China Thailand

Hostel in Shanhghai, private room shared bath, about 20 euro per night, very clean and comfortable, large kitchen facilities available, plus the room came with a private balcony. This hostel was located in a quiet residential district in western Shanghai. It helped having the Chinese A Map app installed beforehand and verifying the exact location with the owner. Although this was perhaps the nicest hostel/guesthouse I've ever stayed at, there was a slight hurdle. In China you might get conflicting information about registering your stay at the local police bureau. The owner said it wasn't necessary to do this, however many foreigners who have been to China will tell you otherwise, that you could in fact get into trouble or have to pay a fine if you don't register. At larger hotels like the nearby Hotel Mercure this isn't a problem, the check in staff will register you, but it can be a problem at some smaller hostels. Apparently Shanghai initiated an online registration portal shortly after I visited, which would make things much easier. This time I ended up trying to register myself, but I accidentally went to the wrong registration office. They then called up the owner of my hostel, it was a bit embarrasing for everyone, likely nothing would have happened if I hadn't registered, but I did get a paper certificate proving my registration and on departing and later flying back to China all was well.Read more