China Storyline
Shenzhen

Shenzhen

Meet a city looking forward.

Explore experiencesVisa & entry guide
Shenzhen
Urban innovationFamilies & friendsMainland entry rules

GREATER BAY AREA

Discover Shenzhen, your way.

Let Shenzhen surprise you together: old lanes, inventive neighbourhoods and a coast that invites a slower afternoon. We can shape the day around a child’s curiosity, a shared love of design or simply time to wander with friends.

Combining Shenzhen with Hong Kong? Check both entry arrangements and your mainland re-entry permission before reserving transport. A Hong Kong visa exemption does not cover Shenzhen.

PLACES TO DISCOVER

What to see in Shenzhen

Landmarks, local stories and places to slow down. Pick the ones that speak to you.

Places are suggestions, not included or reserved visits. Check opening arrangements, tickets, weather and access before booking.

Photographs are credited, not records of our programmes. Resized images and display crops remain under the linked licence.

IDEAS FOR YOUR JOURNEY

What would you like to discover?

Coffee, design, no rush
Photo: Dinkun ChenCC BY-SA 4.0

Culture & city life

Coffee, design, no rush

Start with OCT-LOFT, then decide whether your afternoon calls for more galleries or a waterfront pause. Tell us what you like to linger over.

Make it part of our trip
A bay-side family afternoon
Photo: QINGFATTIEAM 2002CC BY-SA 4.0

Nature & outdoors

A bay-side family afternoon

Choose a shorter waterfront walk, a meal break and an optional observation-wheel visit. We can discuss walking distances and children’s rest time before setting the route.

Make it part of our trip
Old lanes, new discoveries
Photo: Pauloleong2002CC BY-SA 4.0

Culture & city life

Old lanes, new discoveries

Wander through Nantou and compare its small streets with the modern skyline. A flexible city day for curious families and friends, with stops chosen together.

Make it part of our trip

Experience ideas for a tailor-made proposal, not fixed departures. Dates, venues, language support, transport and prices are confirmed in writing before booking.

HISTORY & CULTURE

The stories behind the scenery

A few starting points for understanding the places you visit, rather than a complete history.

  1. Before the modern skyline

    An older coastal story

    Nantou and Dapeng show that Shenzhen did not begin with its skyscrapers. Administrative centres, coastal defence and local communities form an older layer of its identity.

    Shenzhen Government: historic places

  2. 1980

    A special economic zone

    The establishment of the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone in 1980 marked a major turning point. Its subsequent growth helps explain the city seen from Futian today.

    Shenzhen Government: the SEZ story

  3. From industry to innovation

    Everyday objects tell the story

    Huaqiangbei Museum connects electronics and entrepreneurship with urban change. It is a place to ask how manufacturing knowledge shapes a city, beyond the skyline.

    Futian Government: Huaqiangbei Museum

Destination information checked: · Sources are linked beside the relevant places and stories.

SUPPORT THAT FITS YOUR JOURNEY

Choose the help you need.

A private car, a guide, or help communicating along the way. We will discuss each service with you, including what is and is not included.

Private transport

Discuss airport transfers and day-to-day travel around your route. Vehicle, luggage space, child seats if needed, and cross-border arrangements are confirmed separately.

Discuss this service

A guide for your day

Explore with a guide around the stories and places you care about. Language, guiding hours, venue access and fees are agreed before booking.

Discuss this service

Help with the conversation

Need help communicating during your visit? Tell us the languages, setting and time needed. Interpretation is an optional service; specialist or certified translation is not assumed.

Discuss this service

BEFORE YOU GO

China Travel Guides

All travel guides

VISA & ENTRY · STEP BY STEP

Before you travel to Shenzhen

Start with your passport, not where you live. Use this guide to prepare questions for the relevant authorities.

Official sources checked:

General planning information, not immigration/legal advice or an entry guarantee. Check the linked authorities and your carrier before paying for travel. Only immigration authorities decide admission.

01

Identify your passport & journey

No passport number, document upload or account required. Selections stay in this page and are not submitted to us. Chinese nationality or parentage, dual nationality and non-ordinary documents require consular advice.

Choose your details for a starting point, then follow the official sources below. This is not an eligibility determination.

02

Compare the possible entry routes

Some ordinary passports, including France, Germany and British citizens, currently have a 30-day short-visit waiver. The published deadline for these passports is 31 December 2026: do not assume it covers a 2027 trip. The US is not on this unilateral waiver list.

MFA: 30-day visa waiver and study tours

Eligible travellers, including US citizens, may instead explore 240-hour transit permission: the country/region immediately before and after mainland China must differ, tickets and designated ports must qualify, and travel must remain within permitted areas. It is not a general 10-day tourist visa.

Shenzhen Bao'an Airport and Shekou passenger port are listed entry ports. West Kowloon Station is also listed for entry to the mainland. Do not assume every Hong Kong–Shenzhen land crossing is eligible.

NIA: transit rules, nationalities and ports
03

Prepare your documents

  • Check the validity required by your route: US visa applications, short-visit waivers and transit permissions have different document rules.
  • Keep your itinerary, accommodation, host contact and onward travel evidence ready. For transit, confirmed onward arrangements are essential.
  • A qualifying short study tour can fall within the 30-day waiver, but formal study and work do not. Have the organiser and consulate check the actual activity.
MFA: 30-day visa waiver and study tours
04

Apply in advance if needed

If you do not qualify for a waiver, check any existing visa first, then apply for the category matching the real purpose of travel. Tourism is generally L; do not automatically use a tourist visa for a study programme.

  • Applying in the US: follow the embassy/consulate serving your residence. Complete the online review, then submit your passport when instructed. The US guidance asks for more than six months' passport validity and two blank visa pages.
  • Applying elsewhere: follow the embassy or authorised visa centre for your country of residence. Fees, supporting evidence and appointments vary.
Chinese Embassy in the US: visa applicationsFind your Chinese visa application centre
05

Before boarding & after arrival

Check whether an arrival card is required for your entry category; use the official NIA channel. Keep the permitted stay conditions given at the border. Hotels register accommodation; for a non-hotel stay, you or your host must register with local police within 24 hours.

NIA: official arrival cardNIA: accommodation registration

Entry rules first. Your itinerary next.

We can discuss a travel proposal. Visa decisions and applications remain with the authorities. Do not send passport scans through our enquiry links.

Discuss my journey

PLAN WITH US

Plan your Shenzhen journey.

Your family. Your friends. A journey planned one-to-one with you. Tell us what a good day in China would feel like.

COMPANY WHATSAPP

+852 9296 3299

One contact for all enquiries.

Chat on WhatsApp

No payment or passport details needed.

KEEP EXPLORING

More places. More perspectives.

Shenzhen panorama: Charlie fong / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Cropped for display.