Securities Daily reporter Ding Rong
In Shenzhen in September, the heat wave has not subsided, and the Huaqiangbei Market is bustling with people. Tourists from all over the world shuttle between shops with trolley bags, choosing smart glasses, drones, action cameras and other trendy digital products, and immersing themselves in the charm of "Intelligent Made in China". Winnie, an Indonesian tourist who just attended an exhibition in Guangzhou, took the high-speed train to "transfer" to Shenzhen. After shopping for goods at Huaqiangbei Market, she then made an appointment for a Hanfu travel shoot in Xi'an. Cross-city, diverse and in-depth personalized tours of China are attracting more and more foreign tourists like Winnie.
During the Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day holidays, ports across the country usher in peak immigration times. According to the forecast of the National Immigration Administration, the average daily number of inbound and outbound passengers during this year's Mid-Autumn Festival holiday will reach 2.25 million, and the average daily number during the National Day holiday will reach 2.15 million. The highest single-day customs clearance volume is expected to exceed 2.4 million passengers.
Faced with overseas tourists’ demands for quality, personalized and in-depth travel, how to make up for service shortcomings? How to make the golden brand of “China Travel” bigger and stronger? How to steadily transform short-term inbound "flow" into long-term economic "increment"? The reporter visited tourists, companies and industry experts to explore new paths for the high-quality development of "China Tourism".
Travel paradigm innovation:
Say goodbye to sightseeing, immersive global travel becomes popular
Once upon a time, foreign tourists had a "standard answer" when traveling to China: the Great Wall in Beijing, the Terracotta Warriors in Xi'an, and the Bund in Shanghai. Nowadays, "de-sightseeing, emphasis on experience, and global roaming" has become the mainstream of inbound tourism.
Foreign tourists wander into the city streets and queue up for a bowl of hot dry noodles with Wuhan locals, shop for trendy Chinese technology products in Huaqiangbei, walk along the ancient city wall of Xi'an wearing Hanfu; or go to Jingdezhen, Fenghuang Ancient City and other small towns to live and roam, experience intangible cultural heritage skills and feel the local customs.
Lu Xiaoyi, a Shanghai cultural and tourism practitioner who has been involved in the inbound tourism business for many years, told a reporter from Securities Daily: "Ten years ago, overseas tourists only knew famous landmarks, had fixed itineraries, and had single needs. The products we provided were basically standardized sightseeing group services. Now, they no longer use the rush-to-check-in travel method. Instead, they prepare detailed strategies in advance based on the rich information on social platforms, and pursue a real, three-dimensional and vivid Chinese travel experience."
County tourism is increasingly favored by foreign tourists. Le Mei Lan, a Vietnamese tourist, told a reporter from Securities Daily: "The visa-free policy makes traveling to China efficient and convenient. I have basically checked in the classic attractions in first-tier cities, and now I am more willing to spend time in small towns and experience the real Chinese customs."
Small towns with unique cultural and tourism resources continue to be out of the circle, and Jingdezhen is a typical representative. A large number of overseas tourists come here to stay for a short period of time, study porcelain making, and become a "jingdiao" group to immerse themselves in the charm of ceramic culture. Data show that in 2025, Jingdezhen's number of inbound tourists will increase by 39.63% year-on-year, and inbound tourism spending will increase by 44.59% year-on-year, a remarkable growth rate.
The consumption list of foreign tourists has also received a comprehensive update. Classic souvenirs such as traditional tea and silk are still popular, and trendy Chinese smart products such as foldable screen mobile phones and drones have also been added to the "must-buy list".
Manager Duan of the Shenzhen Vientiane City DJI store told a reporter from Securities Daily: "With the implementation of departure tax refund services, the number of foreign tourists shopping in our stores continues to increase."
In addition, the source structure of inbound tourists shows a trend of diversification. In the past, inbound tourists were mainly from the short-distance market in Southeast Asia, but now long-distance customer groups from Europe, the Middle East, Latin America and other places continue to pour in. This summer, "China Cool" became popular on overseas social media, attracting a large number of overseas tourists from Europe.
Gao Zhengyang, a special researcher at Suzhou Commercial Bank, analyzed to a reporter from Securities Daily: "The visa-free 'circle of friends' continues to expand, and international communication continues to break through the circle, opening up space for the growth of inbound tourism. Immersive global travel replaces sightseeing check-ins, more domestically produced trendy products are added to tourists' purchase lists, and the customer source structure continues to be optimized. These all reflect the improvement in the quality of 'China tourism.'"
Completing industry shortcomings:
Start with the details and improve the software and hardware support
Faced with the development dividends of the inbound tourism industry, domestic cultural tourism companies and business district stores have taken the initiative to upgrade services and optimize experience. For example, some stores in Wangfujing and RT-Mart have continued to upgrade tax refund services, optimize bilingual guidance, and actively adapt to the consumption habits of foreign tourists, achieving good results.
However, during interviews and surveys, reporters found that against the backdrop of rapid growth in passenger flow, industry supporting shortcomings still exist.
For example, a large number of overseas tourists "planted grass" in some domestic niche villages through overseas short videos and social platforms, but they were unable to achieve their wishes because of the lack of mature travel products and weak supporting reception capabilities. At the same time, cross-border payments still need to be further optimized. At present, domestic large-scale business districts and brand stores can basically accept foreign card payments, but payments in some characteristic neighborhoods, small market stores, county cultural tourism merchants, and small and micro stores of intangible cultural heritage are still relatively inconvenient.
In addition, the supply of service personnel who are proficient in multiple languages and familiar with overseas consumption habits is still insufficient. Talents in Russian, Thai, Vietnamese and other minor languages are particularly in short supply. Misha, a Russian tourist who came to China this summer, said: "Because we did not hire a Russian-speaking tour guide, we had to rely on temporary translation by the English-speaking tour guide throughout the entire journey. Many cultural details and product features could not be accurately conveyed, leaving us with regrets during the journey."
According to industry insiders, inbound tourism has entered a new stage where “experience is king and details win.” Completing the shortcomings of software and hardware is the key for inbound tourism to move from recovery to high-quality development.
Focus on upgrading to break the situation:
Activate inbound traffic and empower industry growth
Data from the National Immigration Administration shows that in the first half of this year, 22.914 million foreigners entered the country, a year-on-year increase of 20.4%. Among them, 17.815 million foreigners entered the country without visas, accounting for 77.7%, a year-on-year increase of 30.6%.
Experts interviewed generally believe that this is just the starting point of a long-term recovery, and my country's inbound tourism market is expected to usher in greater room for development. The industry needs to proactively adapt to new tracks and new needs, so that "traffic becomes incremental and popularity becomes normal."
Policy dividends are continuing to be released. In July this year, the "15th Five-Year Plan for Building a Tourism Power" issued by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism proposed to "improve the level of inbound tourism services in all aspects." Specific measures include "aiming at the needs of tourists from different countries, launching specialized products with core elements such as specialty food, traditional skills, history and culture, technological experience, health care, study, festivals, shopping, etc., and cultivating characteristic tourism routes that blend tradition and modernity."
At the same time, my country’s visa-free “circle of friends” continues to expand. Starting from August 20, 2026, my country will implement a 240-hour transit visa-free policy for citizens of Kyrgyzstan and Vietnam and a 30-day entry visa-free policy for Hainan. The number of countries applicable to the 240-hour transit visa-free policy has increased to 57, and the number of countries applicable to Hainan's 30-day entry visa-free policy has increased to 61 countries.
Under the guidance of policies, industrial chain enterprises have accelerated iterative upgrades and made up for their shortcomings. In the field of payment, Lakala Payment Co., Ltd. accurately connects high-frequency consumption scenarios of foreign tourists, continues to upgrade terminal equipment, expands the scope of foreign card acceptance, and covers all scenarios such as catering, cultural tourism, retail, and transportation. It strives to solve the payment problems in small and micro scenarios and open up the "last mile" of inbound consumption.
In terms of tourism product supply, Nanjing Commerce and Tourism Co., Ltd. has initially established a three-tier parallel inbound business layout in Europe, Southeast Asia, and Northeast Asia, and continues to cultivate inbound tourism business. This year, it has completed multiple batches of inbound team receptions.
Mr. Ye, the person in charge of an international travel agency in Zhejiang, told the Securities Daily reporter based on front-line operations: "In order to match the needs of foreign tourists under the 240-hour transit visa-free policy and the market trend of individual travelers, we have launched corresponding travel routes, including 10-day long-term customized tours, 2-day small town tours, half-day Citywalk, etc. These tour routes are very popular with overseas tourists."
The global popularity of "China Travel" is the result of the joint action of open policies, industrial strength, resource endowments, and cultural charm. Yang Huaiyu, a senior researcher at Shanghai Xiazhi Liangshi Consulting Management Co., Ltd. and a large consumer industry analyst, said in an interview with a reporter from Securities Daily: "In the future, the competition for inbound tourism will no longer be the competition for attraction resources, but full-chain services, full-scene experiences, and full-industry supporting facilities. Competition. The industry needs to break away from traditional thinking and focus on the new needs of overseas tourists for in-depth experience, local consumption, travel and study, break down the barriers in the whole chain of ‘food, accommodation, travel, shopping and entertainment’, and use refined and international services to receive passenger flow dividends, and truly transform short-term popularity into long-term economic growth.”
