Luggage storage in China: hotels, stations, airports and sights

A free afternoon between check-out and a night train, a long layover, a day trip on the way to the airport: at some point you will want to leave your bags somewhere. China has plenty of options, from hotel luggage rooms to airport counters and station lockers. Here is what exists and what to expect.

Your hotel: the easiest option

Almost every hotel in China will hold your bags for free before check-in and after check-out, usually until the end of the day. Ask at reception and you will get a numbered tag or a slip. Keep it, because you need it to collect your bags. If you are coming back to the same city a few days later, ask whether they can keep a suitcase until then. Many hotels will, especially if you have booked your return stay with them. More on check-in in hotels in China for foreigners.

Railway stations

Most large railway stations have a left-luggage service, signed 行李寄存 or 小件寄存 (xíngli jìcún). There are two kinds:

• Staffed counters, where you hand over the bag and get a ticket. Some are outside the station building, some inside the waiting halls after security.
• Self-service smart lockers. You usually open them by scanning a QR code with WeChat or Alipay, and you may need a phone number to receive the pickup code.

Prices are set by each station and operator and vary with the size of the bag and the time. As a rough idea, expect somewhere around ¥10 to ¥30 per bag per day at a staffed counter, and less for a few hours in a locker. Counters are not always open 24 hours, so check the closing time when you drop off.

Keep your passport with you. You need it anyway to enter the station and board the train, and some counters ask to see or register ID before they take a bag. Bags are often put through an X-ray machine first.

For how stations, security and on-board luggage limits work, see our high-speed train guide.

Airports

Big airports have luggage storage, often open 24 hours, and list it on their official websites. Beijing Capital (PEK) is a good example:

• Counters in Terminal 2 (arrivals level, next to Gate 7) and Terminal 3 (arrivals hall on level 2, west side of area C), both open 24 hours.
• A suitcase of 20 inches or smaller costs ¥30 per 24 hours, a larger one ¥40. Up to 12 extra hours is charged at half price.
• Travellers on the 240-hour visa-free transit can store one piece free for up to 3 days by showing the temporary entry permit they get at immigration. See our 240-hour transit guide.

Beijing Daxing, Shanghai Pudong and Shanghai Hongqiao also offer luggage storage, and many airports now have self-service lockers too. Prices and locations change, so check the airport’s website or ask at an information desk.

Sights and museums

Many major sights will not let you in with a suitcase, and the security checks at the entrance are strict. The Forbidden City is a good example. According to the Palace Museum’s visitor rules:

• Suitcases and bags of 20 inches or more must be left at the storage point in the visitor service centre on the west side of Duanmen Square, before the Meridian Gate.
• You leave the museum at the north (Shenwu Gate) or east (Donghua Gate), so your bags are taken to collection points at those exits free of charge.
• Drop-off runs from 08:30 to 16:00 (April to October) or to 15:30 (November to March), and you must collect your bags before closing on the same day.
• Cash, watches, laptops, electronics, jewellery, food and anything flammable or fragile cannot be stored.

In practice, the simplest plan is still to leave big bags at your hotel. The checkpoints around Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City are slow going with a suitcase. Other museums and parks have their own rules, often a small cloakroom for day bags only, so check before you go.

Storage apps and small shops

In big cities you will also find small storage points in shops, cafés and near metro stations. They are listed in mini-programs inside Alipay and WeChat: search for 行李寄存 in the app to see points near you. Most are in Chinese only, and some need a Chinese phone number. Check the opening hours and reviews, and screenshot your order. Our apps page covers what to set up before you travel.

Sending your bags ahead

Sometimes it is easier not to carry your suitcase at all.

• Courier companies such as SF Express and China Railway Express ship suitcases between cities, usually in one or two days. Your hotel front desk can often book a pickup for you. By law, couriers must check the sender’s ID, so have your passport ready.
• Station courier desks. About 69 high-speed railway stations have a courier desk (便民托运) near security, for bags or items you cannot take on the train. The fastest service reaches many cities by 18:00 the next day, and you pay by weight.
• 12306 luggage service “Qingzhuangxing” (轻装行). China Railway staff collect bags from your hotel and bring them to the station or even the platform, or do the reverse at your destination, within 35 km. It covered more than 100 stations by early 2026, with prices of roughly ¥48 to ¥98 per bag depending on distance and service. You book it in the 12306 app with your train ticket. It may not be offered in the English version, so ask your hotel for help if needed.

These services are still expanding and prices change, so check the details for your trip before relying on them.

What you cannot leave

Storage counters and couriers follow the same basic rules: no dangerous goods such as fuel, fireworks or gas canisters, and nothing illegal. Most will not accept cash, valuables, documents or perishable food, or will not be responsible for them. Keep your passport, phone, cards and power bank with you.

Useful words

• 行李寄存 (xíngli jìcún): left luggage
• 寄存柜 (jìcún guì): locker
• 我想寄存行李 (wǒ xiǎng jìcún xíngli): I’d like to leave my luggage
• 几点关门？(jǐ diǎn guānmén): what time do you close?

More in our basic Chinese phrases.