China has become the largest source country and major destination for international tourism. Recently, the enthusiasm of inbound tourists to travel to China has continued to climb, and the inbound tourism market has been picking up rapidly. Tourists from all over the world are enjoying the natural scenery and cultural flavors in China, experiencing the beauty of China's mountains and rivers, culture, life and times.
The recovery of the international tourism market, the resumption of more international air routes, the visa-free policy between China and many other countries and various facilitation initiatives have attracted more and more inbound tourists to China.
Recently in Beijing tour of German tourists, Mr. and Mrs. Glaus said, “visa-free policy makes our trip to China very convenient, I also recommend other Germans to come to China.” Famous scenic spots, streets and alleys, restaurants and theaters, shopping malls and subways ...... inbound tourists are gradually more and more.
The relevant person in charge of Tiantan Park introduced that from the beginning of the year to early May, Tiantan Park received a total of nearly 200,000 inbound tourists, a four-fold increase year-on-year, recovering to 90% of 2019, and inbound tourists can be seen everywhere in the park. The park provides an English online ticketing platform in parallel with an English ticketing consultation window, and inbound visitors can use a variety of methods such as cash, mobile payment, bank cards and digital RMB when purchasing tickets and spending money in the park. All signs in the park are bilingual, and self-interpretation machines can be equipped with more than 20 languages.
Statistics from the National Immigration Administration show that in the first quarter of this year, the number of foreigners coming to China more than tripled compared with the same period last year, with travel and tourism accounting for the most, accounting for more than 30 percent. According to the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, the number of inbound tourists reached 1.775 million during the May Day holiday.
Data from Ctrip above shows that inbound travel orders in the first quarter increased more than tripled year-on-year. The most popular destinations were Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Chengdu, Hangzhou, Chongqing, Qingdao, Nanjing and Xiamen. In the first quarter, visa-free inbound tourists from six countries - France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and Malaysia - totaled about six times year-on-year growth, while visa-free inbound tourists from Singapore and Thailand grew more than 10 times and four times year-on-year, respectively.
“From January to April this year, we received more than 35,000 inbound tourists, a year-on-year increase of more than 10 times.” Xu Xiaolei, chief brand officer of CYTS, told reporters, “Thanks to the visa-free policy, we received many German tourists. Inbound tours mainly take part in one place tours such as Beijing, Shanghai, Xi'an, or multi-province and city specialty tours on China's high-speed railways. In addition, the source countries of inbound tours are expanding more and more, and the source of tourists from markets represented by countries such as the countries that are jointly building the 'Belt and Road' is growing rapidly.”
Polish tourist Aija, who recently came to Beijing, said, “I like China very much and Chinese culture has a strong attraction for me. Chinese people are very friendly, polite and attentive, and they are especially willing to communicate and interact with us. I hope to have the opportunity to travel to China more often.”
Tourism is a beautiful window to show China's image and enhance mutual understanding of civilizations. Through the window of tourism, China and the world can know each other better.
“Confucius is a great teacher, and I have great respect for the ideas and culture he put forward, as well as the civilization here.” Mohammed Latif, assistant director of the League of Arab States Representative Office in China, said after touring Shandong. Sponsored by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and organized by CTS Travel, the 2024 Diplomats in China “Discovering the Beauty of China” Shandong Tour was held recently, with diplomats from nine countries, including Turkmenistan, Croatia, Denmark and Mexico, touring Shandong.
Ctrip inbound tour related person in charge introduced that, some inbound tourists like to experience a more diversified China, some experience traditional Chinese medicine massage, foot therapy; some go to the countryside to eat feasts, feel the rural China; some dressed in ethnic costumes, experience ethnic minority customs; some go to Tianshui to eat spicy hot pot, or go to the scene to watch the rural basketball game.
Wu Chengyin, head of Xi'an Zhuoheng International Travel, introduced: “After restarting inbound tours, European and American tourists tend to choose products with in-depth experience, such as routes along the Silk Road and Tibet. We have added humanistic exchange experience activities such as visiting local families and learning Chinese food courses. The newly launched tour product to Tibet by Qinghai-Tibet Railway train is favored by inbound tourists.”
“We lead inbound tourists to explore Beijing by bike riding, taking them to some quite cultural attractions to discover a different Beijing. We have already launched cycling products such as the Most Beautiful Central Axis, Peking Opera Cultural Tour, Shougang Park and the Grand Canal, which are favored by inbound tourists. Currently, the cycling routes have been booked until the second half of the year.” Dou Junjie, co-founder of Beijing Riding Culture, told reporters.
Dai Bin, president of China Tourism Research Institute, said that at present, China's natural scenery and human history still have a strong attraction to inbound tourists, and the lifestyle of a well-off society has become a brand-new content for cultural exchanges and tourism promotion. New landmarks such as Daxing Airport, Beijing CBD, Guangzhou Tower, Beijing-Shanghai High Speed Railway, Pudong New Area, and Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge have become new carriers to show the country's tourism image, along with the Forbidden City, Terracotta Warriors, Yinxu and Liangzhu.
“Now, more inbound tourists want to see China's vibrant changes, and when they take the high-speed train, they often stand under the display showing the high-speed train's hourly speed to take photos, which shows their amazement at the speed of China's development.” Zhang Yang, national tour guide extraordinaire and foreign language guide of CYTS, said.
“Recently we received inbound tourists who went into Huayang Street in Changning District, Shanghai, to feel the renewal of the city, and also visited several business districts such as K11.” Zhou Weihong, deputy general manager of Spring Tourism, said, “So far this year, many large-scale cultural and sports activities and cultural and cultural exhibitions with international influence have been held or will be held in Shanghai, which are very attractive to inbound tourists.”
Inbound tourism is a direct reflection of a country's cultural soft power, international appeal and tourism competitiveness. To accelerate the construction of a strong tourism country, inbound tourism is an important element. At present, many cultural and tourism departments and related enterprises act to improve the competitiveness of inbound tourism.
Recently, the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism indicated that Beijing will continue to improve the service level of inbound tourism, carry out special actions to build a global tourist destination, and continue to enhance the international visibility and reputation of Beijing's tourism and attract more inbound tourists by optimizing the inbound tourism policy, upgrading the service of inbound tourism, and strengthening the publicity of inbound tourism, and other measures.
According to Yang Jinsong, director of the International Research Institute of the China Tourism Academy, inbound tourism should tell the story of traditional China as well as the story of modern China. Inbound tourism marketing should be shifted to update the image of the destination and promote to key inbound source markets. Focusing on the foreign tourism promotion brand “Hello China”, the theme, mode, focus and scope of promotion should be determined more precisely.
The relevant person in charge of the Jiangsu Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism told reporters that in the first quarter, Jiangsu received more than 428,900 inbound overnight tourists, an increase of 123.9% year-on-year, and realized tourism foreign exchange earnings of 669 million U.S. dollars, an increase of 85.4% year-on-year. In order to attract more inbound tourists, Jiangsu launched 10 inbound tourism boutique lines, including the Grand Canal, Yangtze River and gardens, museums, food and other inbound tourists are highly concerned about and favorite content.
Enhancing the attractiveness of inbound tourism products is crucial. Wu Jun, president of the New Era Cultural and Tourism Research Institute, believes that the product design of inbound tours should deeply excavate and display Chinese culture, and open cultural experience activities to provide inbound tourists with a unique and unforgettable travel experience. It will develop multiple types of products such as natural scenery tours, historical and cultural tours, city sightseeing tours and rural experience tours, and launch innovative tourism products through cross-border cooperation with fashion, food and art.
“CYTS will strengthen the research and development of inbound tourism products, incorporate China's great mountains and rivers, traditional culture, and the achievements of construction in the new era into product innovation, and recommend a complete program of Chinese tourism products to global travelers. Focusing on the key points of inbound tourism, CYTS will explore the simplified mode of the process of overseas visa application centers around payment, network, translation, tour guide, etc., to enhance the travel experience of inbound tourists.” Xu Xiaolei told reporters.
Enhancing the facilitation of travel in China is an important reflection of the competitiveness of inbound tourism. Trip.com, the international version of Ctrip, has added online reservations to more than 600 popular scenic spots in the United Nations, covering 39 countries and regions around the world, supporting 24 languages and 29 currencies. Pick-up and drop-off is usually the first experience for inbound tourists traveling in China. Recently, Ctrip has joined Trip.com and has equipped Shanghai with chauffeurs who have no difficulty communicating in English. This service will be extended to popular inbound destinations such as Beijing, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Hangzhou, Chengdu, Chongqing, Xi'an, Xiamen and Sanya.
Mobile payment is a key part of enhancing inbound tourism services. Ren Gang, industry general manager of Alipay's wine and travel division, introduced that Alipay's click-and-go feature greatly facilitates inbound tourists' travel experience in the country. As of March this year, inbound tourists using Alipay to bind international bank cards came from nearly 200 countries and regions. Alipay has taken the lead in piloting the small amount authentication-free function, and new services such as 16 language translations and overseas wallet ride codes are being added one after another. In addition, Alipay will join hands with scenic spots, travel agencies and travel platforms to launch the “Inbound Scenic Spot Program”, withdrawing more inbound tourism services and routes to make it more convenient for inbound tourists to travel in China.