A long dinner table set in a garden with candles and flowers

Pack This

What to wear, what to bring, and the one thing not to bring.

The wedding day

Saturday 15 May — ceremony around midday.

John and Andrea dressed for a friend's wedding: a navy dress and a cream linen jacket
Us at a friend’s wedding — this is about the right pitch.

Formal, with a summer garden party feel. Think an outdoor summer wedding rather than a black-tie ballroom — linen and lightweight suits over anything heavy, and dresses you can comfortably stand in for a few hours in the warmth.

It will be warm (the weather, below). Choose your fabrics accordingly and bring one layer for the evening.

A note on colours

Jewel tones, pastels, florals — all lovely, and all photograph beautifully against a Xi’an spring. Wear what makes you happy.

The exceptions: please don’t wear red or white.

At a Chinese wedding red is the bride’s colour. Andrea will be wearing it, and guests in red end up looking like they’re competing with her. White is traditionally associated with mourning in Chinese culture. Both are things that would stand out in the photographs for the rest of our lives. Everything else is open.

The two days with us

Thursday 13 and Friday 14 May.

Comfortable and casual. These are long days outdoors and there is a great deal of walking, much of it on uneven stone.

  • Shoes you’ve already broken in. This is the one thing people get wrong.
  • Sun protection — hat, sunglasses, sunscreen. There’s very little shade at the Terracotta Warriors.
  • Layers for the evening in the Muslim Quarter.

More about the two days →

The list

Everything below fits in a carry-on and a small bag. One line each; skip what you already know.

Papers

  • Passport valid past November 2027
  • Visa — printed and on your phone (Visa Check)
  • Hotel address in Chinese (on the Travel Guide)
  • Travel insurance details

Money

  • A card that works abroad
  • Alipay or WeChat Pay set up before you leave — both take foreign cards
  • A little cash for the Muslim Quarter

Clothes

  • The wedding outfit (see above)
  • Two days of walking clothes
  • One layer for the evenings
  • Shoes you’ve already broken in
  • Hat and sunglasses
  • A light rain jacket or compact umbrella

Heat

  • A handheld electric fan, if you have one — May is warm and the Terracotta Warriors have no shade
  • A refillable water bottle
  • Sunscreen

Health

  • Prescriptions in their original packaging, with a copy of the script
  • Any over-the-counter basics you’re particular about

Tech

  • Phone charger. North American two-pin plugs fit Chinese sockets and phone and laptop chargers run on 220 V, so most of you need no adapter
  • An adapter only for three-pin (grounded) plugs. Leave 120 V-only hair tools at home — the hotel has dryers
  • Maps and a translation app downloaded before you land (the apps)
  • A power bank with the 3C mark — read the box below

For us

The power bank rule

If you fly anywhere inside China, your power bank must carry the Chinese “3C” safety mark. Since June 2025 airport security removes any power bank without it — same model, same brand, no mark, gone. Banks bought in the US or Canada almost never have it. It applies to domestic flights, and Beijing and Shanghai have been checking every departure; trains, hotels and sightseeing are unaffected. We lost one this way in 2026.

Look for the small CCC logo on the bank. If it isn’t there, buy one in Xi’an for about $15 — every bank sold in China carries it. Keep it in your hand luggage either way; a battery-powered fan counts as a battery too.

Still unsure?

Send us a photo — we genuinely don’t mind. Write to us and we’ll tell you honestly.

但愿人长久，千里共婵娟

John & Andrea · Xi’an, 15 May 2027