Chengdu / Chongqing (China)

[sphere]

On 9/19/2026 at 5:40 PM, QinWei said:

.....
do note that u cannot use alipay in Sg (for now)
but in future 支付宝不久后将为本地消费者提供多电子付款选择 

 

Will just raise this point - the above ☝️ was misleading (again), are you sure?

Don't say I saw Bugis Junction was promoting the use of Alipay a few months ago (posters all over the mall), just now - yes, today, I saw Popular bookstore had Alipay as one of their mode of payment (on the cashiers' counter screen). So how is Alipay "cannot use in Sg (for now)"???

[The only thing possible is that Alipay is not widely accepted yet, but still can be used]

 

 

====================================================

@yexben based on my experience last year to ShangHai, same as you, I set up everything like you did and thinking I was all set (just didn't verify/check if it really worked - by buying something locally with Alipay). When I was there, I tried (as a simple test) buying from McDonald's self-service kiosk - it didn't work (requiring me to verify passport and other details again)!!

 

It was frustrating but at least I got it sorted out thereafter (by repeating those registration steps again)... So it is good that you should try it out now to see if there is any "potential issue(s)" before you fly - either online purchases that accept Alipay or physical purchases at the merchant(s)/shop(s).

 

One thing though, on the night when I came back, I removed Alipay app totally - here's why.

My phone notification (such as chat messages or banks' messages would be prompted through vibration and displayed on top of the phone, as I always set it in silent mode) kept vibrating after I was onboard the MRT going home, but there was no notification messages at all (it went off almost every minute or so - nonstop). I could only think of Alipay, as I had very rare occasion such as 'empty notification' after installing Alipay. Hence, I quickly remove my bank card details and my other details from the app, and uninstalled it - immediately, the notification/vibration stopped. I didn't know what could be going on at the backend when I had the app, but I doubt I want to use Alipay again (maybe also not going to China again), haha.

[just a personal sharing, maybe yours could be fine eh]

 

[QinWei]

Did u try using it ????

 

stop coming here and fuss when u didnt!!!

 

alipay at merchant stores (other than in china) is for china residents 

promoting it for china residents

When they travelled overseas

 

This thread is on Chengdu: 

u may wish to open a thread and provide lengthy thesis on all sort of payments in jp and china too, lol!

 

how was i misleading, stop accusing!

 

[Guest Guest]

@yexben u shld just try out Alipay soon to know if it works for ur trip, don't believe aunty above whose previous accs all tio banned and she actually believes this:

 

kekekekeke...

[yexben]

On 9/19/2026 at 12:45 PM, QinWei said:

yes!! and it should work

in fact i dont even bother with what station and what is being 

u will know it when it is ALL  done perfectly

 

i cannot even recall these r the steps

maybe Chinese is not your native language

my first language is English , but i installed in Chinese lang
cos when it is in English , it is half -half here & there
When in Chinese, the description is crisp and En Point....
 

 

as mentioned years ago , we started using Palm/hand to pay if the shop allowed in China
who "pay"-wave by pressing phone : 

 

but you have to get it register first eg at a convenience store or wherever possible!!
Only u have your Palm/hand/biometric with you, but anyhow clever hacker or thief could easily have/hack your phone 1 day

Enjoy ya!!! but why Cheng Du/CQ as your first DIY trip  China??

 

Thanks bro, just tested a China QR using my Alipay which linked to Maribank credit card and the transaction been approved.

[yexben]

On 9/20/2026 at 1:28 PM, thinking35 said:

 

Not sure about Alipay, but for WeChat, once is stated as verified, everything is okay. You can add cards to your account also meaning all okay

I have added youtrip and Maribank cc to Alipay and Wechat.

[yexben]

On 9/20/2026 at 9:30 PM, sphere said:

 

Will just raise this point - the above ☝️ was misleading (again), are you sure?

Don't say I saw Bugis Junction was promoting the use of Alipay a few months ago (posters all over the mall), just now - yes, today, I saw Popular bookstore had Alipay as one of their mode of payment (on the cashiers' counter screen). So how is Alipay "cannot use in Sg (for now)"???

[The only thing possible is that Alipay is not widely accepted yet, but still can be used]

 

 

====================================================

@yexben based on my experience last year to ShangHai, same as you, I set up everything like you did and thinking I was all set (just didn't verify/check if it really worked - by buying something locally with Alipay). When I was there, I tried (as a simple test) buying from McDonald's self-service kiosk - it didn't work (requiring me to verify passport and other details again)!!

 

It was frustrating but at least I got it sorted out thereafter (by repeating those registration steps again)... So it is good that you should try it out now to see if there is any "potential issue(s)" before you fly - either online purchases that accept Alipay or physical purchases at the merchant(s)/shop(s).

 

One thing though, on the night when I came back, I removed Alipay app totally - here's why.

My phone notification (such as chat messages or banks' messages would be prompted through vibration and displayed on top of the phone, as I always set it in silent mode) kept vibrating after I was onboard the MRT going home, but there was no notification messages at all (it went off almost every minute or so - nonstop). I could only think of Alipay, as I had very rare occasion such as 'empty notification' after installing Alipay. Hence, I quickly remove my bank card details and my other details from the app, and uninstalled it - immediately, the notification/vibration stopped. I didn't know what could be going on at the backend when I had the app, but I doubt I want to use Alipay again (maybe also not going to China again), haha.

[just a personal sharing, maybe yours could be fine eh]

 

Sorry to hear about your encounterings with Alipay and I tested a China QR code provided by a Chinese and it worked and my cc account showed the transaction. Well, this is another concern which I really dont want to experience on or after the trip. Perhaps I should just follow you to delete or uninstall Alipay right after I get onboard. Thanks anyway, for sharing the infos.

[QinWei]

5 hours ago, yexben said:

Thanks bro, just tested a China QR using my Alipay which linked to Maribank credit card and the transaction been approved.

good to hear that !!!

 

but how was your trip??

 

[yexben]

5 hours ago, QinWei said:

good to hear that !!!

 

but how was your trip??

 

This month end till early Nov.

[QinWei]

14 minutes ago, yexben said:

This month end till early Nov.

oooh !!!

[sphere]

14 hours ago, yexben said:

Sorry to hear about your encounterings with Alipay and I tested a China QR code provided by a Chinese and it worked and my cc account showed the transaction. Well, this is another concern which I really dont want to experience on or after the trip. Perhaps I should just follow you to delete or uninstall Alipay right after I get onboard. Thanks anyway, for sharing the infos.

 

That's good, at least your local transaction went through, and most importantly, your card had nothing to do with being a China resident eh (proving a claim wrong), haha. If I still have the Alipay app, I would have done a local transaction to prove the point, just too bad I removed it and do not intend to reinstall back anytime soon.

 

Well, I'm not sure if mine was an isolated case though, if you do not experience what I had, you could consider keeping Alipay first, in case you need it for your future trip(s) to China eh (since setting up was quite a hassle). While I do not have any intention to go there anymore, so I would give Alipay a miss for now, haha.

 

Make sure you have all the required 'paper works/documents' ready, as I read somewhere that the immigration clearance is taking longer now (after 15 Sep) with their new rules/regulations eh.

Enjoy your trip and have fun!

 

[thinking35]

On 10/9/2026 at 8:25 AM, yexben said:

I have added youtrip and Maribank cc to Alipay and Wechat.

Good, enjoy your trip.

[And then]

12 hours ago, sphere said:

If I still have the Alipay app, I would have done a local transaction to prove the point,

My understanding is that this will not work.  
I would love to know how @yexben did his trial test  ( what China QR code?
 

[thinking35]

10 hours ago, And then said:

My understanding is that this will not work.  
I would love to know how @yexben did his trial test  ( what China QR code?
 

Maybe what he meant was that someone send him a pic of the QR of a merchant in China, he scan here and make the payment... That's what I tot when I read that.

[HC-B]

Alipay works totally fine for me when I was in China earlier this year. It was a breeze, no fuss, effective.
 

My issue is with WeChat. 

I created an account eons ago but did not use it immediately and left it dormant for more than a decade.

 

Come time to travel to China, I whipped it out and found out that I got barred! Gave lots of errors and messages but no solutions. 🙄

 

So WeChat is a total strikeout for me in China.

 

Learned later on that due to my not using WeChat at all for the longest time, some bugger might have hijacked and stolen my account.

Submitting documents for verification and resetting up proved too troublesome for me so I decided to depend on the kindness of travelling companions.

[QinWei]

23 hours ago, And then said:

understanding is that this will not work.  

U r right

those merchants in Sg that offers you to pay using China apps Likely will not work because you needed a real China bank account 

 

all my wechat / Alipay works fine in China but when used in sg : eg scarlett Supermkt/store 
Even the staff explained why not for non China bank account user 

it doesnt , it is currently designed for China bank account holders

and why it worked on my Director's app? because his is linked to a genuine China bank account instead*

only those online platforms already set their payment ways in a way that allow Sg bank ac or sg card then it will work ....


*
how do we know for sure? because our co. remit and  deals with China associates all the time
and they tend to use wechat and wechat
Whatever experiment we have done so because we have to work with Asian counterpart to the China too


this is also why OCBC and DBS is slowly introducing alot of remit method to make it more friendlier to Sg users ie NON china bk account holders to make it highly accessible 

On 9/21/2026 at 2:56 AM, QinWei said:

 

 

alipay at merchant stores (other than in china) is for china residents 

promoting it for china residents

When they travelled overseas

 

 

[Want to try]

Anyone here now... Don't think there is any gay sauna or gay massage scene in Chongqing? After walking the whole day especially up and down those stairs, food to be rubbed down completely naked for 2 hours and just enjoy... Anyone knows a good place or service please let me know. Tks

[yexben]

On 10/9/2026 at 11:59 PM, sphere said:

 

That's good, at least your local transaction went through, and most importantly, your card had nothing to do with being a China resident eh (proving a claim wrong), haha. If I still have the Alipay app, I would have done a local transaction to prove the point, just too bad I removed it and do not intend to reinstall back anytime soon.

 

Well, I'm not sure if mine was an isolated case though, if you do not experience what I had, you could consider keeping Alipay first, in case you need it for your future trip(s) to China eh (since setting up was quite a hassle). While I do not have any intention to go there anymore, so I would give Alipay a miss for now, haha.

 

Make sure you have all the required 'paper works/documents' ready, as I read somewhere that the immigration clearance is taking longer now (after 15 Sep) with their new rules/regulations eh.

Enjoy your trip and have fun!

 

Do I have to print out all the documents, I thought everything goes digital nowadays in China. 

Yeap, at least I'm pretty sure my Alipay is working before my arrival. I just tried to top up Alipay wallet thru POSB overseas transfer, unfortuantely, unsuccessful and the amount refunded back to my account. I can only make the transfer to Wechat pay. 

[yexben]

On 10/10/2026 at 12:25 PM, thinking35 said:

Good, enjoy your trip.

Thank bro. Need to figure out what app or web sites do the locals use in China.

[yexben]

On 10/10/2026 at 12:56 PM, And then said:

My understanding is that this will not work.  
I would love to know how @yexben did his trial test  ( what China QR code?
 

Well, you can try it here   ->China QR code for Alipay and Wechat pay

[yexben]

On 10/10/2026 at 11:22 PM, thinking35 said:

Maybe what he meant was that someone send him a pic of the QR of a merchant in China, he scan here and make the payment... That's what I tot when I read that.

I got the link from youtube and I tried 10RMB out on the china QR code. It worked on both my Alipay and wechat pay.

[QinWei]

15 hours ago, Want to try said:

Anyone here now... Don't think there is any gay sauna or gay massage scene in Chongqing? After walking the whole day especially up and down those stairs, food to be rubbed down completely naked for 2 hours and just enjoy... Anyone knows a good place or service please let me know. Tks

oooh 
WHy u go and climb those stairs

Can just view from Afar will do

this means Visa for Chinese , not for us
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/business/china-visa-approval-local-clearing-organisation-6455046
Visa first submitted its application to the PBOC in July 2017.... a major step in the country’s financial opening up!

 

some services are purely for china bank a/c holders

[sphere]

15 hours ago, yexben said:

Do I have to print out all the documents, I thought everything goes digital nowadays in China. 

Yeap, at least I'm pretty sure my Alipay is working before my arrival. I just tried to top up Alipay wallet thru POSB overseas transfer, unfortuantely, unsuccessful and the amount refunded back to my account. I can only make the transfer to Wechat pay. 

 

Yes, it was digital when I went last year.

I was just saying that - for you to be well-prepared for your upcoming trip (not literally having to print any documents), probably not clear when I said it, haha.

 

[yexben]

8 hours ago, sphere said:

 

Yes, it was digital when I went last year.

I was just saying that - for you to be well-prepared for your upcoming trip (not literally having to print any documents), probably not clear when I said it, haha.

 

Thanks bro.