The dispatch
What’s changing
in China.
Visa rules, sale dates and honest shipping math — translated from the parts that actually affect your trip or your parcels.
Double 11 through an agent: the calm way to shop China's biggest sale
Double 11 presales drop weeks before November 11 itself. Here's how the sale actually works, why the chess clock matters, and how agent ordering turns the chaos into one box.
The 50-country visa-free list, decoded — and how to keep it
China's 30-day visa-free entry now covers 50 countries through the end of 2026, with e-visa pilots on the way. What it unlocks, where the fine print bites, and how our guides keep you inside it.
8.99 million visa-free entries in Q3 2026 — how to dodge the crowds they bring
Visa-free entries hit 8.992 million in Q3 2026, up 24.1% year-on-year. More travelers, same sunrise spots — here's the timing playbook our guides use.
Shanghai visa-free: is it 144 hours or 240 hours now? (2026 rules)
Searching the old "144-hour visa-free Shanghai" rule? It was upgraded to 240 hours (10 days) — here's what that means at Pudong and Hongqiao, and what you can see in either window.
Getting around China in 2026: payments, apps and the 30-day rhythm
Foreign cards now work across Alipay, WeChat Pay, Didi and the 12306 app. What changed, what to install before you fly, and the rhythm that makes a 30-day trip easy.
Mutianyu vs Badaling vs Jinshanling: which Great Wall section is worth your day
The one question Beijing trips ask us most. Crowds, cable cars, hiking and half-day vs full-day math for the three essential sections — with when a guide changes the answer.
Can you leave the airport during a layover in China? (24-hour rule, explained)
Yes at every international airport —国籍 all nationalities. How the 24-hour direct transit rule works, where to get the temporary entry permit, and what your bags do meanwhile.
US de minimis is gone: what Taobao hauls really cost in 2026
The $800 duty-free de minimis exemption no longer applies to any country. Duties now cost what they cost — the honest math, and the habits that keep totals sane.
The 10-day layover: what 240-hour visa-free transit unlocks (now 65 ports)
China's 240-hour visa-free transit expanded to 65 entry ports, with Vietnam and Kyrgyzstan added in August 2026. Three layover routes that double as trips.