In the first half of this year, a large number of foreign tourists visited China. Along with this, the entry of influencers from popular social media platforms, renowned for their short videos, has brought “China Travel” to 700 million views.
According to data from China’s National Immigration Administration, in the first half of 2024, 14.635 million foreigners entered China. It is marking a year-on-year increase of 152.7%. Among them, 8.542 million people entered China without a visa, accounting for 52% of the total. Which is a year-on-year increase of 190.1%. Compared to the first quarter of this year, there was a 28% increase in inbound travel orders in the second quarter for tourists from 54 countries. They are enjoying the 72/144-hour transit visa-free policy, with the most visitors from countries such as South Korea, Japan, Australia, the United Kingdom, and the USA. Thanks to China’s continuously improving open policies, more foreign tourists are getting the opportunity to see the real China.
Apart from major Chinese cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen, and traditional tourist spots like Zhangjiajie, foreign tourists are being seen in much wider areas than expected. In many “China Travel” videos made by foreign vloggers, unique locations such as Zhangye in Gansu Province, famous for its Danxia landforms, Yuanyang in Yunnan Province, known for its rice terraces, and Hailar in Heilongjiang Province, known for its international morning market, have also been featured. Through their lenses, they have shown the world an ancient yet modern, technologically advanced, and culturally rich, local and global China, garnering praise across social media platforms. Through their lenses, more foreigners are experiencing the beauty and charm of China, and it has become the latest “traffic password” on social platforms.
In the past, when China was mentioned, pandas were considered the mascot, and martial arts were synonymous with China. With the modernization of China, technological products like high-speed railways, food delivery drones, and service robots in hotels and banks are renewing foreigners’ perceptions of China. The real China has surprised them in every way. Clean streets and rivers, parks filled with smiles, self-driving cars on the roads, the world’s largest high-speed railway and subway network, and bustling markets with delicious food late into the night, among other things, contrast sharply with the image of “poverty, backwardness, filth, and decay” seen in Western media reports about China. But where is all that? In reality, hospitality is ingrained in the Chinese people.
Foreign tourists have shared “Chinese hospitality” on their social platforms: an elderly man in Beijing playing shuttlecock with them using his feet, a taxi driver in Hangzhou sharing Chinese green tea with them, and heartwarming high-fives with Chinese tourists during an escalator ride at Tianmen Mountain. This is the real, civilized, and “inclusive” China.
The popularity of “China Travel” didn’t happen by chance. Foreigners need an open environment and supportive policies to truly understand and experience China. In recent years, from the expansion of the “visa-free circle of friends” to the expansion of the scope of countries eligible for the 72/144-hour transit visa-free policy, and continuously improved measures to meet the needs of foreigners coming to China, many foreign tourists have been attracted to come and fall in love with China.
Regarding restrictions on hotel stays, China’s Ministry of Public Security, Ministry of Commerce, and National Immigration Administration jointly announced that the hotel industry cannot refuse foreigners under the pretext of being “unqualified.” Various types of accommodation resources are also available and more open to incoming tourists, providing maps in English, Western breakfasts, and more. In terms of payment services, Alipay and WeChat support the binding of international bank cards. Now, more than 30 e-wallets can be used in China, and foreign tourists can also enjoy convenient payment services through their mobile phones in China.
The gradual recovery of international flights is another significant factor. In May this year, China’s Civil Aviation Administration, in collaboration with relevant departments, formulated integrated policies to actively support Chinese and foreign airlines in increasing international routes, improving the international route network, and facilitating exchanges between China and other countries. According to data from multiple airlines, the pace of opening and restoring new international routes is accelerating, proving better than expected at the beginning of this year for the recovery of the international route market by China’s Civil Aviation Administration.
Additionally, various regions in China have introduced measures to promote inbound tourism and continuously improved their services to attract more foreign tourists to China, such as setting up inbound tourism consulting service areas, releasing inbound tourism route products, and enhancing the international standards of services at cultural and tourist sites.
Through actively improving its measures, China’s openness is growing broader and broader. With the continuous expansion of the “circle of friends” for visa-free entry and the continuous improvement of measures to facilitate exchanges, China’s open and genuine identity is being presented to the world in a vibrant and tangible way. As foreign internet users have commented while interacting with Chinese internet users on social media platforms, “We want to discover the real China with you!” Our enemy is not China; it is ignorance. We believe that as more and more foreign tourists come to travel and live in China, the image of a civilized, open, and inclusive society in China will gradually become clear to the world.
