By continuing you agree to eChinacities's Privacy Policy .
Sign up with Google
Sign up with Facebook
Q: What are problems foreigners deal with in 3rd tier cities that they won't face in bigger cities?
- Transportation and public transport is more limited.
- Accessibility to certain services or imported goods is more restricted.
- There's usually far less choice in terms of activities, bars, places to spend time etc.
- Fewer people will have English language skills.
- Sanitation is often worse.
- Incidents of staring and other antisocial habits will usually be higher.
- Access to adequate medical facilities will be severely restricted.
Advantages:
If you can hack all of the drawbacks, foreigners in small cities often get more attention, are treated like VIP's, have immediate access to plenty of additional work e.g. private tutoring and get plenty of attention from the opposite sex.
DO you live in 3rd tier city?
RandomGuy:
No need to leave Guangzhou, take line 2 to Baiyun or Panyu, enjoy your tier 88 experience.
- Transportation and public transport is more limited.
- Accessibility to certain services or imported goods is more restricted.
- There's usually far less choice in terms of activities, bars, places to spend time etc.
- Fewer people will have English language skills.
- Sanitation is often worse.
- Incidents of staring and other antisocial habits will usually be higher.
- Access to adequate medical facilities will be severely restricted.
Advantages:
If you can hack all of the drawbacks, foreigners in small cities often get more attention, are treated like VIP's, have immediate access to plenty of additional work e.g. private tutoring and get plenty of attention from the opposite sex.
Only thing to deal with is having way less people around you.
I live in a third tier city, Wuxi, and find it a relief to return every time I go to a bigger city. Public transport is modern and excellent, the city is clean and people are more or less used to foreigners due to the many overseas businesses here, although it is rare to see foreigners in the street. Being in Jiangsu it is quite a rich city, so doesn't have many of the social problems you might find in similar level cities in the poor provinces. I can find anything that you can get in Shanghai, for cheaper. I like my city and wouldn't exchange it easily for another place in China.
Only downside is that there is no nightlife and by 22:00 nothing is moving outside.
Kaiwen:
Wuxi, Changzhou and the like might technically be classed as third tier but they are nothing like typical third tier Chinese cities. I lived in Changzhou for a while and I found it more like a lesser version of a 1st or 2nd tier city. Jiangsu is a wealthy province and even the smaller cities are well serviced.
expatlife26:
I've heard good things from people in Yiwu that it's surprisingly livable.
Shining_brow:
Yiwu is like Wuxi - in the richest province in China, has a HUGE international export market,a nd thus a lot of foreigners are there (apparently, a large percentage of which are middle eastern - which is good for food! Quite a few restaurants, I hear!!!).
So, I think Yiwu wouldn't be one of the more typical 3rd tier cities.
In 3rd Tier Cities, Local people stare more at foreigner..
"There is literally not one tub of vegemite in a thousand mile radius of our apartment. This is unacceptable." MissA, 2013
iWolf:
I can send you one. Vegemite toast and a cuppa are the dog's bollocks for breakky.
MissA:
Thanks, but I've escaped that hole. I had vegemite on Turkish and a flat white for breakfast this morning in fact. Killed my hangover dead.
Shining_brow:
One of my US friends was recently blessed with a jar for the first time... and she's loving it! :p
Public water service to apartment is off about 20% of the time here in BFE Shandong.
The definiton of what is a tier 1,2,& 3 city is flawed. Changsha is supposed to be tier 1 but alas, it is nothing but farmers stacked in concrete towers hidden in smog. Try getting a proper western meal in ,,Changsha, possible but not easy
The definiton of what is a tier 1,2,& 3 city is flawed. Changsha is supposed to be tier 1 but alas, it is nothing but farmers stacked in concrete towers hidden in smog. Try getting a proper western meal in ,,Changsha, possible but not easy
You better buff up on the Chinese and coat your stomach with iron.
