Very easy, in fact.

After 12 new cases of coronavirus were confirmed in Qingdao shortly after the Golden Week holiday, the coastal city made news around the world when it said it would test nine million people – more than the entire population of Switzerland – in just five days. But just how quickly can a person get tested in China?

Travelling domestically from a low-risk area in China no longer requires a nucleic acid test. But some rural areas and hotels often ask for confirmation that you have not been infected, before they will let you enter or stay. So, it's useful to have the confirmation, just in case.

Beijing still has numerous testing centers around the city. As long as you have a Health Kit app and a green code (meaning you haven't been to a high-risk area or come into contact with an infected person) on your phone, you can walk in without a reservation.

Arriving at the China-Japan Friendship Hospital, I was required to fill out a form with my basic information and recent travel history. This didn't take long, as I haven't been anywhere outside Beijing since January.

In order to keep everyone as safe as possible from possible infection, most of Beijing's coronavirus test centers are in large, makeshift tents outside hospital buildings. This is the case at the China-Japan Friendship Hospital, and when I arrived on a Tuesday morning I found the only other people there were hazmat-clad nurses ready to help guide me through the process.

From start to finish, it takes roughly five minutes. First, you give your passport information and pay 120 yuan ($18) for your testing card - which you keep to record your result. The hospital uses your passport information to link your result with your Health Kit App, which means there's no need to carry around the paper copy.

Once you've paid, you're ushered to the next window. A nurse behind a glass screen passes along swab through a hole in the screen and inserts it into your nose. I've heard horror stories about this approach to testing and had been nervous beforehand. However, while it's an unusual, somewhat uncomfortable, sensation it only takes about three seconds, and then it's over.

Once the nurse has a sample, you're free to leave. The results will be available within 24 hours. So, the next day you can simply log into your Health Kit App and at the bottom, you'll find your result. As simple as that.

Overall, I was impressed at how easy it is to be tested, and at the speed and efficiency of the process. Even more impressive, is the fact that the result was sent directly to my phone within a day - meaning that if I did have the coronavirus I could quickly quarantine and limit the chances of spreading it.

Have you taken a coronavirus test in China? Why not let us know about your experience?