We want to re-visit China,( 4 trips before by public transport). Itinary now: Beijing- Datong - Pingyao- Xi’an- Luoyang- Suzhou- Shanghai for 29 days as we don’t need visa for Belgians.
last trip was in 2018 but a lot changed.
can we exchange euro in RMB in a bank in Beijing? We used to exchange before twice during our trip.can we pay all cash? Traintickets in trainstation, food in supermarkets, restaurants, local busses, taxi, hotel, musea
Alipay and WeChat are too difficult to install for me, I never use creditcard.
this will be most probably my last trip outside Europe, so I don’t want to be stressed and be sure there won’t be issues to pay cash.
thanks for all your help!
riet

There is no problem with the train tickets, but using cash may waste some time queuing up to buy tickets. There are no problems with supermarkets, restaurants, hotels and museums. Buses generally use small-denomination change. You need to prepare some first. Taxi fares are likely to be non-integer amounts like 15.5 yuan. You also need to prepare some coin change.

Thanks a lot!

You mention not using credit cards, but if you have a bank card on any of the word's major systems you can use that in machines at almost any bank in China, and you will get the best rate. There are plenty of bank machines at airports. Choose one belonging to a Chinese bank rather than anything independent (although those are few). Your withdrawal may be limited to ¥2500 or so, but you may make multiple withdrawals. You may wish to let your bank know that you'll be in China before you go.

If cash to cash is the only option you are prepared to consider, then choose a bank at the airport rather than an exchange office as about the only place you'll find variable rates is at one of those at a major airport. Everywhere else it is fixed. If out of bank hours change just enough, and do a larger exchange at a bank later.

Keep exchange receipts in case you want to reconvert on the way out. In theory you need receipts double the amount you're trying to change back, but this is rarely enforced.

At the bank ask for as much in the way of smaller notes as you can get--these you'll need for smaller transactions and t pay the exact price in cash for those places that do little business in cash. No one's going to turn your money away, but very occasionally may lack the right amounts to give you change. At bigger institutions (hotels, big restaurants, museums) use larger notes and hoard the change they give you.

Line-ups for tickets at railway stations are nothing like they used to be. Everyone books on-line or uses ticket machines (but there are problems with foreign ID documents, so you usually can't do that). Note that Chinese law requires you to carry your passport at all times, and you won't be sold a ticket without showing it. In fact you may not even get into the station without it, you'll need it to get to the platform, and you'll have to show it on the train, and when leaving at the other end. Entry to some museums also requires sight of it.

Yes, you can exchange euros for RMB in banks in Beijing. Most major banks provide such foreign currency exchange services. You can also find some currency exchange points at the airport.
It is possible to pay in cash for most of your expenses during the trip. For train tickets, there are always staffed windows at the train station where you can pay in cash. In supermarkets, although many use electronic payment methods, there are usually still some cash - only lanes available. For local restaurants, especially small and traditional ones, they generally accept cash. When taking local buses, some cities or routes may have cash boxes for you to put in coins or small - denomination banknotes. The bus ticket is usually 1 yuan and no change is provided. You need small-denomination change.Taxis usually accept cash, just make sure to have the right change ready. Most hotels will accept cash for both room rates and other charges. And for museums, you can usually pay cash at the ticket office.
However, it's better to have some small - denomination RMB notes and coins on hand, as some places may have trouble giving change for large - denomination bills. Also, it's a good idea to check with the relevant places in advance to make sure they accept cash, just in case there are any changes or special circumstances.The cash banknotes of the Renminbi have denominations of 100, 50, 20, 10, 5 and 1 yuan. Smaller denominations are mostly in coins. If you are sure not to use electronic payment at all, considering the portability and universality, you only need to prepare 100, 20, 5 and 1 yuan banknotes and 0.1 yuan coins. Coins are mainly used to pay taxi fares. They often have non-integer amounts. Because electronic payment is very popular, taxi drivers may not carry too much small-denomination cash for change.

Thanks to all to clear our China trip!!