experiences flying into China on a one-way ticket

What have been your experiences flying into China on a one-way ticket.

I get repeated warnings of needing a return ticket or proof of onward travel from the airlines.

The truth is, I just want to go to China one-way and travel around (get visa extentions for a couple months or so) and then leave the country to "wherever" at a later date.

I don't want to buy a return ticket, knowing I won't ever come back.

I also don't see the need in wasting money on onward travel that I don't intend to actually do.

What happened to you when you flew to China one-way? Did you ignore these ridicilious warnings? Did they try to stop you on a one-way? How did you get out of it stress-free?

I had a problem flying into Hong Kong on a one-way ticket a few years ago. It was the airline on my originating flight in the US which gave me the problem. I was going to start a job there, and naturally bought a one-way ticket. When I went to check-in, United said they could not issue me a boarding pass without a return ticket. I ended up buying a fully refundable return ticket from them and with that, they issued me a boarding pass for my one-way ticket. You may have to do this, as I cannot imagine that the PRC proper is any more understanding. The airlines get fined for not adhering to the regulations set by the Immigration authorities.

Check around, because one-way tickets are often more expensive than round trip tickets. You could perhaps save money and have a round trip ticket. It is possible to by an open return ticket, though these are often more expensive. It is also possible to by a ticket that you change the return date on...full fare tickets incur little or no penalty for this, but discounted tickets often have a heavy penalty for any changes. You would want to check the price of an open return against the price of a discount roundtrip plus change fee, and keep in mind that when you change your flight the fare may change as well, so you could end up paying more than just the change fee.

Hi - the only time I've been to China I arrived across a land border with onward travel from Hong Kong. Extending visa was not a hassle.

I'm just tossing this out as a suggestion - and agree that one-way flights are not the bargain they ought to be - but you could consider a one-way to HK, and then buy a return to China from there. There are many routes to take you back to HK from China and HK is a good place to move on from.

If you want best value air travel then it is probably best to buy a ticket with overland sectors that allows you to change onward dates at no cost.

Do you have no idea where you will want to go after China?

Before you leave, buy a full-fare, refundable ticket from PEK to anywhere outside China. When you eventually leave China, return the ticket and get a refund.

For what it is worth, my husband and I bought a one way ticket(NW) to Beijing in 2004. There was no questions asked at time of purchase, departure(got a boarding pass with no hassle or questions about return)or arrival in Beijing.

When we applied for the visa(multi entry, we said we did not have a departure ticket yet as we were leaving by boat. Maybe the multi entry was the key as there was no problem. We just gave them the passports and then picked the passports with all paper work for entry up 3 days later. One way tickets are more expensive and can cost as much as a RT.