Hotels and Registration in China

Checking into a hotel in China involves one step you may not be used to: the hotel registers you with the local police. In a hotel this takes a minute and happens automatically; if you stay with friends or in a private rental, the job falls to you. Choose your location by metro line, have the address in Chinese, and the rest is simple.

Checking in to a hotel in China: bring your passport

Every hotel in mainland China needs to see the physical passport of each foreign guest at check-in. Staff scan or photograph the photo page and your visa or entry stamp, and they may take a photo of you. A photocopy or a picture on your phone is generally not accepted.

What to have ready at the front desk:

• The passport of every adult in the room (children traveling on their own passports need theirs too)
• Your booking confirmation, ideally showing the hotel name in Chinese
• A payment method for the deposit; see the deposit section below

Some smaller guesthouses and budget hotels in China have historically turned foreign guests away. Confirm when you book that the property accepts foreign passport holders, especially if it is a small independent place.

Police registration: what the hotel does for you

Foreign visitors in China must register their place of stay with the local police, and when you stay in a hotel, the hotel does this for you as part of check-in. That registration is the reason the hotel takes your passport details. You don’t need to visit a police station or fill in extra forms.

Keep your passport with you during your trip. Police, train stations, sights and other hotels may all ask to see it, and your hotel registration links your stay to your passport number. If you change hotels, the next hotel registers you again.

Staying with friends or in a private rental in China

If you stay with friends, family or in a private rental in China, you must register with the local police station yourself, within 24 hours of arrival. Hotels handle this automatically, but a private home or apartment does not.

How it usually works:

1. Ask your host which police station covers the address. The host often needs to come along or supply documents, such as their ID and proof of address or a rental contract.
2. Go to the station with your passport and the host’s information.
3. Fill in the registration form; officers issue a registration slip.
4. Keep the slip with your passport until you leave.

Some cities offer online or app-based registration for foreigners in private accommodation, but it depends on the city and may need a Chinese phone number. If you have trouble finding the right station, the local government service hotline 12345 can help.

Check before you go: Registration procedures differ by city and change over time. Ask your host to confirm the local process, or check with the local public security bureau’s official channel, before you arrive.

Choosing a hotel location in China by metro line

The best hotel location in a Chinese city is usually defined by the metro, not by a neighborhood name. Chinese cities are big, traffic is heavy, and a hotel a few minutes’ walk from a metro station on a useful line will save you hours over a trip.

How to choose:

• Find the metro lines that pass your must-see sights and your arrival airport or rail station.
• Look for hotels near a station where two of those lines cross.
• Check the walk from the hotel to the station entrance on a map; large stations have many exits, sometimes far apart.
• If you’re catching an early train, a hotel near the rail station or on its metro line is worth considering for the last night.

Our city pages suggest areas by line: Beijing, Shanghai, Xi’an and Chengdu. For the metro itself, see Getting around.

Hotel deposits in China

Most hotels in China take a deposit at check-in, refunded when you check out if nothing is owed. The amount varies by hotel and room.

Common ways hotels take a deposit:

• A pre-authorization on an international credit card, released after checkout. International chain hotels usually accept this; smaller hotels may not accept foreign cards.
• A hold through Alipay or WeChat Pay, which many hotels now offer.
• Cash, in Chinese yuan, at some smaller properties.

Ask at check-in how the deposit will be refunded and how long it takes. A credit card pre-authorization can take days to disappear from your statement after you leave. Set up a mobile payment app before you go; Paying in China explains how.

Booking platforms and hotel chains for China

Booking a hotel in China before you arrive is easy with the right tools. Trip.com is widely used by foreign visitors to China, has an English interface and lists a large number of hotels in mainland China. Many international booking sites also cover Chinese hotels.

International hotel chains have many properties across major Chinese cities, and they tend to be the most comfortable option on a first trip: staff more often speak English, foreign cards are usually accepted and foreign guests are routine. Chinese domestic chains are often good value and widely available, but English may be limited.

Before you confirm any booking:

• Check that the hotel accepts foreign passport holders.
• Read recent reviews from foreign guests, if you can find them.
• Note the hotel’s name and address in Chinese from the booking page.

Have your hotel name and address in Chinese characters

Have your hotel’s name and full address in Chinese characters saved on your phone, and ideally on paper too. Taxi drivers, ride-hailing pickups, delivery riders and passers-by will understand the characters, but many won’t recognize the English name of your hotel.

Useful things to save:

• The hotel name in Chinese, exactly as the hotel writes it
• The street address in Chinese, including the district
• The nearest metro station and exit number
• The hotel’s front-desk phone number, from your booking confirmation

Ask the front desk for a business card on arrival; it usually has everything in Chinese. A screenshot of the hotel on a Chinese map app is also handy to show a driver. Add these to your trip checklist, and see First 24 hours for getting from the airport to your hotel.