Do I need to book Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum (中山陵·钟山风景区) (Nanjing) in advance?
Yes — advance booking is required. Passport accepted.
Full booking rules →Do I need to book Nanjing Massacre Memorial Hall (Nanjing) in advance?
Yes — advance booking is required. Tickets released daily at 08:00; book 1-7 days ahead; closed Mondays. Booking window: 1-7 days. Passport accepted.
Full booking rules →Official booking →Do I need to book Presidential Palace (China Modern History Museum) (Nanjing) in advance?
Yes — advance booking is required. Passport accepted.
Full booking rules →Do I need to book Nanjing Museum (Nanjing Bowuyuan) (南京博物院) (Nanjing) in advance?
Yes — advance booking is required. Passport accepted.
Full booking rules →Official booking →Do I need to book Nanjing City Wall (Ming City Wall / Zhonghua Gate) (南京城墙) (Nanjing) in advance?
No — walk-up works. Passport accepted.
Full booking rules →Official booking →Do I need to book Xuanwu Lake Park (Xuanwuhu) (玄武湖公园) (Nanjing) in advance?
No — walk-up works. Passport accepted.
Full booking rules →Do I need to book Niushou Mountain (Niushoushan) Cultural Tourism Area (Nanjing) in advance?
No — walk-up works.
Full booking rules →Do I need to book Confucius Temple & Qinhuai River (夫子庙·秦淮风光带) (Nanjing) in advance?
No — walk-up works. Passport accepted.
Full booking rules →Can I pay with a foreign card (Visa/Mastercard) in Nanjing?
Yes — foreign Visa/Mastercard work in Nanjing, typically linked to Alipay or WeChat Pay for everyday spending. Carry a little cash as a backup.
Do hotels in Nanjing accept foreign passports?
It varies in Nanjing — mid-range and chain hotels usually register foreigners, while cheaper local guesthouses may not. Confirm foreign registration when booking.
What should foreigners know about hotels and registration in Nanjing?
Pick a hotel that registers foreign guests with the police; chains and mid-range places do it as routine. Register within 24 hours of arrival; hotels file it for you, but if you stay in a private home or Airbnb you must report to the local police station (paichusuo) yourself with passport and visa.
What's the main thing to know before visiting Nanjing?
Free does not mean walk-right-in. Nanjing's catch is that its best sights cost nothing yet still gate you at a real-name reservation. Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum and the Massacre Memorial are both free but require you to book in advance with ID before you show up. The Memorial is strict about it: tickets drop daily at 08:00, you book one to seven days ahead through its official WeChat account, and accepted documents explicitly include a passport and the Foreigner's Permanent Residence card, so foreigners are genuinely covered here. The Mausoleum's online system is clunkier for outsiders, and the standard workaround is to carry your passport and get in at the gate when the booking site won't cooperate. The Presidential Palace plays by its own rules: it is paid (35 RMB), it bans every third-party reseller, and the only official channel is the 'Nanjing Zongtongfu' WeChat mini-program, with entry by scanning your booked ID or passport at the turnstile. The practical lesson for any foreign visitor: treat 'free' as 'free but reserved', sort the bookings the day before, and keep your passport on you, because none of these places will let you in without the ID the reservation was made under.
Any tourist traps or surprises to watch for in Nanjing?
The memorial is not a checkbox. The Massacre Memorial is the most affecting museum in China and it will flatten your afternoon. Don't schedule anything cheerful right after, dress plainly, and keep the phone down. If you only have energy for one major sight, locals would tell you this is the one that matters.
What should I eat in Nanjing?
Duck, the Nanjing way. Forget roast duck; here it's salted duck (yanshuiya), sold by the half from shops with queues at dusk, and duck blood vermicelli soup, which tastes far better than it reads. Both run cheap; the famous chains are fine but the neighborhood shops are better.
Where do locals eat in Nanjing, and what else is worth trying?
Tangbao discipline. Nanjing's soup buns are bigger and soupier than Shanghai's. The straw is not a gimmick; drink first, then eat, or wear it. Confucius Temple area sells the photogenic version; the better ones hide in the lanes east of it.
Do Nanjing's main sights need booking?
The two big free ones (Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum and the Massacre Memorial) use real-name reservations and close on Mondays, so book those with your passport ahead. The Memorial releases tickets daily at 08:00 and lets you book one to seven days out, with passports and the Foreigner's Permanent Residence card accepted. Nanjing Museum is also free-but-reserved. Most paid sights, including the City Wall, sell at the gate.
How do foreigners book the Presidential Palace?
Only through the official 'Nanjing Zongtongfu' WeChat mini-program; no third-party reseller is authorized. It's paid (35 RMB), and you enter by scanning your booked ID or passport at the gate. Completing the online purchase usually needs a Chinese WeChat or phone number, so set that up in advance or ask your hotel for help.
How many days does Nanjing need?
Two full days: one for Purple Mountain, one for the memorial, the city wall and the Confucius Temple quarter at night. It pairs naturally with Suzhou or Shanghai by high-speed rail.
Is Nanjing doable without Chinese?
Yes. Metro and major sights have English; reservations are the main friction point, and hotel front desks will usually make them for you if you ask the day before.
Rules change. We re-check these facts on a schedule and date-stamp every page — but always confirm on the official channel before relying on a time.