How much does a trip to China cost?
Pick a travel style and how many nights, and get a ballpark budget — daily and total, in RMB — plus real prices for food, transport, and attractions to sanity-check it.
What kind of trip?
3-star hotel, restaurant meals, taxis, paid attractions.
Mid-range trip, 7 nights
¥4,200–7,000
¥600–1,000 per person, per day — excluding flights.
Not included: Flights, intercity high-speed rail between cities, and your visa (if you need one) are not in the daily figures above — budget those separately.
China is cheaper than Western Europe day-to-day, but big-ticket sights and intercity travel add up. Expect higher prices in Beijing/Shanghai and tourist zones, lower in smaller cities. These are ballpark planning numbers, not a quote — confirm current prices closer to your trip. Updated June 2026.
What things actually cost
Reference prices to sanity-check the estimate above, in 2026 RMB.
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Frequently asked questions
How much does a trip to China cost?
It depends on your travel style, excluding flights: backpackers spend roughly ¥250–400 per day, mid-range travellers ¥600–1,000, and comfortable travel runs ¥1,500+ per day. Multiply by your trip length for a ballpark total.
Is China cheap or expensive to visit?
Day-to-day, China is cheaper than Western Europe — street food, public transport, and most attraction tickets are inexpensive. Costs add up faster on big-ticket sights, intercity high-speed rail between cities, and 4-5 star hotels. Beijing and Shanghai run higher than smaller cities.
What's a good daily budget for China?
A mid-range daily budget of ¥600–1,000 per person covers a 3-star hotel, restaurant meals, taxis or DiDi, and paid attractions. Add more for business-class rail and 4-5 star hotels, or less for hostels and street food.
Does a China trip budget include flights?
No — the daily and total figures here exclude international flights, intercity high-speed rail between the cities on your trip, and any visa fees. Budget those separately on top of the daily spend.
These are ballpark planning numbers from our own cost-of-living dataset, not a quote — prices vary by city, season, and how you travel. Last updated June 2026.