Hotel check-in in China: passport, 入住, deposit

Q: Is HSK 2 enough for a hotel?

Yes, with 预订, 护照, 房间 and 押金. 延误 and 景点 预约 want a bit of HSK 3–4.

Airports, hotels, luggage and sightseeing.

Survival · HSK 1–2HSK 1–452 words in this topic (cleaned list)

Editorial: Javier Garcia Floriano · Contact

Founder of Chinese Trainer. These lists come from the app's HSK inventory (hanzi, pinyin, band), not from an official exam PDF.

Travel in China starts at a desk, not on the Wall. HSK 1 already gives you 酒店, 飞机 and 票. What gets you the key is 入住, an open 护照, and sometimes 押金 that returns when you leave. Hotel police registration of the passport is not a front-desk whim. Airport, visa, bags, hotel and 景点 stay; 旅游鞋 that matching drags in via 旅游 goes. Chinese Trainer tags each row with HSK, and those rows feed SRS. Save 护照, 入住, 房间 and 行李 first, then add 延误 and 门票 once you can ask for an extra bed without English. A receptionist hears 我预订了 faster than a speech about your itinerary app. Keep the booking code on the phone, not in a screenshot folder you cannot find.

Guest handing over a passport for 入住 at a Chinese hotel desk

Key takeaways

入住 wants a passport; the hotel registers it. No document, no key.
押金 is not a scam by default: ask 什么时候退.
预订 is the booking; 入住 is the act of checking in.
门票 and 预约 matter at 故宫 and museums more than the emperor's name.
This list is this site's inventory, not a Ctrip guidebook.

How to use these words

The scene is reception at 22:40 after a 延误 flight. You say 我预订了, show the passport and the 携程 / Booking code. The clerk asks for 押金 or a pre-auth. Ask 含早吗 and 几点退房. If you are two, 两张床 or 大床. 行李 can sit at 前台 if the room is not ready: 寄存. Do not explain your tourist visa in a paragraph; the 护照 already talks.

海关 is another window, at the airport. 入境, 申报 if you are carrying extra. 签证 and 停留天数 live in the stamp, not in the lobby. If the flight dies, 改签 and 退票 are airline fights, not hotel ones. 导游 shows up on tours; you can 自己走 with a bought 门票.

Big 景点 (故宫, 长城, 兵马俑) want 预约 with a passport. The name on the gate has to match. 景区 and 门票 are the words at the turnstile, not 好玩. The dialogue below fits the desk: say it with the passport open and the suitcase to one side, as if the queue were breathing behind you. If the room is not ready, 寄存 the 行李 and do not treat 入住 as an instant right: the flight was late, the hotel was not. Ask 几点退房 again if you arrive after midnight.

How this list was built

The published count is 52 rows for this situation after exclusions, not the raw keyword match. We checked this inventory against the HSK bands on chinesetest.cn. HSK is the level tagged on each row. Chinese Trainer is the app whose SRS uses the same rows. Chinese travel vocabulary is the situation this page teaches.

chinesetest.cn · chinese.cn

Word list

52 words in this topic (cleaned list) · HSK 1–4

Hotel: 入住 and 押金

HSK	Hanzi	Pinyin	English
1	店	diàn	shop
1	饭店	fàndiàn	restaurant
3	旅馆	lǚguǎn	Hotel
6	旅店	lǚdiàn	inn

4 words · Practice them in the app

Passport and visa

HSK	Hanzi	Pinyin	English
2	护照	hùzhào	passport
3	海关	hǎiguān	customs
5	签证	qiānzhèng	visa

3 words · Practice them in the app

Flight and airport

HSK	Hanzi	Pinyin	English
1	机票	jīpiào	plane ticket
3	李	lǐ	plum
3	行李	xíngli	luggage
3	飞行	fēixíng	to fly
4	台阶	táijiē	steps
4	晚点	wǎndiǎn	late
7	延误	yánwù	to postpone
7	立交桥	lìjiāoqiáo	overpass
7	航天	hángtiān	space flight
7	阶梯	jiētī	flight of steps

10 words · Practice them in the app

景点 and 门票

HSK	Hanzi	Pinyin	English
1	门票	ménpiào	ticket
2	大门	dàmén	the Doors
3	长城	Chángchéng	the Great Wall
4	导游	dǎoyóu	tour guide
5	倡	chàng	guide
5	向导	xiàngdǎo	guide
6	出入	chūrù	to go out and come in
6	景点	jǐngdiǎn	tourist attraction
6	游人	yóurén	a tourist
7	入场券	rùchǎngquàn	admission ticket
7	纲领	gānglǐng	program
7	车道	chēdào	traffic lane

12 words · Practice them in the app

Cancel and change

HSK	Hanzi	Pinyin	English
3	取消	qǔxiāo	to cancel
6	作废	zuòfèi	to become invalid
7	删除	shānchú	to delete
7	抵消	dǐxiāo	to counteract

4 words · Practice them in the app

HSK	Hanzi	Pinyin	English
1	路	lù	road
2	旅	lǚ	journey
2	游	yóu	to wander
2	一路平安	yīlù-píng'ān	to have a pleasant journey
2	一路顺风	yīlù-shùnfēng	to have a pleasant journey
2	旅游	lǚyóu	to travel
2	旅行	lǚxíng	to travel
3	程	chéng	process
5	出差	chūchāi	to go on an official or business trip
5	行驶	xíngshǐ	to travel along a route
6	趟	tàng / tāng	time
6	出行	chūxíng	to go out somewhere
6	行程	xíngchéng	journey
7	萍	píng	duckweed
7	搭乘	dāchéng	to ride as a passenger
7	旅程	lǚchéng	journey
7	旅途	lǚtú	journey
7	来回	láihuí	to make a round trip
7	长征	chángzhēng	expedition

Example sentences

Hanzi	Pinyin	English
我预订了房间。	Wǒ yùdìng le fángjiān.	I booked a room.
这是我的护照。	Zhè shì wǒ de hùzhào.	This is my passport.
押金什么时候退？	Yājīn shénme shíhou tuì?	When is the deposit returned?
含早餐吗？	Hán zǎocān ma?	Is breakfast included?
几点入住，几点退房？	Jǐ diǎn rùzhù, jǐ diǎn tuìfáng?	What time is check-in and check-out?
行李可以寄存吗？	Xíngli kěyǐ jìcún ma?	Can I leave my luggage?
飞机延误了。	Fēijī yánwù le.	The flight was delayed.
门票要预约吗？	Ménpiào yào yùyuē ma?	Does the ticket need a reservation?
我的签证是旅游签证。	Wǒ de qiānzhèng shì lǚyóu qiānzhèng.	My visa is a tourist visa.
有大床房吗？	Yǒu dàchuáng fáng ma?	Do you have a king room?

Dialogue: 入住 at eleven at night

Front desk. Delayed flight. Passport and booking code.

Speaker	Hanzi	Pinyin	English
You	你好，我预订了。飞机延误了。	Nǐ hǎo, wǒ yùdìng le. Fēijī yánwù le.	Hi, I have a booking. The flight was delayed.
Desk	护照。预订号呢？	Hùzhào. Yùdìng hào ne?	Passport. Booking number?
You	这是护照。预订号在手机上。	Zhè shì hùzhào. Yùdìng hào zài shǒujī shang.	Here's the passport. The code is on my phone.
Desk	要押金五百。含早。	Yào yājīn wǔbǎi. Hán zǎo.	Deposit is 500. Breakfast included.
You	什么时候退押金？几点退房？	Shénme shíhou tuì yājīn? Jǐ diǎn tuìfáng?	When do I get the deposit back? What time is check-out?
Desk	退房后退。中午十二点退房。	Tuìfáng hòu tuì. Zhōngwǔ shí'èr diǎn tuìfáng.	After check-out. Noon.
You	有大床吗？行李可以寄存吗？	Yǒu dàchuáng ma? Xíngli kěyǐ jìcún ma?	A king bed? Can I store the bags?
Desk	大床有。行李先放这儿。	Dàchuáng yǒu. Xíngli xiān fàng zhèr.	Yes. Leave the luggage here first.
You	故宫门票要预约吗？	Gùgōng ménpiào yào yùyuē ma?	Does the Forbidden City ticket need a reservation?
Desk	要。用护照预约。	Yào. Yòng hùzhào yùyuē.	Yes. Book with the passport.
You	谢谢。房间号是多少？	Xièxie. Fángjiān hào shì duōshao?	Thanks. What's the room number?

Measure words for this topic

间 for rooms (一间房). 张 for beds and tickets (一张床, 一张门票). 件 / 个 for 行李 depending on size. 次 for flights.

Common mistakes

Wrong	Right	Why
酒店订了 as if that were check-in	我预订了 → then 入住	预订 is the booking. 入住 is handing over the passport and taking the key.
Refusing 押金 as a scam on sight	Ask 什么时候退 and pay if the hotel is real	Deposits are normal. Ask when it returns; do not shout “scam” in the lobby.
门票 without 预约 at a major 景点	Passport 预约 first	故宫 and similar sites sell with a name. Arriving without a booking hurts.
签证 talk at hotel reception	海关 / 入境 for visa; 护照 at the hotel	Reception registers the document. The stamp is a border conversation.
导游 for a solo walk	自己走 / 门票	导游 is a guide. If you go alone, buy 门票 and walk.

FAQ

Why does the hotel want my passport?

Police registration of guests. Without a 护照 (or 身份证) they cannot close 入住. It is procedure, not nosiness.

Do I get 押金 back?

Yes, at 退房, if the minibar and the room survived. Ask 什么时候退: cards sometimes take a day.

Is HSK 2 enough for a hotel?

Yes, with 预订, 护照, 房间 and 押金. 延误 and 景点预约 want a bit of HSK 3–4.

Where do I buy 门票?

On the official app, or the hotel tells you to 预约. The passport has to match the name on the ticket.

How do I practice travel words?

Save 入住, 护照 and 押金 in Chinese Trainer SRS and say the dialogue with the passport open. The desk will not wait while you hunt a word.

Practice in the app

The same travel rows feed Chinese Trainer SRS. Start HSK 1–2 free, save 入住 and 护照, and run today's deck before the next front desk.

Practice them in the app View plans