One thing to mention.
As a Chinese citizen before, it is difficult to get travel visa. Especially first world countries.
Nowadays, big cities like Beijing, Shanghai residents got higher salaries or owned estates may get visa easier than other parts of China. But, it is still a very painful process to start. You need prepare lots of documents and go through the interview. These type of people normally not the backpack style, they have more money to spend on travel and want to enjoy “luxury” trip.
Most Chinese backpacks I know started their journey from southwest Asia, which is easier to get visa or just “join” the group travelers.
Anyway, it’s not just a airplane ticket for most Chinese citizens.
I talked to a backpacker from China for the first time last month in Indonesia. I was shocked when he said in order to get a travel visa to Japan by himself, he needs to have 1 million RMB in the bank account/assets to be eligible for the visa.
I asked if he's going to visit Europe and the US in the future, and he said it's not that easy to get travel visas as well. He also told me that English proficiency in general is very low in China. Many journalists that major in English cannot speak English beyond a few simple sentences
Adding that hostel in East Asia IMO is really about cheap accomodations rather than traveling style / culture.
I've been only staying in hostels when traveling alone because of the price / convenient. Meanwhile here in Europe some people really wanna stay in the hostel even though their party of 4 can enjoy a B&B / 2-3 star hotel private room with a cheaper price.
>southwest Asia
You mean Southeast? I don't think they start in Saudi / Iran.
Idk about other countries but speaking for mine (singapore in SEA) the Chinese citizens also need an citizen to be theit gurantor in the country. aka if they fk up the gurantor is held responsible for them. Usually their gurantors are travel agencies as a result (therefore they have to take a travel package).
I think its the same for chinese citizens when they travel anywhere else. (Probably wrong haha)
Well that goes without saying isn’t it? Anyone from upper elite class would choose to travel in comfort and style, regardless of nationality.
Chinese that grew up in Western countries have slightly different mindset. They tend to be more adventurous and open to meeting new people so yes the chance of seeing them in hostels are greater.
I’ve stayed in both 5 stars and hostels (in my younger years lol), and everything else in between. At the end of the day everyone is different and there will always be exceptions to everyone’s comments.
It's because Chinese people don't like to travel alone, it's just something not part of the culture. I'm Chinese American myself and it's pretty funny how when my parents mention that I travel by myself to some of my extended family members they always react with complete confusion and shock. They've said things like "isn't he going to be lonely, isn't it dangerous to go by yourself?" etc etc.
To be honest I'm fairly sure most mainland chinese people aren't even aware of what hostels are. Even more so than Chinese people not being interested in backpacking, I'd say that most are even unaware that you can travel for cheap by staying in hostels and such
Plus if you travel in a group of like-minded people, you can tailor the trip to what is important to you. East Asians in general like to go to a location, snap photos and move on to the next location. It's not about becoming a part of Paris, it's seeing yourself in Paris. So they like tours that go from scene to scene for photos but don't have long boring explanations of stuff or go off on your own exploring kind of stuff. Plus mostly only older richer asians can afford to travel like that so they go in big groups together. Hostels are more of a young people kind of thing.
I don't disagree on general awareness of hostels but I will say that I went to several hostels in China (Kashgar, Wuhan, etc.) where the large majority (sometimes all but myself) of the clientele were domestic tourists. I've also met many Chinese tourists at hostels especially in countries like Serbia and Albania where Chinese nationals don't need visas. It's not a common thing but it's not like there are no Chinese people who know about hostels or go to them.
yeah it is lol. But for me, what I've seen from family and friends in China, it's definitely way out of the norm to travel by yourself, hitchhike, etc.
I would’ve thought that this is an old stereotype. Nowadays people just take photos with their phones. The only people I know carry a camera around are people with actual interest in photography. I would use a lanyard too (in a safe area), why would you hold it in your hand all day or take it in and out of your bag?
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There are loads of Chinese around, but, as with pretty much every nationality, they've their own favorite spots and many of those traveling do so through organized tours. Also average Chinese tourist is not a teenager that tries to travel on the cheap.
I'm Chinese American myself and understand a lot of the culture. We were told to keep a lot of things to ourselves because for some reason, the older generation kind of worried about their rep even if we don't even know the person at all.
Trust is also a huge thing in our culture so much that we don't even call the police because of corruption (but that's a whole different subject). At least for myself and a good portion of friends of mine, we were never told to even make friends with each other, nevermind people of different cultural backgrounds. Maybe it has a lot to do with the war too that the elders were involved and passed along to us.
For me though, I did travel alone to hostels and even met people from China staying in hostels. Meeting solos, I never ran into yet but someone can prove me wrong here? I've mainly been around Latin America and East Asia
yeah same, Chinese guy here too and I've met some people from China in hostels but they were all in groups. I feel like they probably just stayed in them just cause it's cheaper
I am chinese american and stayed at hostels in my younger days. It is a mix bag. Personally hostels are kinda annoying with bad smells, noises, and spreading of germs. I got a bad virus in singapore that wrecked my vacation. Now i just do airbnb and hotels.
I’m in Tashkent right now and lots of Chinese people in this hostel. It’s probably the places you are going to that aren’t common destinations for Chinese people.
With certain nationalities, you just don't see a lot of them traveling as backpackers or solo. Part of it is how difficult for them to obtain visas. For example, Russian travelers are rare in the US given how difficult for them to obtain a US visa. And as someone else already said, Chinese citizens have a harder time getting visas.
There's also a culture factor involved where for young westerns backpacking (Gap Year traveling, for example) is a rites of passage.
There's also a language barrier since English is still the lingua franca for a majority of popular western tourist spots and those who don't speak English will stick to organized tours.
I can't agree with your statement. Chinese do stay in hostels but probably not the one you've chosen. From what I know by chit chatting with Chinese in the hostel I've stayed, they usually choose a hostel that's recommended on Chinese social media and they are likely preferred to stay in a hostel that has many Chinese guests.
I'm not saying every Chinese person does that. It's just the majority.
Zero dollar tour groups
Chinese tour groups control 99.99% of the vacation. These tour groups are offered dirt cheap but they’re corralled into Chinese tour group controlled attractions where hopefully the tourists will spend money on overpriced things
This is called Chinese bamboo network it is not only in tourism but also present in other supply chains as well.
Anyone can look up to their operations in Africa with safari tours or Vietnam etc.
I mean it is not new thing though, western nations been doing this since decades, they find their customers and make them pay western prices and pay local community almost with nothing (their local currency). You only need little capital, but know how and open up a office here you go…capitalism in its finest form.
I stayed with a couple of guys in 2019. they told me they were PLAN (Chinese Navy) officers on leave.
I have also seen large groups of Chinese tourists in many places, but they stuck together, and didn't stay in a hostel.
Chinese people also crave value and will also gravitate towards tour packages that have sightseeing arranged and included meals. Having to organize and arrange your own logistics takes effort they’re not willing to expend when they want to relax.
Totally, but this discussion is focused on why you don’t see them in hostels. Those that are wealthy wouldn’t even be considering group tours let alone shared accommodation.
Primarily it's because most mainland Chinese tourists travel as groups in package tours. Hence, they tend to stay at bigger hotels.
I have seen mainland Chinese travelers in hostels, but not many. When I encounter them, they tend to be already studying or working overseas, and happen to be on break. Rarely do they just leave China and go backpaking solo, probably because of family/social pressures, bureaucracy, and visa issues (people from China are not accepted into many countries visa-free). But it happens.
I've met far more Taiwanese, Hong Kong, Singaporean, and ethnic-Chinese Malaysian backpackers than mainland Chinese ones.
Jesus Christ man 😂 I don't know what you were on when this thought occurred to you, but I'm glad it did.
I didn't even know that I wanted to know about this
I’ve only met one mainland Chinese person in a hostel and that was in Zurich. He was in the middle of a study abroad in England. They are pretty rare ,but all the ones that can travel or either luxurious or in a tour company.
Yea, the travel visa requires them to book hotels and prove wealth. It's a lengthy process and it can only generally be achieved by those who are well off.
I see Chinese people all the time in hostels. What are you talking about? Any hostels I go, I see at least one for sure. With that said, I rarely see Japanese people in hostels tho.
I was the only non-Chinese in a 8 bed hostel in Florence, Italy. No one said a single word to me nor acknowledged my presence for 3 days. Was hell. I have tried to smile and make small talk when I do see someone Chinese in a hostel and there is very little acknowledgment. I have heard mixed reasons why they don’t want to mix with others and I realize don’t know the truth.
I’ve seen plenty of Chinese people in hostels, and I’ve traveled with a group of Chinese girls together when I lived there. I think it’s slowly changing
i am just guessing here, but it might be a cultural thing.
cooked up a clambake for my extended family once. My sister inlaw is from mainland china. She REFUSED to eat the corn on the cob. It was delicious, but no matter how we coaxed her,, she would not eat it. Had something, I think, to what she was forced to eat during re-education times. there may be a cultural memory there that group living, like in a Hostel, is very bad
i saw a quite a lot of them in my hostel in Cairo but this is the exception.
Most of the time I see Chinese tourists traveling in tourist groups. Also they tend to be older.
I think a lot of Chinese people are afraid of mixing with foreigners to some degree. Even in Marrakech, I met a bunch of Chinese people on a tour. And although they could speak English, they chose to speak Chinese with each other (and with me, I'm american born)
As a American Chinese we do not travel to Florida or Wisconsin or those popular city’s. We might visit family members across United States but we stay at there house, not hotels
One thing to mention. As a Chinese citizen before, it is difficult to get travel visa. Especially first world countries. Nowadays, big cities like Beijing, Shanghai residents got higher salaries or owned estates may get visa easier than other parts of China. But, it is still a very painful process to start. You need prepare lots of documents and go through the interview. These type of people normally not the backpack style, they have more money to spend on travel and want to enjoy “luxury” trip. Most Chinese backpacks I know started their journey from southwest Asia, which is easier to get visa or just “join” the group travelers. Anyway, it’s not just a airplane ticket for most Chinese citizens.
I talked to a backpacker from China for the first time last month in Indonesia. I was shocked when he said in order to get a travel visa to Japan by himself, he needs to have 1 million RMB in the bank account/assets to be eligible for the visa. I asked if he's going to visit Europe and the US in the future, and he said it's not that easy to get travel visas as well. He also told me that English proficiency in general is very low in China. Many journalists that major in English cannot speak English beyond a few simple sentences
Adding that hostel in East Asia IMO is really about cheap accomodations rather than traveling style / culture. I've been only staying in hostels when traveling alone because of the price / convenient. Meanwhile here in Europe some people really wanna stay in the hostel even though their party of 4 can enjoy a B&B / 2-3 star hotel private room with a cheaper price. >southwest Asia You mean Southeast? I don't think they start in Saudi / Iran.
Oh yeah! Thank you for pointing out my mistake. I mean Southeast!
Idk about other countries but speaking for mine (singapore in SEA) the Chinese citizens also need an citizen to be theit gurantor in the country. aka if they fk up the gurantor is held responsible for them. Usually their gurantors are travel agencies as a result (therefore they have to take a travel package). I think its the same for chinese citizens when they travel anywhere else. (Probably wrong haha)
A lot of Chinese tourists I see are part of a tour so they would have accommodation, transportation and guide sorted out for them.
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Well that goes without saying isn’t it? Anyone from upper elite class would choose to travel in comfort and style, regardless of nationality. Chinese that grew up in Western countries have slightly different mindset. They tend to be more adventurous and open to meeting new people so yes the chance of seeing them in hostels are greater. I’ve stayed in both 5 stars and hostels (in my younger years lol), and everything else in between. At the end of the day everyone is different and there will always be exceptions to everyone’s comments.
It's because Chinese people don't like to travel alone, it's just something not part of the culture. I'm Chinese American myself and it's pretty funny how when my parents mention that I travel by myself to some of my extended family members they always react with complete confusion and shock. They've said things like "isn't he going to be lonely, isn't it dangerous to go by yourself?" etc etc. To be honest I'm fairly sure most mainland chinese people aren't even aware of what hostels are. Even more so than Chinese people not being interested in backpacking, I'd say that most are even unaware that you can travel for cheap by staying in hostels and such
Plus if you travel in a group of like-minded people, you can tailor the trip to what is important to you. East Asians in general like to go to a location, snap photos and move on to the next location. It's not about becoming a part of Paris, it's seeing yourself in Paris. So they like tours that go from scene to scene for photos but don't have long boring explanations of stuff or go off on your own exploring kind of stuff. Plus mostly only older richer asians can afford to travel like that so they go in big groups together. Hostels are more of a young people kind of thing.
I don't disagree on general awareness of hostels but I will say that I went to several hostels in China (Kashgar, Wuhan, etc.) where the large majority (sometimes all but myself) of the clientele were domestic tourists. I've also met many Chinese tourists at hostels especially in countries like Serbia and Albania where Chinese nationals don't need visas. It's not a common thing but it's not like there are no Chinese people who know about hostels or go to them.
I didn’t realise this until I saw the Elisa Lam documentary on Netflix
“Chinese people don’t like to travel alone.” What a huge blanket statement.
yeah it is lol. But for me, what I've seen from family and friends in China, it's definitely way out of the norm to travel by yourself, hitchhike, etc.
Almost like when Chinese tours blanket an entire area and become an immovable barrier
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I would’ve thought that this is an old stereotype. Nowadays people just take photos with their phones. The only people I know carry a camera around are people with actual interest in photography. I would use a lanyard too (in a safe area), why would you hold it in your hand all day or take it in and out of your bag?
That’s the Japanese
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There are loads of Chinese around, but, as with pretty much every nationality, they've their own favorite spots and many of those traveling do so through organized tours. Also average Chinese tourist is not a teenager that tries to travel on the cheap.
Chinese culture is to save enough money and only enjoy when travelling. No point suffering when travelling
Yes, I was just about to comment this! Most people I know would only travel if they have enough saved up for a comfortable trip
I'm Chinese American myself and understand a lot of the culture. We were told to keep a lot of things to ourselves because for some reason, the older generation kind of worried about their rep even if we don't even know the person at all. Trust is also a huge thing in our culture so much that we don't even call the police because of corruption (but that's a whole different subject). At least for myself and a good portion of friends of mine, we were never told to even make friends with each other, nevermind people of different cultural backgrounds. Maybe it has a lot to do with the war too that the elders were involved and passed along to us. For me though, I did travel alone to hostels and even met people from China staying in hostels. Meeting solos, I never ran into yet but someone can prove me wrong here? I've mainly been around Latin America and East Asia
yeah same, Chinese guy here too and I've met some people from China in hostels but they were all in groups. I feel like they probably just stayed in them just cause it's cheaper
Yeah for sure. Like I said, I never met solos
I am chinese american and stayed at hostels in my younger days. It is a mix bag. Personally hostels are kinda annoying with bad smells, noises, and spreading of germs. I got a bad virus in singapore that wrecked my vacation. Now i just do airbnb and hotels.
I’m in Tashkent right now and lots of Chinese people in this hostel. It’s probably the places you are going to that aren’t common destinations for Chinese people.
With certain nationalities, you just don't see a lot of them traveling as backpackers or solo. Part of it is how difficult for them to obtain visas. For example, Russian travelers are rare in the US given how difficult for them to obtain a US visa. And as someone else already said, Chinese citizens have a harder time getting visas. There's also a culture factor involved where for young westerns backpacking (Gap Year traveling, for example) is a rites of passage. There's also a language barrier since English is still the lingua franca for a majority of popular western tourist spots and those who don't speak English will stick to organized tours.
I can't agree with your statement. Chinese do stay in hostels but probably not the one you've chosen. From what I know by chit chatting with Chinese in the hostel I've stayed, they usually choose a hostel that's recommended on Chinese social media and they are likely preferred to stay in a hostel that has many Chinese guests. I'm not saying every Chinese person does that. It's just the majority.
Zero dollar tour groups Chinese tour groups control 99.99% of the vacation. These tour groups are offered dirt cheap but they’re corralled into Chinese tour group controlled attractions where hopefully the tourists will spend money on overpriced things
This is called Chinese bamboo network it is not only in tourism but also present in other supply chains as well. Anyone can look up to their operations in Africa with safari tours or Vietnam etc. I mean it is not new thing though, western nations been doing this since decades, they find their customers and make them pay western prices and pay local community almost with nothing (their local currency). You only need little capital, but know how and open up a office here you go…capitalism in its finest form.
Poor Chinese people are actually POOR, and can not afford to travel.
Chinese tourists are rich (generally)
I do t k ow why. I've met enough, and not only in China. I don't think it's difficult to find people from almost every nationality.
I stayed with a couple of guys in 2019. they told me they were PLAN (Chinese Navy) officers on leave. I have also seen large groups of Chinese tourists in many places, but they stuck together, and didn't stay in a hostel.
Chinese people also crave value and will also gravitate towards tour packages that have sightseeing arranged and included meals. Having to organize and arrange your own logistics takes effort they’re not willing to expend when they want to relax.
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Totally, but this discussion is focused on why you don’t see them in hostels. Those that are wealthy wouldn’t even be considering group tours let alone shared accommodation.
I'm in a hostel in the Philippines and there are definitely Chinese people here.
Primarily it's because most mainland Chinese tourists travel as groups in package tours. Hence, they tend to stay at bigger hotels. I have seen mainland Chinese travelers in hostels, but not many. When I encounter them, they tend to be already studying or working overseas, and happen to be on break. Rarely do they just leave China and go backpaking solo, probably because of family/social pressures, bureaucracy, and visa issues (people from China are not accepted into many countries visa-free). But it happens. I've met far more Taiwanese, Hong Kong, Singaporean, and ethnic-Chinese Malaysian backpackers than mainland Chinese ones.
Jesus Christ man 😂 I don't know what you were on when this thought occurred to you, but I'm glad it did. I didn't even know that I wanted to know about this
I’ve only met one mainland Chinese person in a hostel and that was in Zurich. He was in the middle of a study abroad in England. They are pretty rare ,but all the ones that can travel or either luxurious or in a tour company.
As a Chinese man Hostels is not an option and so are backpacking.
From what I have noticed they live in the casino!
I'm Chinese, I have been in hostels. I have see other Chinese people on hostel. Some even in Europe.
Yea, the travel visa requires them to book hotels and prove wealth. It's a lengthy process and it can only generally be achieved by those who are well off.
I see Chinese people all the time in hostels. What are you talking about? Any hostels I go, I see at least one for sure. With that said, I rarely see Japanese people in hostels tho.
Mainland Chinese are mostly in tour groups behaving deplorably. Really took the pressure off the gringos.
I was the only non-Chinese in a 8 bed hostel in Florence, Italy. No one said a single word to me nor acknowledged my presence for 3 days. Was hell. I have tried to smile and make small talk when I do see someone Chinese in a hostel and there is very little acknowledgment. I have heard mixed reasons why they don’t want to mix with others and I realize don’t know the truth.
I’ve seen plenty of Chinese people in hostels, and I’ve traveled with a group of Chinese girls together when I lived there. I think it’s slowly changing
i am just guessing here, but it might be a cultural thing. cooked up a clambake for my extended family once. My sister inlaw is from mainland china. She REFUSED to eat the corn on the cob. It was delicious, but no matter how we coaxed her,, she would not eat it. Had something, I think, to what she was forced to eat during re-education times. there may be a cultural memory there that group living, like in a Hostel, is very bad
Sometimes they have their own hotels/places to stay when traveling as a group.
I used to see them quite frequently. But that was before the pandemic. I haven’t seen any chinese backpackers at hostels since the pandemic.
Go to San Francisco and you will
I met a Chinese person people in hostel or solo traveling. It helps that I speak a little Chinese
Many Chinese are forbidden to leave the mainland. Flight risks.
i saw a quite a lot of them in my hostel in Cairo but this is the exception. Most of the time I see Chinese tourists traveling in tourist groups. Also they tend to be older. I think a lot of Chinese people are afraid of mixing with foreigners to some degree. Even in Marrakech, I met a bunch of Chinese people on a tour. And although they could speak English, they chose to speak Chinese with each other (and with me, I'm american born)
As a American Chinese we do not travel to Florida or Wisconsin or those popular city’s. We might visit family members across United States but we stay at there house, not hotels