I am going on a business trip to China in Sept. How much money do you recomend I take to buy gifts. US $?

Question

how much does the average souvenier cost (ie. antiques, statues, etc.) Has anyone brought back any gifts that everyone just loves? Can you buy things like mp3 players significantly cheaper? thanks

Answer 1

Almost anything can be purchase as souvenier, and it is very cheap. But be warn that it is mostly fake.

However, when you do the bargining, please start at 20% of the asking price. When you bargin till the person is angry with you, you have reach the right price.

I have this style of shopping. But to these people who cut throat people, this is the way out.

One way of bargining is, never use the price in your home city as a guage. Always try to observe how much the local pay for the item before moving it for your item.

My gut feeling is, budget for US $20 per person will be good enough. If you have 5 person in mind, prepare US$100 will be right.

Again, it really depends on the type of gift. Like fake Rolex, it is about US$80 to US$150. Enjoy your bargin.

Answer 2

I always have trouble figuring out what to buy for gifts to take back. I would say there is no set figure. I dont suggest buying any electronics here. They are not as good of quality as the ones back home. I spent $100 on a fake ipod. It broke after 5 months. I bought a camera here, but I think it was more expensive then I would have bought in the states. I also bought a fake rolex for $20 US, and it broke after 2 weeks. In general I am unhappy with the quality of fake goods.

I dont know anything about antiques, and I would not suggest buying any without doing some research. You should know that Chinese people in general do not feel the need to be particulary honest with people especially outsiders. They will say things to be nice to you, but dont believe them. And dont pay more. They will bargain with you as long as they feel they can make money. If they are still barganing, dont increase the price too much that you are willing to pay because they are willing to sell it for what you ask. Walk away and see if they call you back. Hold your price. If you can get it at that price there is another store selling the same thing, try your luck then. Best times for shopping are closing time or the first customer of the day.

Answer 3

With Western Union, it's a case of needing to be certain that the recipient is trustworthy. By sending money, the recipient could pick it up and you'd have no come-back if they never sent goods. I HAVE used it buy from China several years ago, and only did so because the seller I was buying from (on Ebay) had very high, very positive feedback. It was all fine - received exactly what I paid for and made several more orders, not a problem. I would suggest that if you do not know anyone who has used this company before i.e. this is NOT based on a recommendation, then do not send money via Western Union, certainly not a high amount. Perhaps you might want to send a small amount for a sample of goods - if they come through, increase the orders gradually. If nothing arrives, then you've only lost a small amount - write it off against future profits!

Answer 4

Souvineer prices are all over the map.
Of all of the gifts that I purchased, the silk was best loved followed closely by fake watches? (go figure)
Although it is not cheap, the silk is some of the best in the world with the greatest selection. If you have an interpreter with you ask them to assist you.
If you want to buy some watches for the fun of it, you can pick up any manufacturer for about $20 - $30 each. (Rolex, Taghueur, etc.)
My son and I play table tennis. I got each of us a paddle! Very good quality.
I stayed away from electronics only because of warranty issues.
Have fun and enjoy the trip. Take an extremely long book for the trip.

Answer 5

Electronics generally aren't that much cheaper than back home. Some Chinese brands are quite cheap, but then you don't have the warranty, etc. If you are from the US, don't plan to buy anything that you'll need to plug into an outlet as the wattage is different.

I have about 4 statues in my apartment. I think I paid about $50 for all of them. However, they would cost $100s to ship. As my husband said as he was carrying one of them, they are as heavy as a large man, and they are only 3 feet high at most. True antiques will cost at least several hundred and probably more like in the thousands. Then you'll need to ship them. That will cost several hundred as well. Most of my furniture is remade from old wood. I paid anywhere from $50 to $200 for each piece. I have three true antiques. They were more expensive.

Other souvenirs are quite cheap. However, you have to be prepared to bargain hard. DO NOT pay the first price they give you. When you live here, you often get better prices than the tourists, but the fact that you all are willing to pay higher prices makes it harder for us to get a good deal. Decide how much something is worth to you, and don't pay more than that. Be firm and walk away. If the price is at all profitable for them, they will call after you, unless they don't believe you are serious. If you are buying more than one, you should be able to get it even cheaper. You can buy shirts for a couple of dollars, shoes for around 5 to 10 dollars, bags for about 5 dollars, etc. There are tons of nice gifts for women and girls. Not so many for boys. If you buy DVDs, and you plan to play them back home, make sure they are from your zone, or they may not work. Here, most DVD players are multi-zone, so all DVDs play on them. If you are from anywhere but North America, you may want to pick up a cheap Chinese DVD player. They cost around $30 and are very light weight.

Answer 6

I agree with John you dont need to carry much cash. Just use ur debit car and get cash from an ATM machine. Plenty of them!!!

Bargain... always start with 1/3 of the price that they ask for! and then eventually you go up. Sometimes things are really overprices. expecially if u buy face t-shirts, polo etc etc.
ex... good quality but fake polo they ask for 150RMB you can get it between 25 and 30 if u are really good at bargain. But definetely dont pay it more than 50 RMB

another "rule" is... you bargain for a little bit and then u pretend saying that the price is too high and you walk away. they would call you back. keep bargaining!
or you walk away and after 5-10 minutes you go back to that shop and u start again to bargain.

They really enjoy to bargain.

About mp3 etc.. you can find cheap things.. but be carefull... lot of crap around

Answer 7

FYI - be VERY careful of ATMs in China. My gf here got ripped off. It didn't give her any money, however it took it out of her bank account. Only use ATMs in a bank, if you have to use an ATM at all.

It can be a major pain trying to clear up foreign charges on an ATM card.

If you hit Beijing make sure that you go to Panjiayuan Market. It is by far the best, and make sure that you plan a whole day.

Answer 8

you don't need to take u.s. money to china, you only need your debit card and stop at an atm to get chinese money, and yes, start low with bargaining, and when they shake their heads and say no, you have reached their bottom price, if that is too much to spend, walk away, if they come after you then you can get a lower price......prices are always reasonable but quality is not guaranteed......have fun.

Answer 9

you dont need to take alot, everything is so cheap, my friend took £500 and two empty suitcases, they were full when she came back and she still had money left from the four weeks she had been there