Foreign tourists stroll near the National Palace Museum in China’s capital Beijing on Wednesday. (China Daily)
Last week, China decided to extend the short-term visa exemption policy for citizens of 12 countries, including 11 European countries, until the end of 2025. The extension underscores the prospects for engagement between China and Europe in the coming years, with analysts saying a new wave of European tourists to China is coming.
The country announced a visa-free policy for five European countries – France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Spain – from December 1 last year to November 30 this year, allowing people from these countries to stay on the mainland for up to the longest period. is allowed. 15 days for business, tourism, family travel or visa-free transit.
The visa-free policy was then extended to six other European countries from March 14 to November 30 to further encourage inbound tourism: Switzerland, Ireland, Hungary, Austria, Belgium and Luxembourg.
During President Xi Jinping’s visit to France last week, he said China would welcome more people from France to visit and extend the short-term visa exemption policy for nationals of 12 countries, including France, until the end of 2025.
Peng Han, chief analyst at tourism media company Travel Daily, said: “The recent extensions of both the deadline and the list of eligible countries offer a positive long-term outlook, despite European stakeholders’ concerns about the policy’s duration. will be reduced.”
During the Labor Day holiday, the total number of tourists visiting Japan from visa-free countries in Southeast Asia, including Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand, increased by about 2.5 times from a year earlier, according to data from Travel Daily. In contrast, inbound tourists from Europe this year are only 30 percent of 2019 numbers.
Peng said European operators typically draw up outbound tourism plans for the next year in June and July, and decisions about whether to carry Chinese products will depend on whether they get a clear answer in time. It is said that it depends on.
“Will China’s visa-free policy towards European countries continue next year or be abolished? The industry is keeping an eye on long-term China-Europe relations and visa policy continuity,” he said. .
He added that China’s clear answer on opening the door to Europe through successive policies shows the world the promise of a prosperous future.
So far, the number of European group tourists visiting China has not increased sharply, but the number of individual travelers shows an improvement in the visa-free policy.
According to Ctrip data, on March 14 alone, when the visa-free rule went into effect, the number of orders from inbound tourists from the six newly added countries more than doubled compared to last year. The number of orders from Belgium, Hungary and Switzerland has tripled.
Data from travel agency Dongcheng Travel shows that bookings for flights to China from European countries that are first on the visa-free list are showing remarkable growth. Since April, bookings from France have increased by more than 150% year-on-year, from Germany by 110% and growth from Italy has almost doubled.
According to the National Immigration Administration, more than 170,000 overseas visitors entered China without visas through Shanghai Pudong International Airport in the first quarter of this year, an increase of 23.6% from the same period last year.
Shanghai, one of Europe’s top destinations for tourists, is bracing for a surge in inbound tourists.
“The resumption of international flights, the visa-free policy, and the full recovery of business at Shanghai International Cruise Home Port will contribute to the number of inbound tourists arriving in Shanghai, especially free independent travelers,” said Zhou Weihong, deputy general manager. said. of the Shanghai travel agency Spring Tour.
To cope with the surge in the number of individual travelers after the visa-free policy was implemented, travel agencies have created personalized mini-tour products and city walks around Shanghai. Zhou said they have also set up sightseeing itineraries covering Shanghai, the Yangtze River Delta and other cities.
Visitors’ comments
David Huang, a Frenchman who studied at the University of Foreign Business and Economics in Beijing and now works for a French chocolate company in Beijing, said he had applied for both a student visa and a work visa in the past.
“Student visas require at least two months of preparation, including the submission of various documents.It took me over two months to prepare for a work visa after graduating from UIBE.Being able to go without a visa means that the French “I’ve heard it from friends and it’s true. It’s a positive change,” he said.
He said young French travelers are avoiding countries with long visa processing times, and for those on a tight budget, paying for a flight only to have their visa application rejected makes no financial sense. He added that it made little sense.
“Our colleagues at global companies find it much easier to travel. When organizing an event where you need to invite foreign guests, you don’t have to worry about visa processing times. Two weeks without a visa Access allows people to explore business opportunities in China.”
Laura Carbonell, a sales manager in Toledo, about 75 kilometers from Spain’s capital Madrid, said she visited China in November, before the visa-free policy was introduced. Things like how far an embassy or consulate is from a potential visa applicant’s home can also influence travel decisions, she said.
“I really wanted to visit China and enjoy its culture and scenery, but there are only two overseas embassies in Spain: the embassy in Madrid and the consulate in Barcelona. People are forced to travel long distances to apply for visas. “
For European countries not on the visa-free list, the application process has been simplified. China is simplifying entry visa procedures globally, including temporarily canceling appointment requirements and fingerprinting for eligible applicants. Visa fees for traveling to China from all countries through December have also been reduced by 25%, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The Chinese Embassy in Washington has announced that it will simplify the tourist visa application process for US citizens starting January 1 of this year. U.S. citizens can now enter China for tourism purposes without providing round-trip tickets, hotel reservations, itineraries or invitations.
“From the implementation of visa-free policies for six European countries to the recent high-level meeting on optimizing payment services for inbound tourists, the future looks promising,” said Travel Daily’s Penn. “It may only be a matter of time before inbound tourism returns to its previous peak.”
While China has sent clear signals of opening up, political factors in the West are casting a shadow on cross-border travel. In March, the United States said it was “taking steps to impose new visa restrictions on several Hong Kong officials,” without elaborating on the visa measures or which officials would be affected.
Last July, the United States issued a travel warning against China, advising Americans to “reconsider” whether to travel to China due to the “risk of unlawful detention.” Furthermore, the United States has long restricted visa applications for Chinese students on the grounds of “national security.”
Tourism analysts say U.S. rhetoric is having a significant impact on biased perceptions of China in Europe, the United States and other countries.
Peng said: “Our travel agents agree that traveling to China is the best solution. Once European travelers actually visit China, most of them change their preconceptions. Deaf,” he said.
“With China opening its doors, first-hand experience will expose the falsehoods spread by some Western media.”
