Destination

Language
Chinese is the official language in Beijing, with Mandarin being the predominant spoken dialect. English may be used and understood at hotels, shopping retailers, banks, restaurants and at most tourist attractions.

Public Holidays
2012
1 January	New Year's Day
22 - 24 January	Chinese Lunar New Year
4 April	Ching Ming Festival
1 May	Labour Day
23 June	Tuen Ng Festival
30 September	Mid-Autumn Festival
1 - 3 October	China National Day

* Date may vary between each year

Currency
The Renminbi (RMB) is the name of the official currency, with the Yuan being the currency unit.
Bills come in denominations of RMB 100 (red), 50 (green), 20 (beige), 10 (blue), 5 (purple), 2 (dark green), and 1 (green).

Taxes
Value-added Tax (VAT) is already included in the price of any retail products. The surcharge on hotel accommodation is 15%.

Customs
Visitors are allowed to bring in 400 cigarettes or 100 cigars, and 1.5 litres of alcohol. It is not permitted to bring in more than one camera, one video camera, and one computer. It is also not recommended to bring in too much printed matter, as some may be considered by the Chinese government as sensitive subjects. Visitors are also limited to bringing in or out no more than RMB 6,000 in cash.

Business Hours
Retail shopping hours are generally from 9:00 am to 9:00 pm daily.
Banking hours are from 9:00 am to 5.30pm from Monday to Friday.

Electricity
China’s electricity voltage is 220 volts, 50Hz. The three-pronged angled sockets are the most commonly used, while three-pronged round, two-pronged flat, and two-pronged round sockets are also in use.

Telephone - Country & Area Codes
The international telephone country code for China is 86 and the area code for Beijing is 10. All land line numbers have eight digits.

Mobile / Cellular Phones and IP cards
China uses the GSM900/1800 systems for its mobile network. China Mobile and China Unicom are the two mobile networks.

Generally mobile or cellular phones do not require an area code. The numbers vary between each mobile network operator, so the following are for reference only.
China Unicom on GSM network are prefixed with 130, 131 or 132 followed by eight digits.
China Unicom on CDMA network are prefixed with 133 followed by eight digits.
China Mobile on GSM network are prefixed with number from 134 to 139 followed by eight digits.

Internet Protocol (IP) cards can be used with land lines and mobiles. They are available from most newsstands, convenience store, and phone shops.

Public Phones
Public phones in China accept pre-paid phone cards, which comes in units of RMB 20, 30, 50, and 100, available from most newsstands, convenience stores and phone shops.

Internet Access
Most deluxe hotels provide internet access from guest rooms at a charge.
Hotspots or wireless internet access is only available in at deluxe hotels and at some major business or shopping complexes. Once again, wireless Internet access is available at most franchised coffee chain stores.

Shopping and Paying
Reminbi (RMB) is the predominant currency for cash payments. Most fast food outlets will only accept cash payments. Credit cards are accepted only at hotels, well-established restaurants, major shopping centres and department stores.

Tipping
Tipping is optional in Beijing.

Emergency Numbers
All emergency numbers can be dialled free on any land line or mobile phone. Numbers are as follows:

Police	110
Fire alarm	119
Medical Emergency	120 or 999
Traffic accident	122