Cities & apps
Beijing launches ChinaBound: itinerary, bookings and payments for foreign visitors in one place
In short
Beijing now has a one-stop official platform for foreign visitors: ChinaBound (chinabound.cn/beijing, also reachable as "ChinaBound" inside Alipay) combines itinerary planning, flight and train booking, hotels, translation, transport, currency conversion and online payment, with an AI assistant that answers questions and builds trips. It was launched by China Daily together with the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism at the 2026 World Conference on Tourism Cooperation and Development. It is a genuine time-saver for planning — but it does not fix the underlying payment problem for Russia-issued Visa and Mastercard cards, which still do not work abroad.
What ChinaBound actually is
ChinaBound is an official platform launched by China Daily together with the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism, announced at the 2026 World Conference on Tourism Cooperation and Development held during CIFTIS in Beijing.
It lives in two places: the website chinabound.cn/beijing and the "ChinaBound" mini program inside Alipay. Both point at the same job: one place for the whole travel chain, instead of juggling a map app, a train app, a hotel app and a translation app that each need their own setup.
The official platform already carries substantial Beijing-specific content: themed routes (Central Axis, Great Wall, hutongs, museums), practical briefings (getting around, tax refund, best time to visit), festivals and events, and neighbourhood-level guides.
What it covers
- Itinerary planning — themed Beijing routes and day-by-day suggestions rather than a raw attraction list.
- Flight and train bookings and accommodation in the same flow.
- Translation and transport information, plus currency conversion.
- Online payment inside the platform.
- An AI assistant that answers questions and helps plan a trip — useful for first-time visitors who do not know what to ask.
How it fits with GO BEIJING
ChinaBound is not Beijing's first digital tool for foreign visitors. The city's international portal GO BEIJING already covers dozens of practical services — taxi-hailing, ticket purchase, hotel booking and more — and supports Russian among its 16 languages, alongside English, Chinese, Korean, Arabic and others.
The practical split: GO BEIJING is the everyday-services layer during the trip (in your language), while ChinaBound is the planning-and-booking layer before and during the trip. Russian travellers should keep both: GO BEIJING for language-friendly access to city services, ChinaBound for assembling the trip itself.
The part ChinaBound does not fix: Russian-issued cards
The platform's online payment works the way Chinese online payment normally works — which is exactly where travellers from Russia hit the wall. Visa and Mastercard cards issued by Russian banks do not operate abroad, and that includes Chinese websites, apps and mini programs.
So before relying on any booking or payment inside ChinaBound (or anywhere else in China), the payment base still has to be in place:
See our step-by-step guide to linking a foreign card to Alipay or WeChat Pay, and our comparison of which app to set up first. A cash backup in RMB remains the safety net for day one.
How to use it on a first trip
- Open chinabound.cn/beijing or search "ChinaBound" in Alipay — the Alipay path also proves your payment setup works before you land.
- Build the skeleton there: arrival day light, one major attraction per day (Palace Museum and Great Wall need advance reservation).
- Book trains and hotels through the platform if your payment method works — otherwise book with the method that does and use ChinaBound for planning and the AI assistant.
- Register on GO BEIJING for Russian-language access to city services during the trip.
- Keep the entry side simple: Russian passport holders can enter visa-free for up to 30 days under the policy extended until 2027.
What could change
ChinaBound is new, and its feature set (languages, booking depth, payment options) is likely to expand. The platform itself is maintained by China Daily with the Beijing tourism bureau, so treat chinabound.cn/beijing as the source of truth for what it currently covers. Language coverage on the platform is English-first; GO BEIJING remains the Russian-language entry point for now.
This page is re-verified against the official platform monthly, alongside the rest of our policy pages.
Related guides & FAQs
- Alipay or WeChat Pay: which to set up first
- Link a foreign card to Alipay or WeChat Pay
- Countries with visa-free entry to China in 2026: the full list of 50
- China visa-free entry for Russian citizens extended to 2027
Published: 2026-09-15 · Fact-checked: 2026-09-15. re-verified against official sources monthly.
Official source
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