China Visa, Culture & Getting Around with Kids: Homejourney Guide

If you are visiting China with kids from Singapore, you will generally need to arrange a China visa in advance, plan age-friendly transport within huge cities, and understand basic local culture so your family can move around safely and confidently.

This focused guide on China: Visa, Culture and Getting Around with Kids: Family Travel supports our main International Travel & Property pillar, and is written for families who travel Asia frequently, may consider regional property investment, and want a trusted, safety-first perspective from Homejourney.

Why Visit China with Kids: Quick Overview

China is an excellent family destination because major cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen combine world-class public transport, plenty of green spaces, and kid-friendly attractions such as zoos, science museums and theme parks.

From Singapore, direct flights to Beijing or Shanghai usually take about 5.5–6 hours, making it manageable even with younger children compared to long-haul Europe or US trips.

For families who visit China often, this travel flow also creates natural opportunities to explore Singapore as a stable base or second home hub via Homejourney’s verified property search tools Property Search .

Best Time to Visit China with Kids

For Singapore families, the most comfortable months for China travel are generally:

Spring (April–May): Mild temperatures in Beijing and Shanghai, parks in bloom, outdoor attractions more pleasant for young children.
Autumn (September–October): Cooler, clearer weather; good for walking-intensive sightseeing like the Great Wall or Old Towns.
Avoid peak crowds: Golden Week around 1 October and Chinese New Year can be extremely crowded and stressful for kids, especially in train stations and major tourist spots.

If your child is in a Singapore MOE school, the March or September school holidays often line up nicely with shoulder seasons in China, which helps avoid both extreme cold and tourist congestion.

China Visa Essentials for Singapore Families

Do Singapore citizens need a visa for China tourism?

As of late 2025, most foreign tourists still need a China tourist (L) visa unless they are covered by a specific visa-free or transit-visa-free arrangement.[5] Always confirm the latest rules with the Chinese Embassy in Singapore or the official Chinese Visa Application Service Centre before booking.

Common Visa Options for Families

Tourist (L) visa: For sightseeing and general family holidays; usually single or double entry.
Q2 visa: For short-term visits (under 180 days) to relatives who are Chinese citizens or foreigners with Chinese permanent residence.[4]
S2 visa: For short-term family visits (under 180 days) to foreigners working or studying in China.[4]

For family reunion or longer stays over 180 days, Q1 or S1 visas are used and require additional relationship documents and sometimes health checks.[2][4]

Key Family Visa Requirements (Typical)

Requirements can change, but you should usually expect for each adult and child:

Passport valid for at least 6 months with two or more blank pages.[5]
Completed online visa form and photo meeting China visa specifications.
For kids: full birth certificate to prove parent–child relationship; passports of parents; any past Chinese nationality or residency documents where applicable.[1][2]
For Q/S visas: invitation letter, inviter’s Chinese ID or passport and residence permit, plus marriage or birth certificates to show kinship.[1][2][4]

For Singapore families with young kids, prepare a neat folder with original and photocopied birth certificates, marriage certificates and your own passports so that application at the Chinese Visa Application Service Centre in Singapore is smoother.

Transit & Visa-Free Policies

China has various transit without visa (TWOV) schemes and visa-free entries for citizens of certain countries, allowing short stays for tourism, business or family visits.[6][7][9] Conditions depend on nationality, port of entry and length of stay, and may change with little notice, so always verify directly with an official Chinese consular source before relying on these options.

Flying from Singapore and Money Tips

Families in Singapore can fly directly to major Chinese hubs (Beijing Capital, Beijing Daxing, Shanghai Pudong, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Chengdu) on Singapore Airlines, Scoot and several Chinese carriers, with flight time averaging around 5–6 hours.

China’s currency is the Renminbi (RMB), commonly referred to as yuan. Most Singapore banks allow RMB withdrawals in China via ATMs, but it is useful to land with a small amount of cash for taxis and snacks.

Homejourney supports multi-currency views, including RMB, when you explore Singapore real estate, making it easy for China-based investors or frequent travelers to see property prices in familiar terms and track exchange impacts on budgets.

Top Kid-Friendly Attractions & Experiences

China is vast, so this section focuses on popular, easy-to-reach cities for Singapore families on a 3–7 day trip.

Beijing with Kids

Great Wall (Mutianyu section): Gentler slopes and a fun toboggan ride down that older kids love; strollers are difficult, so baby carriers are more practical.
Forbidden City & Tiananmen Square: Plan an early-morning slot; bring snacks and layer clothing as distances are long for small children.
Beijing Zoo & Aquarium: Popular with local families; choose weekday mornings to avoid crowds.

Shanghai with Kids

Shanghai Disneyland: Easy to reach by metro; consider staying 1 night near the park so kids can rest between fireworks and rides.
Shanghai Science & Technology Museum: Indoor, interactive, and ideal for hot summers or cold winters.
The Bund & Huangpu River Cruise: Take a short evening cruise instead of a long walk to keep young children engaged.

Hidden Gems & Local Favourites

Local neighbourhood parks: In both Beijing and Shanghai, early mornings in community parks are fantastic for kids—playgrounds plus tai chi, dancing and kite-flying by locals.
Pedestrian old streets: Such as Qianmen (Beijing) or Yuyuan bazaar area (Shanghai), which offer snacks, souvenirs and photo spots, but watch kids closely in weekend crowds.

Practical Transport Tips: Getting Around with Kids

Major Chinese cities have excellent public transport, but they are large and busy. For families used to Singapore’s clean, orderly MRT, the scale and pace can feel overwhelming without planning.

Metro & Trains

Prepare for security checks: Bags go through scanners at most metro entrances; put metal items in your bag to speed up the process with kids.
Off-peak travel: Avoid weekday rush hours (roughly 7:30–9:30am and 5–7:30pm) when carriages are packed and strollers are hard to manage.
Use translation apps: Station maps are increasingly bilingual, but smaller stations may still have limited English; download offline maps before you leave Singapore.

Taxis & Ride-Hailing

Show addresses in Chinese characters: Keep hotel and attraction names written in Chinese on your phone; many taxi drivers do not read Pinyin or English.
Seat belts and car seats: Not all taxis have working rear seat belts and child seats are rare. For babies or toddlers, consider compact, travel-friendly booster options and confirm with your accommodation if they can help arrange safer transfers.
Payment: Mainland China is very QR-code focused; foreign cards and cash are improving but still inconsistent. Load up mainland-friendly digital wallets where possible before departure.

Insider Tips from a Singapore Family Perspective

Plan one major activity per half-day. For example, Great Wall in the morning, nap or indoor play in the hotel in the afternoon.
Choose accommodation near a metro line similar to how Singaporeans value proximity to MRTs when buying homes—being 5–10 minutes’ walk from a station drastically reduces daily stress.
Always carry tissues and hand sanitiser; public toilets range from modern to basic, and many do not provide toilet paper.