Wondering if its worth having a 14 hr layover in Shenzhen?
I'll be travelling with my 15 yr old son for a holiday to Asia in June and I have the option of picking either a Shenzhen Air flight with a 14 hr layover from 5.10pm to 7.10am the next day, or 5.10pm to 13.35pm the next day. I know with our British passports, we don't need to apply for a visa to get out of the airport by Metro to sightsee.
However, is there anything in Shenzhen to see/do for a teen boy and his mum at these sorts of times? Do the shops there generally close at 5 or 6 pm ish like in the UK? And do the shops open at sort of like 10 am ish? Because I think if that is the case, then we would not have much time to see much, seeing as we need to be at the airport 2 hours before the flight off to the next location? If there is nothing much to do, then perhaps I wouldn't pick the flight with the stopover. I just thought it might be nice to sightsee a bit of Shenzhen, but wondering about the logistics of this.
Also would you advise booking a hotel room to sleep for the night? There seems to be some hotels around the airport when I Googled, but I'm not sure if they're really at the airport, or would it incur some travelling time. Would you recommend a specific hotel?
Edited: 1 year agoSome people are saying that you can’t go out of Shenzhen airport if your transit is less than 24 hours if you are not from a complete visa free country in China like Germany, France or Thailand for example. This seems to be odd though as this would the only airport in China where you can’t go out of the airport for staying in a hotel overnight. I also can’t try it myself as I’m visa free in China with my Thai passport.
I would contact Shenzhen Airlines concerning a transit hotel as many mainland Chinese airlines are offering free transit hotels rather than booking a hotel on your own on Booking(dot)com, Agoda or Trip(dot)com for example. I’d say if Shenzhen Airlines is providing you with a free transit hotel then it’s guaranteed that you can leave the transit area. It would be wise to call Shenzhen Airlines concerning a free transit hotel before booking your flight. Also need to ask if it’s a difference concerning the transit hotel if booking over the phone compared to booking online. Many people, including me, probably prefer booking online rather than over the phone, but I’ve booked plane tickets also over the phone in rare cases before.
Edited: 1 year agoAh I see! I was reading round different Google searches and it gave me the idea I wouldn't need a visa. But now this clarifies it. I think it's the 72/144 hr visa that I wouldn't need a visa for. This is quite confusing...
But I think, reading the Shenzhen Air FAQs, they will not be arranging any transit airport at all, according to Q4
https://globalpage.shenzhenair.com/zhair/cms/static/pages/wcm/static-navigation/Itinerary/FAQ/AirportServices/AirportServices_en?language_id=102
Edited: 1 year agoActually scrap that. I just found this on their website too https://globalpage.shenzhenair.com/zhair/cms/static/pages/wcm/static-navigation/Itinerary/BookingServices/TransferService/TransferService_en?language_id=102
So it seems they do organise free transfer hotel
Shenzhen is very modern and new city. If you like electronic gadgets, go to Huaqiang Electronic World. https://maps.app.goo.gl/VbBLLR6BmbXBnTo17
Shenzhen is more than just electronic gadgets.
As compared to HK, it has nicer and more spacious shopping malls and restaurants. It also has nicer public parks.
For historical site, it has 1700 years ancient town.
I just found out recently Shenzhen is cleaner and safer than HK.
Shops close at 10pm.
For the visa-free transit, this is a bit tricky. Logically you should be ok. However you may have issues when you board your flight in the UK. Airlines rely on the TIMATIC database of the IATA for any visa-related question. And when entering your information, you get the following result about the visa-free transit: "This TWOV facility does not apply at Fuzhou (FOC), Huangshan (TXN), Mudanjiang (MDG), Shenzhen (SZX), Urumqi (URC) and Yanji (YNJ"
You can check yourself here by entering your information: https://www.iatatravelcentre.com/?_gl=1*13e36mx*_ga*ODQ4NjYwOTU5LjE3MDk2OTQyMjA.*_ga_PLLG1EY0X0*MTcwOTY5NDIyMC4xLjEuMTcwOTY5NDI0Ny4zMy4wLjA.
Thanks, this is very helpful.
Regarding Shenzhen, we are landing there on a day at 4am. I was thinking to go to the hotel and take a rest, then explore the city, spend one night, again explore the city and take an evening train to Xiamen. But is it perhaps worth spending some more time in Shenzhen? We are flexible with the schedule.
Did you end up getting a free transit hotel? I am also looking to do a long stayover with Shenzen airlines. thanks
