
Fuzhou
cheap flights to Fuzhou$891.62
Guangzhou
cheap flights to Guangzhou$169.66
Hangzhou
cheap flights to Hangzhou$745.38
Harbin
cheap flights to Harbin$236.22
Nanking/Nanjing
cheap flights to Nanking/Nanjing$613.92
Sanya
cheap flights to Sanya$198.43
Shanghai
cheap flights to Shanghai$168.42
Urumqi
cheap flights to Urumqi$238.52



Overview

China, officially known as the People's Republic of China, is a vast country in Eastern Asia (about the same size as the USA) with the world's largest population. With coasts on the East China Sea, Korea Bay, Yellow Sea, and South China Sea, in total it borders 14 nations. It borders Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar, Laos and Vietnam to the south; Tajikistan, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan to the west; Russia and Mongolia to the north and North Korea to the east. Only Russia has more land borders in Asia.

The climate is extremely diverse, from tropical regions in the south to subarctic in the north. Hainan Island (where most of China's tropical resorts are located) is roughly at the same latitude as Jamaica, while Harbin, one of the largest cites in the north, is at roughly the latitude of Montreal. There is also a wide range of terrain to be found in China with many inland mountain ranges, high plateaus, and deserts in center and far west; while plains, deltas, and hills are to be found in the east. On the border between the province of Tibet and the nation of Nepal lies Mount Everest, at 8,850 m, the highest point on earth. The Turpan depression, in northwest China's Xinjiang is the lowest point in the country, at 154 m below sea level. This is also the second lowest point on land in the world after the Dead Sea.

China has one of the world's oldest and continuous civilizations, consisting of states and cultures dating back more than six millennia. It has the world's longest continuously used written language system, and is the source of many major inventions, such as what the British scholar and biochemist Joseph Needham called the "four great inventions of Ancient China": paper, the compass, gunpowder, and printing. Historically, China's cultural sphere has extended across East Asia as a whole, with Chinese religion, customs, and writing systems being adopted to varying degrees by neighbors such as Japan, Korea and Vietnam (in its early history). The first evidence of human presence in the region was found at the Zhoukoudian cave and is one of the first known specimens of Homo erectus, now commonly known as the Peking Man, estimated to have lived approximately from 300,000 to 550,000 years ago. Noticeably, it is also known that the Peking Man was able to control and use fire.

China is a colossal land, not only in size but also in the depth of its history and the range of its natural, and even sometimes unnatural, wonders. From the amazing sights that everyone knows - like the Army of Terracotta Warriors in Xi'an or the Great Wall of China - to places that few outsiders will ever visit - Namsto Lake or the Buddhist grottos in Guyuan - China has something for everyone to see and experience. With a varied geography encompassing the highest mountains in the world, amazing deserts, grasslands, dense jungles and rainforests, China can be a difficult country to explore - but it's well worth the effort.

China was ruled by a series of Imperial Dynasties for around four to five thousand years until the Republic was founded in 1912. The Republic fell, on the mainland, to Communist regime in 1949. Since then, China has - somewhat ironically - charged to the fore of the modern world, particularly in the past few decades as it has focussed on growing economically through international trade and commerce. The result is cities like Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong, where skyscrapers tower above the horizon, but ancient spiritual practices are still maintained reverently.

The last Chinese Civil War (with major combat ending in 1949) has resulted in two political entities using the name China:
  • People's Republic of China (PRC), commonly known as Communist China or simply China, has control over mainland China and the largely self-governing territories of Hong Kong (since 1997) and Macau (since 1999).
  • Republic of China (ROC), commonly known as Nationalist China or Taiwan, has control over the islands of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen, and Matsu.
The People's Republic of China claims to have succeeded the Republic of China as the sole legitimate governing authority of all of China, which, from the official viewpoint of the People's Republic of China, includes the island of Taiwan. Due to the One-China policy, states around the world are pressured by Beijing to refuse or to cut off diplomatic relations with the Republic of China. As a result, 23 U.N. member states currently maintain official diplomatic relations with the Republic of China, while the vast majority of U.N. member states maintain official diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China.

Between 1949 and 1974, the People's Republic was closed to all but selected foreign visitors. China has become a major and one of the world's most-watched tourist destination, since its opening to the world in the late 1970s. In 1978, China received about 230,000 international foreign tourists. In our days, China is the world's fourth largest country for inbound tourism. The number of overseas tourists was 55 million in 2007. Foreign exchange income was 41.9 billion U.S. dollars, the world's fifth largest in 2007. The number of domestic tourists totaled 1.61 billion, with a total income of 777.1 billion yuan.  According to the WTO, in 2020, China will become the largest tourist country and the fourth largest for overseas travel.

General information

Continent:Asia
Area:9.597 million sq km (3.7 million sq mi)
Capital:Beijing
Government:Socialist Republic
Population:1.3 billion
Languages:The official language of China is Standard Mandarin, which is based on but not identical to the Beijing dialect of Mandarin. It has been the only language used in education on the mainland since the 1950s, so most people speak it. Many regions - especially in the southeast and south of the country - also have their own dialect. These are really different languages, as different as French and Italian although referring to Chinese "dialects" as separate languages is a touchy political issue.

After Mandarin (which is spoken by over 70% of the population), the largest dialect groups are Wu, spoken in the region around Shanghai, Zhejiang and southern Jiangsu, followed by Cantonese, spoken in most of Guangdong Province, Hong Kong and Macau, and the Min (Fujian) group which includes Minnan (Hokkien) spoken in the region around Xiamen and in Taiwan. Most Chinese are bilingual in the local language and Mandarin.

All Chinese are taught English at school as it is a compulsory subject starting from late elementary school and passing an English exam is a requirement for a university degree. However, the focus of the instruction is formal grammar and writing rather than conversation. As a result, few learn it well enough to be able to participate in an English conversation. Outside of the largest cities and the major tourist areas, it is quite rare to find locals conversant in English.
Religions:China is officially an Atheist Nation but Daoism (Taoism), Buddhism, Islam, and more recently different sects of Christianity are becoming more and more prevalent.
Time:GMT +8
Currency:Renminbi (RMB). The base unit of this currency is the yuan (CNY). All prices in China are given in yuan.
Electricity:220V / 50Hz (US plug for 2-pin, Australian plug for 3-pin)
Calling Code:+86
Internet Domain:.cn
Drives:on the right
Tips:Although tips will be accepted if given, the Chinese, for the most part, don't tip at all for common services such as taxis, haircuts, deliveries, massages, food or bar service. A tip might be a nice idea if someone goes way out of their way for you or if they provide exceptional service beyond what they're required to do in their job. It may also be a good idea for a driver or tour guide on a multi-day trip. A bellboy at a nice hotel might expect a tip. Otherwise, tipping is not expected.
Visas:Most travelers will need a visa to visit mainland China. In most cases, this should be obtained from a Chinese embassy or consulate before departure. Hong Kong and Macau each issue their own visas from a Chinese embassy or consulate. However, citizens from majority of counties do not need visas to visit Hong Kong and Macau.

Getting a tourist visa is fairly easy for most passports as you don't need an invitation, which you do for business or working visas. The usual tourist single-entry visa is valid for 30 days, though up to 90 days is possible too, at least for citizens of some countries. A double-entry tourist visa must be used within six months after it was issued, until recently it was within three months. Single entry tourist visas must be used within three months.

Some travelers will need a dual entry or multiple entry visa. For example, if you enter China on a single entry visa, then go to Hong Kong or Macau, you need a new visa/multiple entry visa to re-enter mainland China.

If you are not staying in a hotel you are required to register your abode with the local police within 24 (in a city) to 72 (in countryside) hours of arrival. The police will ask for a copy of the photograph page of your passport, a copy of your visa, a copy of your immigration entry stamp, a photograph, a copy of the tenancy agreement or other document concerning the place you are staying in. That agreement might not be in your name but it will still be asked for. It might be a good idea to bring extra passport-sized photographs with you because it is possibly easier to get them in your own country than after arrival in China.
Airports:The main international gateways into mainland China are Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK), Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport (CTU), Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport (CAN), Hong Kong International Airport (HKG), and Shanghai Pudong International Airport (PVG).
  Have you always wanted to visit this country but didn't know where to start?
  You have already checked airfares at cheaptickets, cheapflights, expedia, skyscanner, momondo, kayak, and other travel sites but failed?
  Stop surfing around!
  Here, at TravelPapa.com you can find best airfares and book very cheap airline tickets to Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and other cities of China.
  Have a great flight!
Photo: The Great Wall of China in Badaling. (© Stock.XCHNG / sakue / Sandra Kühr)

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