Watch this before using a transit visa in China | Held in custody at the Beijing Airport!

Рет қаралды 12,663

Күн бұрын

Watch this before using a transit visa in China if you don't want to be held in custody!
This sounds overly dramatic, but a couple of weeks ago: we were held in custody at the Biejing airport for 2.5 hours while we tried to sort out whether or not the would let us in!
It was a pretty horrible experience, especially after such a long flight. We were tired, grumpy, scatterbrained and HUNGRY. Not a good mix when you're told that your ticket out of the country isn't valid to use with the Free 144 hour Transit visa we were planning on using. The problem? our flight included a 2 hour and 10 minute layover at an airport located in a different province in China. A province that wasn't included in their Visa free districts!
We weren't the only ones that this happened to, either. There was another fellow on our flight who experienced the exact same thing.
The solution? We had to book a completely new flight out of the China before they would let us into China!
To make matters worse, the Cinese government blocks most websites we use in the west (including google and gmail) making it nearly impossible to search for new flights home.
This is a video we threw together to share our story and hopefully help others avoid making the same mistake that we did.
If you liked this video, and want to stick around for more: please consider tossing our channel a follow, we would love to have you around!
Here's a link to Peter's art: www.PeterDixon.Art
What we film on:
Sony ZV-1: amzn.to/2G9LmoE
The above are my affiliate links with the Amazon affiliate program. Purchasing from these links will give me a small kick back in commission, and will not cost you any extra to use :)
Thanks so much for watching!
Joey and Peter
00:00:00 - Intro
00:00:40 - Setting the tone and starting the story
00:01:10 - Surprise phone call from Peter's Dad
00:01:24 - He's ordered a robot delivery!
00:02:08 - What went wrong
00:02:48 - Our experience being held in detention
00:03:50 - What made the problem worse...
00:04:13 - The solution
00:05:28 - Ask Jeeves works in China?
00:06:08 - Then our driver forgot where he parked the car!
00:07:28 - What to expect next
00:07:57 - Getting to Amsterdam

Пікірлер: 101

@Zerpentsa6598 4 ай бұрын

Not just China. Modt countries reserve the right to refuse entry if you don't comply to the letter. The rules for the 144 hours visa free entry are quite clear. You MUST LEAVE CHINA after 144 hours. Not leave one city, and stop in another in China . So the next flight booked must be to a different country. Don't try to dodge that because the previous people who did got refused. You are not special. The same law will apply.

@doinggrownupstuff 4 ай бұрын

We definitely weren’t trying to be special! We honestly just didn’t understand that a layover with a connecting flight, in which we would not be able to leave the airport, would count as stopping in another province. This is based on our experience traveling to other countries in the past and was a massive oversight on our part! WE WERE WRONG. That’s why we are making this video, to hopefully catch other people like us before they make the same mistake. Thanks for leaving this comment, it really lays out the rules REALLY clearly - a lot of people don’t watch full videos on youtube, but do read the comment section! We’ll pin your comment so it can help those who don’t watch ❤️

@oliversissonphone6143 4 ай бұрын

@@doinggrownupstuff I'm not quite sure why you are getting so many aggressive comments. You missed out on a technicality. When I went visa-free to Beijing, the websites made it very clear that you can only have one stop in China (ie no other transit airports in China). Reading the website now, it's not as clear, so I see how you made the mistake. The airline should have alerted you to this before you boarded the flight to China.

@doinggrownupstuff 4 ай бұрын

@@oliversissonphone6143⁠Thanks Oliver! We did find the website a bit confusing/unclear, which is why we thought we should make this video. I know we aren’t the only ones this has happened to! We appreciate you taking the time to leave your thoughts, and your kindness. We also hope you enjoyed your time in China when you went!

@ratedfrog476 4 ай бұрын

@doinggrownupstuff so if I fly to China and stay 144hrs and then go to Thailand then back to my own country will that get me in?

@oliversissonphone6143 4 ай бұрын

@@ratedfrog476 how many airports in China are you stopping in?

@nanobio1355 3 ай бұрын

Really appreciate your kind outlook and how you showed empathy to others (like the driver). Definitely subscribing due to you portraying things honestly (including acknowledging the friendliness by which you were treated).

@doinggrownupstuff 3 ай бұрын

Thank you so much for taking the time to watch our video and leave such a kind comment - we appreciate it :)!

@doinggrownupstuff 4 ай бұрын

Can’t believe we even have to say this, but if you can’t express an opinion without being blatantly racist AND unkind, don’t bother leaving one. We have zero tolerance for that kind of behaviour on our channel, and you will be immediately reported. To everyone who’s been able to have civil, reasonable conversations within the comment section: thank you ❤

@sonicmonkey888 3 ай бұрын

Agree 100%

@CynthiayRafaAlvarezPineda 2 ай бұрын

So if I fly from tokyo, japan to hong kong (which doesn’t require a visa) and from hong kong to shanghai with the 144 hour transit visa, and from there back to tokyo o osaka in japan would it work?

@tiger5633 3 ай бұрын

Thanks for sharing your China transit visa experience. I noticed there wasn't much emphasis on the importance of adhering to the visa regulations, particularly regarding entry and exit points and how to navigate it . Clear communication about visa terms can benefit your viewers who may be considering a similar trip. Overall, your video was informative, but highlighting these key points could make it even more helpful for others planning their travels. Safe travels! 🌍✈️

@doinggrownupstuff 3 ай бұрын

Thank you so much for taking the time to watch our video and leave your feedback! At this point and time: we don’t feel comfortable giving advice on the best practices, when we clearly aren’t experts in this field. The only thing we felt comfortable sharing was our story/mistakes, so other people could learn through our lived experience, and hopefully not make the same mistakes we have. If our video can catch those who may have made those mistakes, and encourage them to further research the rules before they plan their travel, then it’s done its job :) Maybe one day we will have enough finances to hire a professional specialising in this field to offer their opinion and best practice tips for a future video, but until then: we will be leaving the actual “how to” navigate the Chinese border advice to professionals, and people who have more experience with it than us.

@khorikai Ай бұрын

Thank you for sharing. Helped me rethink my plans!!!

@alphonsuswells1772 Ай бұрын

Hi the exact same thing happened to us flew from edinburgh to bejing to get 2nd flight to guangzhou thinking visa will be done at final destination guangzhou no no bejing customs said no way so we had to book a flight to Cambodia to leave china in 24 hrs or be sent back to UK hainan airlines ?? You can't check in online so only first flight check-in told to get luggage and check in for second flight but couldn't get past immigration lost second flight hotel reservations etc nightmare

@DanBurgaud 4 ай бұрын

You forgot to get VPN on your phones. With it, you can browse like you would back in your native country.

@doinggrownupstuff 4 ай бұрын

100%! We couldn’t download one when we got to the airport, and I hit the £20 spending cap on my phone within 60 seconds of turning it on to try to download one because I didn’t get a plan (I don’t usually turn it off airplane mode when I travel) 🤦‍♀️ Next time we will be more prepared!

@justme6275 3 ай бұрын

as a world traveler.... get international roaming/services with your home carrier, your phone works when you land almost anywhere in the world and everything (all sites) works in China.

@saahan-nn1fe 4 ай бұрын

If you use a VPN in China, you can access your program normally. It is not illegal to use a VPN in China, but the person who makes the VPN will break the law. The VPN I am using now only costs $1 per month. Welcome to try it.

@doinggrownupstuff 3 ай бұрын

I wish we had thought ahead and had this lined up to use when we were in the airport! Such a good tip for people who are travelling to/through China. Thank you for sharing it ❤️

@choifayue9848 3 ай бұрын

@@doinggrownupstuff lol how do you think foreign students and business people live without the western access webs in cn?

@doinggrownupstuff 3 ай бұрын

Probably by using the apps that they have available to them in China? (Not really sure what point you’re trying to make here…)

@choifayue9848 3 ай бұрын

@@doinggrownupstuff VPN what else? the official tube CGTN news from cn PEACE

@doinggrownupstuff 3 ай бұрын

You didn’t ask how I thought foreign students and business people stayed connected to the western world in China… you asked how they live without western access webs in China (TBH, the phrase “western access webs” is confusing/not a widely used term, and I’m not entirely sure what you were meaning to say here). Regardless: a VPN offers people access to foreign websites and apps, so that isn’t really an answer the question you asked 🤷‍♀️

@lifeisgood141 4 ай бұрын

The issue is that the transit visa only valid in certain provinces, which causes confusion to some visitors. What they need to do or should do is to make it valid for all provinces. Thus, will eliminate future confusion.

@lagrangewei 4 ай бұрын

but that won't be transit visa, that would be a tourist visa. honestly more country should arrange for 15 day visa free entry with China, you can't expect them to let you in, if your country don't let them do the same. i could go to any chinese cities with my passport without visa, the only term is I cannot stay more than 3 month in that year accumulatively, and chinese tourist could also visit my country for 15 days no visa required. its good for economy in both country...

@doinggrownupstuff 4 ай бұрын

That’s a great idea - I wish our Countries would arrange this!

@stebopign 4 ай бұрын

@@doinggrownupstuffthey wont. that would mean condoning china's wants like tianamen square never happening or taiwan is not a country

@oliversissonphone6143 4 ай бұрын

NAL.. I believe you can do a visa-free transit in Beijing and in Xiamen. The issue is that you can have only one stop.

@tweedy4sg 4 ай бұрын

@@stebopign WRONG...BS of the highest order. Visa-free entry is a mutually reciprocative policy. Following western countries (France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland, Ireland, Hungary, Austria, Belgium and Luxembourg) recently enjoy 15 day visa-free entry to China because these govts reciprocated with the same visa entry to Chinese nationals. Guess what are the glaringly missing western countries? That's right, the hegemon and it's obsequious 5-eyes poodles. Why ? Because hegemonic Empire of Lies has taken a turn for a very hardline confront & contain China policy since it's Tramp admin, and it's pliant poodles just follow suit unquestioningly.

@khfafmike933 3 ай бұрын

希望你们的旅途愉快

@davidharris2099 3 ай бұрын

Hi thanks for the video it's helped. Im going to Beijing next week and getting transit visa. Im not sure if im allowed to visit great wall apparently its outside Beijing area but in the Hebei area. I'm not sure if you can go to that area or not Did yous visit the great wall with your Transit visa

@yoingen 3 ай бұрын

yes，u Can

@ShaeandDavid 3 ай бұрын

Do you think we are fine if we just want to visit the great wall?

@yoingen 3 ай бұрын

Besides the Great Wall, there are other places that are also fun. Why not go to more places.

@KathyTrithardt 4 ай бұрын

I like that they make the robots cute so we don't get too scared of them...

@doinggrownupstuff 4 ай бұрын

I’m 100% glad you weren’t travelling with us SO I DIDN’T HAVE TO LIVE WITH THIS THOUGHT WHILE WE WERE THERE 😅😭

@KathyTrithardt 4 ай бұрын

@@doinggrownupstuff 😂😂😂

@lagrangewei 4 ай бұрын

that's how terminators will takeover the world, but pretending to be cute.... :^) run while u can...

@AnnieMaule 2 ай бұрын

Question So if I fly US-Tokyo-Shanghai- Hong Kong- Beijing-Tokyo-us This will not work? I thought the visa reset if you left and come back.

@xiaoyudou9716 17 күн бұрын

As long as you can define “nation” , “city”or “country “, you will be fine.

@JosephineHunter-d6e Күн бұрын

Transit visa free: During the period of no more than 144 hours of visa free stay in designated cities, short-term business visits can be conducted

@TheBudgetTraveller786 2 ай бұрын

I tried this back in 2019 while travelling from ISB (Pakistan) - PEK - LAX as a US citizen. The Air China staff did not let us on. Even with a US Passport, they were insisting that we will be deported from China on arrival due to entering from Pakistan. Nowhere was this rule mentioned that we could not enter from Pakistan. Air China's station manager dumped the blame on us but after insisting and even recording him, he finally gave in and took our passport pics and said our new tickets will be emailed to us when the airline office opens up as the rebooking was not possible in the airport. Alhamdu Lillah, we were thankfully rebooked at no charge to a flight with a 2.5 hour stop in PEK. But Air China was not too willing to do this. When I visited the Chinese consulate in US they too had no idea of such a rule and blamed the airline. In LAX, the Air China staff were more apologetic but acknowledged that travelling from Pakistan has some unwritten technicalities, regardless of nationality, and would have allowed me to board had I attempted the 144 hour transit w/o visa if I did the route the other way around. I dont wish to criticize Chinese people but the lack of clarity is really an issue with these transit without visa policies.

@Noname-so8jp 19 күн бұрын

Next time, consider using Airalo. If you use your own country's phone plan, there are usually no restrictions on KZfaq or Google in China. Additionally, if you book a Hilton hotel, the internet can access Google, Facebook, and KZfaq.😊

@user-xj2mt7ef8u Ай бұрын

If you arrive in China in Beijing, you can only stay in Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei Province with the 144 transit visa-free. This means you can not go outside of these three places. Of course you can not either take you leaving flight outside of these three places. This is the not so good side of the 144 trasit visa-free policy. You staying zone in China is dependent on your arriving port.

@gogoyf 4 ай бұрын

Yeah, def do your research about travelling in China. Chinese system is independent of that invented by the west. There is an equivalent of everything in China, Google, KZfaq, Facebook, instagram, Visa, Master, Tesla and English language, haha. But you would enjoy once you get used to the system.

@doinggrownupstuff 4 ай бұрын

We were absolutely unprepared and it was 100% our fault 😂 But once we actually made it out of the airport, we loved EVERYTHING about our time in China! Can’t wait to go back 😍

@celtycelluloid 3 ай бұрын

Well I wouldn't say they are "equivalent". If you want to get things up to work, VPN is a must in China!

@gogoyf 3 ай бұрын

@@celtycelluloidI mean the functions are similar, but may take foreigners long time to learn how to use them. Def recommend foreigner use VPN

@user-mj9tr3ym5t 4 ай бұрын

Here's a tip for you folks - Go to china with the first 144 Hour visa stay until the last 1 day you have and move to a nearby country Thailand which also have visa free and from there you can reapply to get a 144 hour visa as many times as you want and enjoy Thai while you are at it get back to china with the new 144 hour visa you can repeat this cycle for almost unlimited number of times as you want and wont cost you a penny for visa but ofcourse travel charge is extra xD Don't get offended by other comments we all want you to enjoy china for what it is not get scared of it like how MSM portrays it and I sincerely hope you enjoy your stay like the thousands of new travellers who are visiting nowadays alike. Stay safe and enjoy your travel!

@doinggrownupstuff 4 ай бұрын

This is PACKED full of great tips - thank you so much for taking the time to share this comment. Thank you also for your kindness ❤️ We really loved our time in China and can’t wait to return!!!

@TemplePiano 4 ай бұрын

I think everyone from Western Europe can travel Visa-Free for 15 days, so if you're seeing this as a European it doesnt apply for you.

@doinggrownupstuff 4 ай бұрын

I wish we were included in this! (So lucky!)

@joeymelbourne 3 ай бұрын

Yes, the rule is you need arrive and leave at the same city. They should have checked your tickets, wouldn't have let you on the plane to China anyway lol The thing is lots of European countries have got visa free visit 15 -30 days already, but UK gov adversary attitude towards China, so it might take a while for British people travel to China visa free. Anyway, things are improving, hopefully

@doinggrownupstuff 3 ай бұрын

That’s the weird thing - the airline did check our return tickets prior to departure, twice, and no one flagged it! (Still our responsibility and 100% our fault, it’s just annoying 😂).

@doinggrownupstuff 3 ай бұрын

Hence why I said “Still our responsibility and 100% our fault, it’s just annoying”. Did you miss that part?

@DW-op7ly 2 ай бұрын

The airline holds some responsibility. They are required to check that your ticket is valid and make the appropriate changes

@sdssdsaia9041 2 ай бұрын

I checked our national immigration office website. It is not ur fault, the 144hr visa's policy is unclear. I will send a complain to them about this.

@shanghaiffgg 4 ай бұрын

thats a pity, that loophole sucks

@doinggrownupstuff 4 ай бұрын

A very expensive loophole! Such a beautiful country to visit though, we’re definitely glad we got to go :)

@shanghaiffgg 4 ай бұрын

yeah its worth a trip. I have lived in Beijing for 16 years@@doinggrownupstuff

@doinggrownupstuff 4 ай бұрын

You’re so lucky - it’s such a beautiful city! Our only regret is not having more time there!

@doinggrownupstuff 4 ай бұрын

@doinggrownupstuff (and not understanding the visa situation so we could avoid having to buy another ticket home of course 😂)

@Zerpentsa6598 4 ай бұрын

It's not a loophole. The rules are quite clear. Flight out must be OUT. No stops in China. Out means out.

@shiosaicheung 4 ай бұрын

welcome to china

@doinggrownupstuff 4 ай бұрын

It was definitely worth all the trouble (all of our mistakes!), such a beautiful country!

@peterphan3524 3 ай бұрын

If you feel you are entitled then that is invalid request. If you feel that they should speak your language then you're completely out of range. Research is a must. Not just you guys but everyone out there.

@doinggrownupstuff 3 ай бұрын

Please tell me what part of the video suggested that we thought we were entitled to anything? At what point did we say that we felt they should speak our language? Did you even watch the video before commenting?

@guillaumeroy7528 4 ай бұрын

This Chinese visa policy does not encourage tourism but that's their prerogative. Alternatively, you could have booked whatever cheap flight you can find from Beijing leaving within 144 hours to a nearby country where you have visa-free entry such as South Korea or Taiwan. Then you can take time to visit and have more flexibility for your flight to return home.

@doinggrownupstuff 4 ай бұрын

This is a really great tip for anyone wanting to see China and utilise the transit visa! We’re definitely going to be doing this in the future, because we would love to see those places too!

@ylmake 3 ай бұрын

We welcome all kind-hearted people to travel to China, but please don't call Taiwan a country, which will make our Chinese people very angry! Taiwan is a province of China, which has not yet been unified, and it will definitely be unified in the future! Taiwan will become a special administrative region of China like Hong Kong in the future!

@guillaumeroy7528 3 ай бұрын

@ylmake I live next door to a pretty girl called Tania. She is actually my wife although we aren't married. She may not like me because I bully her and try to silence her in public spaces so that I can protect her from other guys. I want her badly so we will definitely marry in the future. ❤️

@user-en6gr7tq8d Ай бұрын

？@@guillaumeroy7528

@chxnZzz 29 күн бұрын

@@guillaumeroy7528not how it works at all, if it’s a country what is its capital city

@rocketsteel 4 ай бұрын

144 hrs. It's as clear as night and day.

@doinggrownupstuff 4 ай бұрын

The 144 hours is as clear as day. This was not the issue that the border police had with our use of the visa. We had thought (wrongfully, obviously) that a layover with a connecting flight, where we would be unable to leave the airport, wouldn’t count as landing in another province. Unfortunately for us, and others, this is not the case. Clearly a mistake on our end, and a mistake that is made frequently by others as well. We made this video to hopefully catch others before they make a similar mistake :)

@xiaoyudou9716 17 күн бұрын

BBC style vlog😂

@852mrkl 4 ай бұрын

Sorry to say, this is quite ignorant, to be honest... if you had done some research before your trip to transit in a "closed off country" like China, you would have avoided this and at least used VPN or enabled roaming service to make your life a bit easier. There are so much options that allow you to fly back with much less hussle, but yet higher price via other non China airline. Even though China had opened up its economy, yet it is still a communist country and not that forgenier friendly. Everything is a closed system designed to separate itself from the West. Hope you learned your lesson

@doinggrownupstuff 4 ай бұрын

Don’t apologise for things you aren’t sorry for. We call ourselves ignorant in this video…. we take full responsibility for what happened, as it was our mistake. We shared this experience to help others who might make the same mistake, hoping to help others through our lived experience. We weren’t the only ones on our flight who did this. Ironically, your “better-than-thou” comment sums up nearly every point we made in our video - which we articulated quite clearly :)

@Hing.Dickson 3 ай бұрын

Actually visa free in china just hours is tooo short ... Guys you should apply months travelling visa for longer stay same as other tourist onece they arrived china they immediately discovered themselves they should need longer stay and apply at their own embassy 🫣👍.... Maybe you guys love China hope adventure more places and forgotten the last day of staying .... Every countries also the same law & rules need to comply 👏

@doinggrownupstuff 3 ай бұрын

We didn’t have months available to take off work, so the transit visa was actually perfect for what we needed this time. The only thing that wasn’t perfect was the mistake we made about our plane ticket out, which is what we made this video about. Maybe one day we’ll have more time available, and we will get to spend longer in China - it was such a beautiful place, and everyone we met was so kind and friendly, we would love to return!

@Dorgon_HetuAla 4 ай бұрын

First of all, it is your own fault for not understanding China's visa requirements and regulations in different regions, yourselves have made the mistake. Secondly, the Chinese government's Internet blocking policy is very bad, and I hate this policy very much. Third, congratulations to you, you have experienced the pain of most Chinese passport holders. It is very difficult for Chinese citizens to travel to any Western country.

@doinggrownupstuff 4 ай бұрын

Congratulations! You understand the whole point of us making this video in the first place, you get a gold star! It’s almost like you outlined all of our videos major points, but have done it in a way that makes it look like you’re telling us something we don’t already know… Curious to know what part of our video insinuated that we thought this wasn’t our fault?

@Hing.Dickson 3 ай бұрын

OMG ... You guys eating foods on bed .. this is so rude ... I thought it was your attitude ... 😤 I think you did it other countries too..... Please respect 🫣🫣🫣🫣

@doinggrownupstuff 3 ай бұрын

There was no table in the room, so we laid down our own towels on the bed before eating - so we wouldn’t spill our food, but thanks for the judgement :)

@ssssong2039 2 ай бұрын

哈哈哈我是中国人也这么干，没关系，不弄脏就行。而且毛巾也不值钱的。

@JosephineHunter-d6e Күн бұрын

Transit visa free: During the period of no more than 144 hours of visa free stay in designated cities, short-term business visits can be conducted