Living in China
China is one of the most exciting, bustling and ever-changing places on earth. Imagine what it's like living there!
As a teacher in China, you’ll live in an apartment (like most Chinese people) with all the mod-cons. It’s likely to be really close to your school, or even on campus. What’s more, most teaching contracts include accommodation, meaning you’ll have plenty of money to do as you please.
Chinese food is to die for! Flavors differ depending on where you are in China, ranging from savoury breads and buns in the north to sweet dishes in the south.
After just a few days in China, you’ll start getting used to the money and, hopefully, how to say the numbers in Mandarin. This will put you in good stead for the rest of your time in the country.
As a TEFL teacher, you will probably earn a lot more than the average Chinese salary. With free housing included, you’ll find the cost of living to be quite low.
You’ll find plenty of things to do in China. Local favorites include karaoke (called KTV), badminton, table tennis, dancing in the park, and of course shopping.
China is a centuries-old society and is very different to Western countries. The Chinese culture and way of life is unique. For example, family values remain rock solid while development happens at lightning speed.
You’ll enjoy a number of national holidays while teaching in China. If you choose to go sightseeing on your time off, the hard part will be deciding which beautiful place you'll visit!
Getting around China is easy with its world-class bullet train system and other convenient modes of transport. This means lots of opportunities to travel!
Teacher accommodation in China
What’s the accommodation like in China? Your accommodation in China will be clean and simple. As all accommodations are different, it’s difficult to generalise about what yours will look like until during the application process whe...
Food in China
Chinese food has a long history The Chinese know how to make delicious meals. That’s because passionate cooks have been perfecting recipes for thousands of years. Whether it’s the steamed buns, fried dumplings or Peking duck like yo...
Money and numbers in China
Chinese currency The Chinese currency is called ‘renminbi’ (人民币) or RMB for short. In Mandarin, it translates as the people’s currency. The yuan (元) is the basic unit of the renminbi. It’s the Chinese equivalent o...
Cost of living in China
How much does it cost to live in China? If your contract includes teacher housing, you’ll only need to spend money on things like food, transport and social activities. So if you eat like the locals do (i.e. street food and basic re...
Leisure in China
Although much of your time in China will ultimately be spent teaching English, you’ll still have plenty of time for leisure activities. Here are some typically Chinese ones you might get into! KTV Ask any Chinese person what karaoke is...
Public holidays in China 2022
As a foreign teacher in China, you get time off during the country’s seven national public holidays. Holidays go for at least three days, but the weekend is often part of the holiday so they’re not as long as you think. What are the...
Transport in China
Whether you’ve got some time to travel around China, or you just need to get from A to B, our transport guide will help. Local transport in China Subway train Most major cities in China have an efficient underground train network. Many...
Shopping in China
Shopping is a favourite pastime in China. When you go out on the weekends, you'll find groups of teenagers giggling their way from one shop to the other with bags in hand. This is a big change from the past, when shopping for pleasure was n...
Chinese culture
You can never really see or understand another culture until you’ve lived in that country. No matter how informed you are about the world, or how much you travel, the Chinese culture will still surprise you. China is incredibly different...
