Holidays in China

We understand that the majority of teachers coming to teach in China are not only looking to further their career but also want to take some time to explore China. As China is such a large country it can be difficult to have a weekend due to the distances away unless you fly which can be expensive so the holidays and time away from work is the best time to travel. One thing that you might find a little strange about China is that when you have a holiday you often don’t get a day off as such rather than a rearrangement of working days. For example this year Mid-Autumn day which is a national holiday fell on a Thursday so everybody had the day off work….however that meant that everyone had to go to work on Sunday so there were no more days off than in a normal working week. This is very common and will happen a number of times throughout the working year in China, the rearranging of days can sometimes give you four days off allowing time for a trip although previously I have had to work 9 consecutive days, so sometimes it can also be a real pain.

If you are working in a public school then no doubt you’ll be looking forward to spring festival in late January/February time where you can expect to have somewhere between 4-6 weeks off. China is such a large country so realistically a month is how long you’ll need to get a good flavour and visit the main attractions. With the new high speed rails in China getting around is actually quite fast and its less than 5 hours from Wuhan to Beijing on the train. Your other main chance to have a holiday is in the first week of October where whatever school you’re working (training or public) you’ll receive a week off. We have our largest intake of teachers each September so they will have only been working a couple of weeks when this holiday comes around. These are the main two holidays you’ll have and although there are various bank holidays and long weekends at other times in the year these are your two main opportunities for an extended holiday and travelling.

The first year I came to China I decided not to travel around China as many people opted to do and I actually took advantage of the multi-entry visa you’ll receive when teaching in China and went to Australia for 2 weeks. It was nice to have a change; as much as I love being in China a break from Chinese food for a few weeks was much needed. Over the past few years I have managed to get around various cities and national parks in China and have always found travelling around the country pretty easy. Trains are affordable and comfortable and with the high speed rail linking Beijing to Guangzhou near the Hong Kong border in south via Wuhan moving between cities is relatively trouble free. The one thing you might want to consider is that your main holidays from schools will be during national holidays which are the time of year that many Chinese people will also choose to travel. Many Chinese people use this holiday to travel back to their home towns to visit their families so trains can be very busy during these periods of the year. Buying tickets can also be a bit of a hassle as you can only buy tickets ten days before your journey. There are plenty of ticket offices for buying train tickets scattered around all cities in China so you won’t have any problems locating a place to buy tickets although you may need to queue for a while.

The national holiday begins in China for a week starting tomorrow but I will be avoiding the rush of travelling and the trains and relaxing at home. I hope everyone enjoys their travels.