What a Trip to China Costs: Daily and Trip Ranges
Around ¥500 to ¥1,000 a day per person for mid-range travel in China, excluding international flights. Backpackers run ¥250 to ¥400. Comfortable travel runs ¥1,000 to ¥2,000.
The short version
- Daily bands, per person: backpacker ¥250–400, mid-range ¥500–1,000, comfortable ¥1,000–2,000, luxury ¥2,500 and up.
- Accommodation, per person per night: hostel dormitory ¥50–120, economy chain ¥250–450, three-star ¥300–600, four-star ¥700–1,500.
- Meals: a street or market meal ¥15–40, an ordinary restaurant ¥40–90 per person, a shared sit-down dinner ¥80–150 per person.
- Local transport: metro ¥3–7 a ride, bus ¥1–2, a day of mixed metro and taxi ¥15–80.
- A 7-day single-city trip lands between ¥1,425 and ¥19,820 depending on the tier, before any intercity rail.
How much does a day in China cost?
| Style | Per person per day |
|---|---|
| Backpacker | ¥250–400 |
| Mid-range | ¥500–900 |
| Mid-range, upper reading | up to ¥1,000 |
| Comfortable | ¥1,000–2,000 |
| Luxury | ¥2,500 and up |
Published estimates agree on backpacker and luxury and differ at the middle, where one survey puts the upper bound at ¥1,000 rather than ¥900. Take ¥500 to ¥1,000 as the working band.
These exclude international flights. Every figure here is per person, and the accommodation bands assume a shared room.
How much is a hotel room?
| Tier | Per person per night |
|---|---|
| Hostel dormitory | ¥50–120 |
| Economy chain hotel | ¥250–450 |
| Three-star | ¥300–600 |
| Four-star | ¥700–1,500 |
| Five-star, Beijing or Shanghai | ¥1,200–3,500 and up |
The published tables these bands come from quote per person, which assumes a shared room. Travelling alone, plan nearer the top of each band. These are planning bands rather than quoted rates; rates for your dates come from the property.
How much do meals cost?
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Street or market meal | ¥15–40 |
| Ordinary restaurant, per person | ¥40–90 |
| Shared sit-down dinner or hotpot, per person | ¥80–150 |
How much does it cost to get around?
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Metro, single ride | ¥3–7 |
| Bus | ¥1–2 |
| Taxi or ride-hailing across town | ¥30–60 |
| A day of local transport | ¥15–80 |
Intercity rail is a separate budget. Second class runs ¥26 to ¥46 for Shanghai to Suzhou, from ¥73 for Shanghai to Hangzhou, from ¥515 for Beijing to Xi'an, and ¥553 to ¥694 for Beijing to Shanghai. On a two-week trip with three or four moves, add the fares for your actual route rather than a round figure.
How much do attractions cost?
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Palace Museum | ¥40–60 depending on season |
| Great Wall sections | ¥35–45 |
| Typical major sight | ¥40–120 |
The Terracotta Warriors are real-name booked in advance on a passport, and we could not verify the current ticket price against an official page for this page, so no figure is given here. Check the museum's own channel for the day you plan to visit.
What does a whole trip cost?
A 7-day single-city trip, per person, excluding international flights:
| Style | Total |
|---|---|
| Backpacker | ¥1,425–2,760 |
| Mid-range | ¥4,230–8,860 |
| Comfortable | ¥9,560–19,820 |
Those seven-day totals come from one published table built from itemised lines for a single city, flown into and out of the same airport. They do not recompute from the daily bands above, and the two should be read side by side rather than one derived from the other.
For 14 days, multiply the daily bands and then add rail. That gives roughly ¥3,500 to ¥5,600 on a backpacker footing, ¥7,000 to ¥14,000 mid-range, and ¥14,000 to ¥28,000 comfortable, before intercity fares. One published four-city sample is near ¥13,000, and that sample already includes about ¥2,500 of intercity rail.
That spread is not vagueness. It is the difference between a dormitory and a suite, and between three restaurant meals a day and one.
What costs more than people budget for?
Intercity rail, ordered early enough to get the departure you want.
A room chosen on price rather than position. A cheap room far from the station you are leaving from can give part of the saving back in taxis.
Booking through someone else when an official channel exists. Check the official channel and compare the stated total before paying.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
How much does a two-week trip to China cost?
Mid-range, plan ¥7,000 to ¥14,000 per person for 14 days before intercity rail, and add the fares for your route. One published four-city sample is near ¥13,000, with about ¥2,500 of intercity rail already inside it.
Is China expensive for food and transport?
No. A street or market meal runs ¥15 to ¥40 and a metro ride ¥3 to ¥7.
How much should I budget per day in Beijing or Shanghai?
The national mid-range band, ¥500 to ¥1,000, with the room rate doing the work. The five-star band quoted on this page is for Beijing and Shanghai.
Are these figures per person or per room?
Both, depending on the line. Daily bands, meal prices and the accommodation table are per person, on the assumption of a shared room. Rail fares are per person. A property will quote you per room, so a couple sharing one room pays the room rate between them.
Compiled 21 October 2026 from the cited cost and rail sources. Figures are planning bands in renminbi, rounded, and exclude international flights. They are not quotations and not offers; hotel and rail rates move, so confirm current prices with the property or on the official railway channel for your date.