✈️ System Setup

Plain English: Get phone, data, payments, and entry basics working before you need them in the city.

Get your essentials ready: phone, VPN/eSIM, payments, and medications. Do most of this before or right after landing.

Guides in this section (14 guides)

• The Landing Protocol — First 30 minutes: immigration & connectivity
• VPN & Payments Setup — eSIM, firewall bypass, digital pay (high-churn)
• Alipay & WeChat Pay (Foreign Visitors) — Card binding & common errors (high-churn)
• Money Runtime — ATM cash, pre-auth, fapiao invoices (high-churn)
• Stay Beyond Hotel — Homestay registration & refused foreigner check-in
• China App Stack — Install order & account hygiene
• Long-stay Risk Boundaries — Banking / work / status red lines (not legal advice)
• Mobile Number & Activation — Local SIM vs eSIM
• Visa & Entry Requirements — 2026 visa-free (免签) policies (high-churn)
• Hotel Check-in & Registration — Passport check & 24-hour police registration
• Translation Tools & Language Barrier — Offline dictionaries & phrases
• Pharmacy & Medications — OTC rules and medicine sourcing
• Power Bank Rules — Flight safety for portable batteries (high-churn)
• SIM Card Options — Carrier coverage and pricing

Stuck? Match a symptom

→ Symptom Index — payment failed, no data, hotel issues, etc.