Money and Costs

The currency in China is the yuan, also often referred to as kuai or renminbi. As a general rule 8 yuan is almost (chabuduo) equal to US$1. Costs vary, with plenty of opportunity for extravagance or prudence depending on your budget. A hotel can cost as much as US$300 per day, or as little as US$4 a night for a very basic single. Meals can easily cost US$50 in an upmarket restaurant or US$3 for something equally delicious on the street. Subway tickets generally cost 3 yuan, while the average taxi ride across town will cost around 20–50 yuan.

A growing number of international ATMs can be found in Bank of China branches as well as in up-market hotels around the city. Most internationally recognized credit and debit cards can draw money from machines with the appropriate logo. Visa, MasterCard and other major credit cards are increasingly becoming accepted in big department stores, hotels, shopping centres, and up-scale restaurants, but keep some cash handy just in case.