From Friday, citizens of nine additional nations will be able to travel to China without a visa, significantly boosting tourism potential. This update allows visitors with ordinary passports from eight European countries—Slovakia, Norway, Finland, Denmark, Iceland, Andorra, Monaco, and Liechtenstein—along with South Korea, to enter China for business or leisure for up to 15 days. This visa-free policy is valid through December 31, 2025.
South Korea, noted as a significant tourism source for China, sent about 4.3 million visitors in 2019, though numbers dwindled to under 1.3 million in 2023, according to Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The announcement of expanded visa-free entry spurred positive financial movements, with shares of leading Chinese and Korean travel companies rising. Trip.com shares increased over 5%, while Jin Air saw nearly a 4% rise.
This visa exemption is part of China’s ongoing strategy to revitalize tourism to pre-pandemic levels. In 2019, around 49.1 million travelers visited China, but as of July this year, only about 17.25 million had entered. The state media agency Xinhua reported a substantial increase in the third quarter of 2024, with 8.2 million foreign arrivals—a 49% rise from 2023—and 4.9 million using the visa-free program.
In efforts to enhance tourism appeal, Chinese officials are addressing foreign visitors’ challenges, such as payment issues. To facilitate smoother transactions, major tourist sites are now required to accept foreign credit cards and cash. Moreover, China aims to restore air travel capacity to its pre-pandemic state, with increased flights to Europe planned this winter, countering service cuts by global carriers facing low demand and operational hurdles due to Russian airspace restrictions.
Original Story https://www.cnbc.com/2024/11/07/china-extends-visa-free-policy-to-9-more-countries-including-south-korea.html
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