Often, traveling to a country as far away and foreign as China can feel daunting. Never fear, WildChina is here to make your trip a little easier with our handy guide to the best apps.
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WildChina is rolling out free WiFi in all our cars in China. This means it’ll be easy for you to keep in touch with the folks back home and make them jealous of your amazing trip! To help you get the most out of your time in China and to make your trip easier, more fun and more convenient, here are a few handy apps that you should load onto your smartphone before you leave home.
The Great Wall of China is a beautiful remnant of China’s ancient history. The so called ‘Great Firewall’ however, can be a bit of a pain. Google, Facebook, YouTube and even Snapchat are among the many western websites blocked by the Chinese government. Fortunately, it’s dead easy to get around it by using a VPN. A VPN basically redirects your internet traffic to another country, you’ll be in China, but it will be as if your internet connection hasn’t left home. Express VPN works on your phone, as well as your laptop.
While big cities like Shanghai have been enjoying beautiful, blue summer skies these last few weeks of summer, China is famous for its air pollution problem, and it’s best to come prepared. The ‘China Air Quality’ app gives you real time information about the air pollution levels where you are and provides advice on which activities are safe and which to avoid.
Coming to Shanghai? This English language app works a bit like Yelp. A permanent obsession of European and American expats, it will help you discover the best local and foreign food while you’re here, with plenty of reviews, directions and photos.
Most big cities in China tend to have quick, clean, efficient metros to help you get from point A to B when you’re out doing a bit of exploring. Explore Metro’s city apps make it easy for you to plan your route and avoid getting lost on the enormous, labyrinthine subway lines.
Want to learn a bit of Chinese while you’re here? Pleco is a fantastic smartphone dictionary between English and Chinese. It will help you decipher menus, communicate with locals, and pick up a bit of Mandarin to add some more depth to your trip.
Planning on making local friends while you’re in China or keeping up with some expat buddies? WeChat is often described as China’s answer to Facebook, Snapchat, WhatsApp and well, pretty much everything. At its most basic WeChat is an instant messaging app, but it can also be used as a digital wallet, to call a cab, to play games, share moments, order food, and much more! You’ll be hard pressed to find a Chinese person who doesn’t use WeChat everyday, so why not join the party.
Arm yourself with these apps before you go to make your time in China that much more comfortable.
We look forward to welcoming you here!
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WildChina’s in car Wi-Fi service is rolling out in big cities like Beijing and Shanghai. Join us on tours such as Beijing’s Past & Future and Shanghai Highlife to get your taste of this modern luxury. Don’t forget to download these apps before departing.
The post What Apps Should I Have For a Trip to China? appeared first on WildChina Blog.
