Your Expat
Community in Beijing
Ole Jacobsen
Farrah Thompson
Meet the InterNations Expatriate Community of Beijing!
Hello traveler, and huānyíng (or welcome) to the InterNations Beijing Community. As a truly global hub for expats in over 390 countries, joining InterNations is a brilliant way for you to take the stress and hassle out of your move to Beijing. With members from all cultures and backgrounds, and an active and vibrant Beijing expat community, you're bound to find the answer to any question you could possibly imagine regarding expat life in China and, more specifically, the capital Beijing. Home to 20 million people, Beijing's sheer size alone can be daunting to new expats, and that's without factoring in language and cultural barriers. Luckily however, InterNations' welcoming and helpful expat community is there to help you navigate through every aspect of your move. From local employment laws and the best areas for expat life, to the most exciting local amenities and entertainment, an experienced expat from our community will most likely always be on hand to answer any and all of your questions. You can also check out our extensive guide on many aspects of living abroad in China for useful tips and information.
With InterNations, you never stand alone. Whether you move to another city or go on a business trip somewhere — our communities are there to make you feel at home wherever you are in the world. Feel free to also check out our other vibrant InterNations Communities like the ones in Riyadh or Brussels.
Connect with Like-Minded Expatriates in Beijing
Join Our Exciting Events in Beijing
Attend our monthly events and activities for Beijing expatriates to get to know like-minded expatriates in real life.
Exchange Tips about living in Beijing
Get trustworthy advice and local insights from fellow members in our Beijing expat forums.
What Is Expat Life in Beijing Like?
Beijing is a global business hub and one of the busiest and most ancient cities in the world. Bridging Chinese traditionalism and modern economic power, Beijing can give you 1,000-year-old temples one minute and towering glass skyscrapers the next. All of this, plus the city's pollution, congestion problems, and all the usual difficulties one finds on induction to a new culture, can be daunting to new arrivals but luckily the expat community in Beijing is a large yet close-knit one. Joining InterNations can be your induction to this community, as a well a way to find jobs and accommodation in the Tan Da Bing or "Spreading Pancake" as Beijing is affectionately known by many locals. Most expats in Beijing will be expecting to work in top-level business and technology positions, but many young people travel to China to work as English teachers — a job for which there is high local demand.
InterNations is the largest global network for expatriates, with communities in 390 cities across the globe. Get to know fellow internationals in your city, before you're moving, or when traveling somewhere and never feel like a stranger. InterNations makes it easy for you to stay in touch with your expat friends, both online and offline, so you can grow your network of friends and contacts from all over the world. Whether they live in Khobar (Eastern Prov.) or Amsterdam, InterNations allows you to be close to them even if they are miles away.
Your Network for Expats in Beijing
Local customs, language, and culture can be difficult to adapt to at first for many new expats in Beijing. The city is crowded, sprawling, and sometimes hectic, but underneath it all you'll find a thoroughly exciting global metropolis. Getting to know your way around the best areas for certain services and a million other things can be a big hassle, so why not join InterNations today and let our helpful and welcoming community guide you through this process? Especially during the first few months, downtime with like-minded and culturally similar people can be an important part of your routine as you acclimatize to Beijing expat life. To this purpose, the InterNations Beijing Community offers up a wide range of events and groups to keep you occupied during this sometimes difficult transition period. Whatever your style, from fascinating historical tours and international debating contests, to tennis clubs and movie nights or simply just bi-monthly meetups at one of Beijing's huge selection of nightlife venues, there is literally a group for everyone in the InterNations Beijing Community; you'll be making friends and fitting in in no time.
Ole Jacobsen