China Travel Advice

Q: What is the best way of transport via land to Yiwu from Hongkong? How many hours would be the travel time? Where can I find a China application form?

Starting in October 2009, there will be direct flights between Hong Kong and Yiwu. Services will be on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday. Departing time in Hong Kong is around 1:00 pm. Flight time is about 2 hours. From Yiwu to Hong Kong it is 9:00 am departure and 11:00 am arrival. The direct flight services between Hong Kong and Yiwu have been on and off. This is the third time that direct flights between Yiwu and Hong Kong are launched. It is expected that the direct services will be in effect till the end of the year. If you can fly, this will be the easiest way to travel from Hong Kong to Yiwu.

As for transport over land, there used to be long distance bus service between Yiwu and Hong Kong. It is not clear if the service is still active. The departures were from Yiwu Ocean Hotel; you can probably try to contact the hotel to see if you can get the up to date information. The service was operated by a Yiwu-based transportation company called Hengfeng. Even though the bus service was called "direct", passengers still need to get off the bus to go through border checking point, so in reality it is not so different from a service that links Shenzhen or Guangzhou and Yiwu. It takes 18 hours to go by bus from Hong Kong to Yiwu. It is really too long a trip to go this way.

If you make the short trip from Hong Kong to Shenzhen, you can catch a train there go to Yiwu. The train leaves Shenzhen at 1:00 pm and arrives in Shenzhen about 4:30 in the morning. A ticket for a sleeping berth costs 300-500 Chinese dollars.

If you travel from Hong Kong to Guangzhou first, you'll find three trains that go to Yiwu. You can also take a Yiwu-bound bus there. Bus fare is about 300 Chinese dollars.

You can apply for your China visa either in your home country or in Hong Kong. Contact the Chinese embassy or consulate that is closest to you. In Hong Kong, you can apply either at the Chinese Foreign Ministry Office in Hong Kong or at one of the branch offices of China Travel Services, a travel agency. It would be the best if you get your visa before you set out for Hong Kong as you may have to rush your application if you apply for your visa in Hong Kong and do not have a whole lot time in Hong Kong.