12306
The official China Railway booking platform, named after the customer-service phone number. It sells every high-speed and conventional ticket in the country, requires a passport scan, and now has a usable English app.
Loading…
Loading contentLoading…
Loading contentSearch by term, Hanzi, or pinyin, or use the A-Z rail to skim. Each entry links onward where there's a deeper guide.
The official China Railway booking platform, named after the customer-service phone number. It sells every high-speed and conventional ticket in the country, requires a passport scan, and now has a usable English app.
支付宝zhīfùbǎo
Ant Group's super-app, the dominant payment rail across mainland China. Foreign travelers can link an international Visa or Mastercard inside its 'Tour Card' flow and pay almost everywhere by QR code.
白酒báijiǔ
Clear grain liquor distilled from sorghum or rice, usually 40 to 60 percent alcohol. It is the spirit of state banquets and family toasts; sip slowly and pace your gānbēi.
Travelers often say 'bullet train' for any fast Chinese train, but the railway distinguishes G-trains (Gāosù, the fastest, up to 350 km/h) from D-trains (slower, often overnight) and C-trains (intercity commuter). When in doubt, book a G.
Mandarin (普通话, Pǔtōnghuà) is China's official spoken standard and what you'll hear nearly everywhere except in Hong Kong, Macau, and parts of Guangdong, where Cantonese (粤语) dominates. The two share a writing system but are not mutually intelligible.
人民币rénmínbì
CNY is the ISO currency code; RMB ('Renminbi', the people's currency) is the formal name; yuan (元) is the unit you'll see on price tags. In speech the colloquial unit is kuài (块).
滴滴dīdī
China's dominant ride-hailing app, comparable to Uber. There is an English-language 'DiDi' international app that accepts foreign cards and works in most large cities.
点心diǎnxin
The Cantonese tradition of small steamed and fried plates served alongside tea, usually at brunch. The proper name for the meal is yum cha (饮茶); 'dim sum' refers to the bites themselves.
二胡èrhú
A two-stringed bowed instrument with a small resonator covered in python skin, often called the Chinese violin. You'll hear it in subway underpasses, parks, and concert halls — a haunting, vocal sound.
An embedded SIM downloaded as a digital profile rather than a physical card. The cleanest way to land in China with working data, since many travel eSIMs route through Hong Kong and skip the Great Firewall.
发票fāpiào
An official, tax-registered receipt, distinct from a printed shop slip. Travelers rarely need one, but business travelers must request fāpiào explicitly to be reimbursed.
高铁gāotiě
Literally 'high iron' — China's high-speed rail network, the largest in the world by track length. G-series trains run at 300 to 350 km/h and connect every major city.
长城chángchéng
Not a single wall but a mosaic of fortifications built and rebuilt over two thousand years. Most travelers visit Ming-dynasty sections near Beijing — Mutianyu and Jinshanling are quieter than crowded Badaling.
汉服hànfú
Traditional Han Chinese dress, layered silk robes that predate the Manchu-era qipao. A youthful revival movement has made it common to see hànfú at parks and historical sites, especially Xi'an and Hangzhou.
火锅huǒguō
A simmering communal pot of broth, often split into spicy and mild halves, into which diners dip raw meat, seafood, tofu, and vegetables. Sichuan and Chongqing styles burn with málà; northern lamb hot pot is gentler.
户口hùkǒu
China's household registration system, which ties citizens to a specific city or village for schooling, healthcare, and pensions. It does not apply to foreign travelers but underlies a lot of social texture you'll observe.
胡同hútòng
The narrow grey-brick alleys of old Beijing, formed by walls of single-story courtyard houses (siheyuan). The surviving hutongs around Gulou and Nanluoguxiang are some of the city's best wandering.
煎饼jiānbing
A breakfast crepe of mung-bean and millet batter, cracked with an egg, brushed with sweet bean and chili sauces, and folded around a crisp wonton sheet. Five to ten yuan from a sidewalk cart, served before 10 a.m.
A new visa category introduced in late 2025 for young foreign science and technology talent, offering longer stays than the standard tourist L-visa. Most travelers don't qualify; it's worth knowing about for context.
功夫gōngfu
A general term for Chinese martial arts, but the word literally means 'skill achieved through patient effort.' Shaolin Temple in Henan is the famous training ground; many other styles (taiji, wing chun) flourish elsewhere.
麻将májiàng
A four-player tile game, ancestor of rummy, played fiercely in tea houses and family living rooms. The clatter of tiles is one of the signature sounds of a Chinese afternoon.
普通话pǔtōnghuà
The official spoken standard of China, based on the Beijing dialect. About 80 percent of the country speaks it as a first or second language; learning ten phrases is enough to make most encounters warmer.
茅台máotái
A famous brand of baijiu from Guizhou province, served at state banquets and considered the apex of the category. A bottle of Feitian Maotai retails for thousands of yuan.
地铁dìtiě
Every major Chinese city has a clean, fast, English-signed metro. Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen each operate networks larger than any in Europe; tap in with Alipay or WeChat Pay.
月饼yuèbǐng
A dense, rich pastry exchanged at Mid-Autumn Festival in September or October. Traditional fillings are lotus-seed paste with a salted egg yolk; modern versions get experimental with snow-skin and ice cream.
味精wèijīng
Monosodium glutamate, a flavor enhancer common in casual Chinese cooking. The mid-century 'Chinese restaurant syndrome' panic has been thoroughly debunked; if you'd rather skip it, ask for 'bú yào wèijīng'.
拼音pīnyīn
The Romanization system for Mandarin, adopted in 1958 and now universal in dictionaries, signage, and computer input. Tone marks above the vowels are essential — 'mā', 'má', 'mǎ', 'mà' are four different words.
旗袍qípáo
A high-collared, side-slit silk dress that emerged in 1920s Shanghai and became iconic of Republican-era glamour. Also called cheongsam in Cantonese; tailored qipao remain popular for formal occasions.
二维码èrwéimǎ
The square barcode that runs nearly every transaction in China — payments, menus, transit, museum entry. Make sure your phone's camera can scan one and that your payment app is linked before you arrive.
人民币rénmínbì
Literally 'the people's currency,' the official name of China's money. The unit you count in is the yuan; the colloquial spoken unit is kuài.
烧饼shāobǐng
A flaky baked sesame flatbread from northern China, often split and stuffed with braised meat, eggs, or pickles. A staple breakfast on a brisk Beijing morning.
少林shàolín
A Chan (Zen) Buddhist monastery in Henan province, founded in the 5th century and renowned worldwide for its kung-fu tradition. The temple is touristy now; the surrounding Songshan mountains are still beautiful.
花椒huājiāo
Not a true pepper but the dried husk of a citrus relative. It produces málà, the tongue-tingling numbness paired with chili heat that defines Sichuan cooking.
春节chūnjié
Lunar New Year, the most important holiday of the Chinese year, falling between late January and mid-February. Hundreds of millions of people travel home; trains book out, and many shops close for a week.
功夫茶gōngfu chá
The ritual of brewing oolong or pu-erh in a small clay or porcelain pot, repeatedly steeping the same leaves for short pours into thimble cups. It is contemplative rather than ceremonial; tea houses across Fujian, Yunnan, and Guangdong host it daily.
天安门tiān'ānmén
The 'Gate of Heavenly Peace,' the southern entrance of Beijing's Imperial City and the symbolic heart of the country. The vast square in front is one of the largest civic plazas in the world; passport security checks are routine.
Transit Without Visa, China's transit-only entry waiver. The current 240-hour version permits eligible passport holders to enter through major ports for ten days as long as they have an onward ticket to a third country.
Virtual private network, used to reach Google, WhatsApp, Instagram, and other services blocked by the Great Firewall. Install and test one before you arrive — app stores in China don't carry them.
微信wēixìn
Tencent's super-app, woven into nearly every aspect of daily life: messaging, payments, taxis, hospital appointments, Mini Programs. As a traveler you can download it abroad and link a foreign card for WeChat Pay.
微信支付wēixìn zhīfù
The payments arm of WeChat, sitting beside Alipay as one of the two QR-code rails that power Chinese commerce. Many small shops prefer it; both apps now accept foreign cards for travelers.
锅guō
The round-bottomed iron pan at the heart of Chinese cooking. The skill is wok hei (wok energy in Cantonese) — the smoky char created by tossing food over a roaring flame.
小笼包xiǎolóngbāo
Soup-filled steamed dumplings from Shanghai and Wuxi, named for the small bamboo basket they're steamed in. Bite a small hole, sip the broth, then dip in vinegar with shredded ginger.
阳朔yángshuò
The cluster of jade-green limestone hills along the Li River in Guangxi, the landscape behind the back of the 20-yuan note. Cycle from Yangshuo town through rice paddies to find the postcard view at Xianggong Hill.
元yuán
The basic unit of Chinese currency, written 元 on price tags. In casual speech almost everyone says kuài (块) instead — like 'buck' for dollar.
粽子zòngzi
Pyramid-shaped parcels of glutinous rice wrapped in bamboo or reed leaves, eaten at the Dragon Boat Festival in early summer. Northern fillings tend sweet (red bean, jujube); southern versions are savory with pork and salted egg.