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Your Ultimate Guide: Key Phrases For Business Trips in China ✈️

Want a Stress-Free Business Trip? Learn Key Phrases for Booking Flights, Hotels, and Transportation in Chinese

Travelling for business in China can be both exciting and challenging.

Even though it’s becoming more common for the staff to speak English in the tourism industry, you never know when you will need to sprinkle in some Chinese to make the journey smooth.

Especially for booking flights, hotels, and transportation, it’s crucial to know the exact words. Otherwise, you might end up on a flight to Chongqing when your business meeting is in Chengdu!

In this blog post, we’ll introduce you to all the necessary phrases and tips to handle travel logistics in China like a local 🙌

Chinese Business Trips || Key Vocabulary for Booking Flights

Chinese Business Trips || Essential Phrases for Booking Hotels

Chinese Business Trips || Transportation Tips and Useful Phrases

Chinese Business Trips || FAQs

Chinese Business Trips || Key Vocabulary for Booking Flights

Booking a flight in China can be a hassle if you’re just learning the language. Pay special attention to these terms and remember them precisely.

To say you want to book a ticket, always refer to this word:

预订

yù dìng

Book

Or you can just simply use this single character in a casual conversation.

dìng

Book

机票

jī piào

Flight ticket

For example:

Wǒ xiǎng dìng yī zhāng cóng Běijīng dào Shànghǎi de jī piào.

我想一张从北京到上海的机票

I want to book a flight ticket from Beijing to Shanghai.

Now here are some vocabularies to specify the details of the flight.

航班
háng bān
Flight number
出发
chū fā
Departure
到达
dào dá
Arrival
单程票
dān chéng piào
One-way ticket
往返票
wǎng fǎn piào
Round-trip ticket

For example, to ask about the departing time of the flight, you can say:

这个航班几点出发?

Zhè ge háng bān jǐ diǎn chū fā?

What time does this flight depart?

 If you want to book a round-trip ticket, you can say:

我想预订一张往返票。

Wǒ xiǎng yù dìng yī zhāng wǎng fǎn piào.

I want to book a round-trip ticket.

As you know, being a frequent traveler, flight companies have different policies on luggage and carry-ons. You will need to pay attention to these words.

行李

xíng lǐ

Luggage

行李限额

xíng lǐ xiàn é

Luggage limit

随身行李

suí shēn xíng lǐ

Carry-on

To ask about the limits of luggage when booking, you can say:

这个航班有行李限额吗?

Zhè ge háng bān yǒu xíng lǐ xiàn é ma?

Is there a luggage limit on this flight?

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Chinese Business Trips || Essential Phrases for Booking Hotels

Like booking flights, there are also some important to pay attention to when booking hotels in China.

Not all hotels accept foreign guests since they only accept National IDs for check-ins – however the government is currently trying to overhaul this system and make it easier for foreigners

Here are some basic phrases you should remember first.

酒店

jiǔ diàn

Hotel

房间

fáng jiān

Room

入住

rù zhù

Check-in

退房

tuì fáng

Check-out

For example, to ensure that you can stay in the hotel as a foreigner, you can ask:

wài guó rén kě yǐ rù zhù ma?

外国人可以入住吗?

Can foreigners check in?

And this phrase is always helpful to ensure the check-in time so you can put off your leavy luggage.

Shén me shí hòu kě yǐ rù zhù?

什么时候可以入住?

When can I check in?

If you also want to extend your check-out time, you can ask:

Wǒ kě yǐ yán chí tuì fáng ma?

我可以延迟退房吗?

Can I check out later?

In most cases, you will have the option to choose between a double standard room or a suite for your trip. Here are the vocabularies for room types and anything that come with it. 

双人房

shuāng rén fáng

Double room

套房

tào fáng

Suite

有没有空房?

Yǒu méi yǒu kōng fáng?

Do you have any available rooms?

If you are sensitive to the surrounding environment of your rooms, you can always request a specific quieter room or non-smoking room.

Wǒ yào yī jiān ān jìng de fáng jiān.

我要一间安静的房间。

I want a quiet room.

无烟

wú yān

non-smoking

fáng jiān shì wú yān de ma?

房间是无烟的吗?

Is the room non-smoking?

早餐

zǎo cān

Breakfast

无线上网

wú xiàn shàng wǎng

Wi-Fi

It’s always helpful to ask if breakfast and Wi-Fi are included in your room. You can say:

Jiǔ diàn tí gōng zǎo cān ma?

酒店提供早餐吗?

Does the hotel provide breakfast?

It’s pretty common for Chinese to refer to Wi-Fi just in English. So you can just ask:

Qǐng wèn, fáng jiān lǐ yǒu Wi-Fi ma?

请问,房间里有Wifi吗?

Excuse me, is there Wi-Fi in the room?
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Chinese Business Trips || Transportation Tips and Useful Phrases

Moving around and getting to different places are the most frequent scenarios in which you will need to speak Chinese.

Unlike hotels and flights where staff are better trained to speak English, you’d often need to ask around in Chinese when navigating local transportation.

First, some basic phrases to help you get around.

出租车

chū zū chē

Taxi

Or now, in most cases, you will call an Uber, which is called Didi in China.

滴滴

dī dī

Didi, Uber in China

wǒ yào qù…

我要去…

I want to go to…

When you get on a Didi, you will often confirm with the driver of your destination.

Wǒ yào qù zhè ge dì zhǐ.)

我要去这个地址

I want to go to this address.
地铁
dì tiě
Subway
公交
gōng jiāo chē
Bus
车站
chē zhàn
Station
zěn me zǒu?

怎么走?

How do I get there?

So to ask about the nearest subway station, you can say:

Zuì jìn de dì tiě zhàn zài nǎ lǐ?

最近的地铁站在哪里?

Where is the nearest subway station?

When you’re in China, a high-speed railway can be much more convenient than flights to travel between cities.

高铁
gāo tiě
High-speed railway
speak 火车站]
huǒ chē zhàn
Train station

piào
Ticket
duō shǎo qián?

多少钱?

How much?

To book a high-speed railway ticket, you can say:

我想预订一张去上海的高铁票。

Wǒ xiǎng yù dìng yī zhāng qù Shànghǎi de gāo tiě piào.

I want to book a high-speed railway ticket to Shanghai.

Usually, you’ll need to choose the tiers of your seat.

一等座
yī děng zuò
First-class seat
二等座
èr děng zuò
Second-class seat
商务座
shāng wù zuò
Business-class seat

Last but not least, always remember to find the ticket gate for your train.

检票口

Jiǎn piào kǒu

Ticket gate

You can ask with this sentence:

Jiǎn piào kǒu zài nǎ lǐ?

检票口在哪里?

Where is the ticket gate?

Now you’ve got a lot to digest. Take your time to practice in daily scenes as you travel and get around. They seem complex, but once you master them, you’ll travel around China smoothly like a local.

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Chinese Business Trips || FAQs

What is business trip in Chinese?

“Business trip” in Chinese is 出差 (chūchāi).

How do I ask for a non-smoking room in Chinese?

You can ask, 房间是无烟的吗? (fáng jiān shì wú yān de ma?). Is the room non-smoking?

What is the most frequent transportation to go between cities in China?

You’ll often need to take 高铁 (gāo tiě), which is the high-speed railway that’s much more convenient than flights in China. To book a ticket, you can say, 我想预订一张高铁票 (Wǒ xiǎng yù dìng yī zhāng gāo tiě piào) – I want to book a high-speed railway ticket.

How do I ask where the nearest subway station is in Chinese?

You can say, 最近的地铁站在哪里? (Zuì jìn de dì tiě zhàn zài nǎ lǐ?). Where is the nearest subway?

How do I confirm the departure time of a flight in Chinese?

You can say with 这个航班几点出发? (Zhè ge háng bān jǐ diǎn chū fā?) – when does this flight depart?

How do I ensure that a hotel accepts foreign guests in Chinese?

You could use this sentence. 人可以入住吗? (wài guó rén kě yǐ rù zhù ma?) – Can foreigners check in?

Do you know any other useful phrases for business travel in China? Share with us here!

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