Visa without booking hotels

[simpleasy]

In short: is it possible to get a visa without booking hotels first?

 

More detailed question: 

I am planning on visiting china during July. I will fly to and back from Hong Kong, and enter mainland China (Guangzhou) by train. I have a friend in China whom I'll travel with, but since we don't really have a set itinerary, we also haven't booked any hotels yet, and probably will not do so until just a few days before we arrive there. 

Will there be a problem, or should I book hotels anyway? 

I do know roughly where I'm going though, my friend is a native Chinese, and I have already booked my tickets to and from Hong Kong.

 

I have looked online for similar situations, and the most common answer I find is that I need an invitation letter when visiting a friend in China, and that the invitation letter needs to include the address of the friend with whom I will be staying. I will visit my friend, but I will not visit my friend's house.

 

Also, I am from Belgium. I don't know if that makes much of a difference though.

[imron]

In short: is it possible to get a visa without booking hotels first?

I'm not sure about other countries, but in Australia at least, you haven't been able to do that for a number of years already when applying for a tourist visa.

 

You don't actually need to stay in the hotels you book and they don't check whether you cancel your booking straight after you have been given a visa.  Therefore, theoretically speaking, all you'd need to do is find a hotel that accepts bookings online but that doesn't take a deposit, and allows you to cancel at will.  Ooh look...

[jbradfor]

Now that it's answered, I feel free to take this thread off topic.

 

WHY is this a requirement?  I know, I know, trying to look for logic when it comes to Chinese Visas is pointless, but I can't help myself.

 

Ignoring the possibility of canceling reservations, why do they care?  Do they just want to ensure everyone has a place to sleep?  Do they really think people will show up and be homeless?  Does the type of place you are staying affect what type of visa they give you?

 

And how can they ignore the possibility of canceling reservations?  They must realize this is possible.  Are they really just testing whether you know how to work the system well enough to survive in China?

 

Do they just add paperwork to see if you really really want to go to China?  As if the pain of the visa application process (especially here....) isn't enough?

[andyfastow]

I had this problem when I tried to get a Chinese visa in Canada last month (which was premature anyway since I'm not going there until later this summer but it seemed easier than trying to get the visa in Taiwan). I didn't have flight tickets either because I want to take the train from Vietnam and it's impossible to buy the train tickets that far in advance. They wouldn't even take my application.

 

Anyway, I'm now really looking forward to my stay at the Beijing Central whatever when I apply for the visa next time (probably in Thailand). Thanks for the link. 

[Silent]

 

In short: is it possible to get a visa without booking hotels first?

 

Don't know about a visa for visiting a friend/family. What's the benefit of it over a simple tourist visa?

 

In all my travels I only once encountered a visa problem (in part) due to a hotel booking but there were other issue's too. This was for a Djibouti visa requested in Brussels. At the border there was however no problem to obtain the visa (took me less time to get the visa and get through the border then the locals).

 

Isn't the adress of the person to visit meant to be a replacement for the hotel or just for verification?

 

As said, I don't know what in this case the benefit is for anything else then an ordinary tourist visa. If there is no benefit just apply for the tourist visa and mention just a city name for the adress and mention several places for the places to visit. Worked for me both times I went to China (twice dual entry visa, 90 days per stay in 2008, 30 days per stay in 2012). No need to mention you've planned to visit someone (unless it has clear benefits) specially when you're not staying at his place.    

[abcdefg]

Good Afternoon Mr. Bradfor.

 

Since I’m a high-ranking government official and my wide-ranging duties include the oversight of entry-exit policy, I will attempt to address your concerns based on the thinking of the recently concluded plenary session of 12^th People’s Congress.

 

We feel that foreign tourists coming to China should be encouraged to arrive and travel in orderly groups, preferably under the leadership of a guide/monitor from an appropriate state organ, such as CITS (China International China Service.) Anyone wishing to come independently must meet a higher standard and navigate a multi-tiered system which includes financial and political background checks.

 

Complex and rapidly changing visa requirements necessitate the use of a visa agent, who can supplement our consular efforts at weeding out undesirable applicants. The process can also help us ensure that tourists entering the motherland possess a high enough level of economic solvency to be able to contribute substantially to the growth and prosperity of China’s burgeoning tourism industry. Ideally we prefer tourists who can book suites at the Wangfujing Hilton in Beijing or the Peoples Square Meridian in Shanghai, and not just pack into a dorm room in some cheap, back-street Lijiang hostel. 

 

Even though the pre-arranged lodging requirement is currently not strictly enforced, and we realize visitors sometimes make bookings that they cancel immediately after issuance of their visas, my bureau has highly refined selective enforcement capabilities and can employ such measures surgically in order to block dissidents or other undesirables on an as needed basis without any new legislation being required. The necessary regulations are already in place.

 

Welcome to China and we hope you enjoy your visit! Please use the links at the bottom of this page to view selected itinerary suggestions. Please also note that the two-week “Golden History” tour, which includes both a cable car ride up to the Badaling Great Wall and an unforgettable luxury cruise on the Yangtze, is one of our most popular packages and happens to be discounted a full eight percent for a limited time only. In addition, you will have multiple opportunities to enjoy free factory tours and shopping stops during which you can purchase silk, pearls, and jade.  

 

Respectfully yours,

Chen Long

[simpleasy]

What exactly is meant with "my bureau has highly refined selective enforcement capabilities and can employ such measures surgically in order to block dissidents or other undesirables on an as needed basis without any new legislation being required." ?

 

I do want to point out though, that these sorts of visa requirements are probably not really helping  to "contribute substantially to the growth and prosperity of China's burgeoning tourism industry". Anyone with lots of money willing to throw it all away is probably not going to be willing to go through all this, and opt for another country instead.

[abcdefg]

#7 -- It was a spoof, @Simpleasy. (The post was a joke.)

 

I share your frustration with China's increasingly difficult visa system.

[simpleasy]

So I should book a hostel in guangzhou for my entire stay in china and cancel most of it once i get my visa? When writing down the places i will visit, should i only mention places in and around guangzhou, or also mention guilin for example?
As I guess its quite obvious that i cant visit guilin if i booked my entire stay in guangzhou...

Edit:

after doing some more research I stumbled upon this topic (in Dutch): http://www.aroundtheglobe.nl/messageboard/china-visum-tip-die-bijna-mooi-waar-zijn-t22631.html
They suggest not arranging visa in my own country, but do so in Hong Kong instead. Apparently they wouldn't ask for hotel reservations or flight tickets but give you the visa without any problems. Is there anyone who can confirm this? 

It seems a bit too easy to be true, so I don't know if I'm willing to take such a risk.

[Baron]

Has the situation at the China travel service in HK changed in the last 2 years? I was in HK late 2012 and got a tourist visa without a hotel booking.

 

Not that I advocate disobedience towards the great red kingdom, you could book into a cheap hostel on an online service, pay a minuscule deposit then cancel the booking after getting your visa. They're very unlikely to check anything other than the booking confirmation printout, if that.

[Suzee]

As every place you stay at (hotels etc) will require your passport and they will copy it and send reports to the local PSB, all you need to do is book your first night of accommodation.  After that, even your train ticket purchase requires your passport, so the government will know basically which part of China you are in.  If your friend is a Chinese National get him/her to send you a basic letter inviting you to visit, stay with them, travel and sight see with them, and then they also supply a basic letter to the relevant  department stating they take full responsibility for your safety and costs while you are here. 

[simpleasy]

Since it is now less than 3 months before I leave, I can finally apply for the visa.

Now that I look at the requirements again, it seems like they don't ask for confirmation of bookings anymore. However it seems to be required to have an invitation letter...

 

Edit: never mind, I was looking at the wrong kind of visa. I should double check before I panic next time, my apologies.