Internet and technology in China from a digital nomad perspective

Back in 2013 I was briefly in Fuzhou, so I don't consider it as a proper travel experience in China. Therefore, I was excited to be invited by Davide and J for their wedding in Harbin. The tech world is buzzing about Chinese electric vehicles (EVs), their own app ecosystem, mobile wallets, and drones. This trip allowed me to taste it all.

Navigating China's Visa Process: My Experience and the New Poland-China Visa-Free Agreement

As a Polish citizen, I needed to apply for a tourist visa. Luckily, since J is Chinese, I was able to ask for her official invitation to smooth out the process. However, dealing with the visa center in Kuala Lumpur was troublesome. Their website was broken, so I was asked to bring my laptop to their location and complete the submission there. The staff was helpful, and indeed I managed to finalize the visa request.

By the time I got my passport back, I read the news that Poland signed a visa-free agreement with China! At least for my future trips, I won't need to deal with all this bureaucracy. Before flying to China, check what's the visa policy for your passport.

From Outdated Airline Systems to China Eastern's Maze

My preference is to buy plane tickets directly from airlines because it comes with the guarantee that they transport me to the destination. Unfortunately, it also means dealing with their outdated ticketing. In this interview with Bobby Healy, I learned that the airline industry was one of the first to computerize their system. But that was over 50 years ago! No wonder, it barely works with modern web browsers and mobile apps.

Airlines were the first industry to automate inventory and pricing, but unfortunately they’re still on those systems. They still have assembly language, 6-bit assembly language running underneath it all, and then you’ve got all the way up the top Google Flight search that’s an amazing experience, lightning fast, but man, you would not believe the infrastructure that they’ve got on top of all of that crap (...) – Bobby Healy

Still, buying a flight from China Eastern is a whole new level of difficulty. That's because:

• they operate a few domains, with confusing names
• only some parts of the site are translated
• purchasing flow opens new tabs and redirects to even more new URLs
• the official mobile app is just a website wrapper, so it's useless

Once I finally managed to buy the ticket, I spent two extra weeks to find the legroom upgrade. Yup! Most airlines try to upsell you services on the spot. With China Eastern, the story was:

1. Used different search engines and AI tools to ask how to pay for legroom. No luck.
2. Called China Easter support and waited 40 min to not be connected with anyone.
3. Reached out to them on their Facebook Page, that they promote, but got no reply.
4. Found the customer service email address: customersupport@goeasternair.com.
5. Got the reply, that I emailed Eastern, the US Airline.
6. Found another email address: customercare@ceair.com, and asked how to pay for legroom.
7. Received the reply in Chinese with the correct URL to make the payment.

Already, quite an adventure into China's state of technology.

Internet Connectivity Challenges for Digital Nomads in China

A Reliable Internet connection is the lifeline for most digital nomads. Therefore, I pay attention to the state of the Internet in each country. China is known for their Great Firewall, aka the most complex censorship system in the world. In parallel, to access the whole web, VPN is in common use. By locals and visitors alike.

Equipped with my NordVPN account, and with a couple of alternative solutions, I was ready for anything. Then, during the trip I learned that actually when using a foreign SIM with roaming, the VPN is not necessary!

Still, the overall connection is not great. I used CelcomDigi Malaysian SIM and hotel Wi-Fi to test the Internet stats. While the average up and download speeds are decent, the most significant issue is latency. Which is a sign that the connection being monitored.

Depending on your workflow, this can affect your ability to work remotely from China. Moreover, the most bothersome part was that this latency highly degrades the experience of the local apps.

Digital Barriers for Foreign Visitors in China's SMS-based Apps

In general, I like getting to know the local digital market via mobile apps used by the residents. In the case of China, I installed Alipay, WeChat and Universal Beijing Resort. Thing is, all of them require SMS-based registration.

As an experienced nomad, I maintain a few mobile numbers: Polish, US, Malaysian, and at that time Indonesian. However, none of them allowed me to register an account with the Universal Beijing Resort. And this mobile app is the only way to buy tickets and bundles to the Universal theme park in Beijing.

Therefore, the mobile-only approach in China has painful limitation. Even if the onboarding allows for registration via social media account or email (secure choice if you use aliases), then in the next step, you have to add a mobile number and verify with SMS.

It's a fallible system. SMS is known to be unreliable. Especially, for sending texts internationally. No matter what, the Universal app didn't allow me to register the account, so I bought the tickets on Klook.

China's Digital Payment Landscape: Alipay's Dominance and Challenges

Once I finally overcame all the registration challenges in Alipay, I was able to top up the wallet with Revolut virtual card. And indeed, that was the one app that addressed 90% of all travel necessities.

The usage of QR-based mobile wallets became so dominant in China, that any other payment forms stopped existing. I once tried to buy a coffee in the local Starbucks with iPhone Apple Pay. They did have the NFC terminal, but the staff didn't know how to activate card payments. In comparison, the Alipay wallet was accepted everywhere, for any amount and any product.

Additionally, Alipay offers mini apps. Which is great because hailing a car via DiDi (local Uber) or ordering food delivery is done within the Alipay app. The only issue is that due to aforementioned latency, mini apps are very sluggish to load, refresh, respond. So the user experience, for both visitors and locals, is subpar.

Apple's Global Adaptability: An iPhone User's Perspective in China

As an iPhone user, I'm actually glad that Apple continuously adjusts to the complex geopolitics. Especially on the line between the USA and China. Thanks to this feat, Apple services work here seamlessly, like anywhere else on the globe. The Apple Maps is a great alternative to Google Maps in China. Especially, when looking for public transportation or current car traffic.

Furthermore, iCloud backed up my travel shots and allowed to manage my iCloud Mail inbox. Lastly, iMessage is also used by some locals, which turned out to be crucial for conducting our excursions.

Chinese Super Apps: WeChat and Alipay's Dominance and Challenges

For my short visit in 2013, I installed WeChat, as it was already a dominant chat app in China. Over the years it became the “super app” offering payments, services, ecommerce, etc. Yet, it seems the financial success didn't attract talented designers. WeChat still has a cartoonish welcome screen, sluggish performance and poor user experience. Nevertheless, I felt pressured to reinstall the app to stay in touch with locals.

Then, Alipay, even though started as a payment solution, now competes with WeChat for the super app title. Of course, they also have their own Alipay Chat. That looks and works similarly to their competitor.

Following the bad example of the Western Big Tech raising their moats, the Chinese chat apps are not interoperable. Thus, at one point I was simultaneously texting:

• transportation company rep on iMessage
• the designated driver on WeChat
• the apartment host on Alipay Chat

Importantly, all apps offer built-in translation. Which helped a lot.

Travel apps in China: Klook and Trip global adoption and better design

Using the above digital solutions every day in China made me realize their difference with Klook and Trip.com. Both of them are Chinese but focus on the international market. Hence, the user experience is 10x better than Alipay or WeChat. Importantly, Klook and Trip are not mobile-only. So, registration and account management can be easily done either via their sites or apps.

Trip.com competes with Booking.com both in China and internationally. It offers accommodation, flights, and other travel-related services. What was interesting to observe, is that local authorities promote the Trip app as the go-to solution for tourists in China.

Then, Klook is the platform for all types of tourist attractions. Similar to GetYourGuide. I was able to use Klook to book guided tours, entry tickets and excursions. Most importantly, since the Universal app failed, Klook was the only viable place to buy the theme park tickets.

What about drones, electric cars and the futuristic cities?

I agree, DJI is one of these cool Chinese brands that built global recognition. Moreover, during my visit in September 2024, they just released their Neo drone. After playing if its AI capabilities, like following a person and landing in my palm, I was hyped to buy it on the spot! But Neo was in such demand, that I would need to wait for a few weeks to get one. So I passed.

In terms of electric vehicles (EV), then again, it was a pleasure to drive in them as a passenger. China is leading the automotive industry with their numerous tech brands. The EV chargers are on every corner. And I have no doubt that in a few years they will dominate the global market.

Lastly, the cities, didn't impress me at all. That's probably because most cities around the world follow the same “copy and paste” planning. With tall skyscrapers in the business districts, flashy mega malls, and car optimized road network. Both Harbin and Beijing that I visited, have the globally common issues with air pollution, heat islands, and car traffic.

Paradox of Chinese Tech: Advanced Yet Constrained

I think many people in the West get the impression of trailblazing tech in China. Headlines about TikTok, DeepSeek, EVs, Chinese smartphones create a vision of their prowess. However, the devil is in the details.

Some of their tech achievements are indeed intriguing. Yet, when trying things in person, I was taken aback by their SMS overreliance. Then, the mobile-only approach for some services effectively cuts off many users. Lastly, the Internet connection censorship highly affects all nomad-related activities. Both in the context of remote work and leisure time.

My hope is that Chinese-centric apps like Alipay and WeChat will adopt user experience principles from their global-facing cousins: Trip and Klook. Simultaneously, easing travel visas, could create demand for more internationally focused tech solutions. Like interoperable touchless payments, and adoption of international chat apps (i.e., WhatsApp, Telegram, Signal). All for the mutual benefit of digital nomads and local businesses.

Even though I faced many challenges, it was an exciting experience. With the new free visa entry for my passport, I'm thrilled to come back to China. And learn more about their digital and tech sectors.