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New China visa free policy boosts inbound China bookings
China’s recent tourist visa relaxation is having an immediate impact.
Travel tech firm DidaTravel has shared data showing a positive impact for inbound travel to China.
It comes after China made a recent visa exemption announcement.
China announced visa-free travel for nationals of France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, and Malaysia, which took effect from 1 December.
It will last for one year and is valid for stays of up to 15 days for business travel, tourism, and visiting family.
It is also valid for transit within China.
The aim is to stimulate inbound tourism.
DidaTravel’s booking data shows hotel bookings from the six countries have grown by over 50% from 1 December to 7 December in comparison to the previous week.
Hotel bookings for travelers from Spain to China have jumped by more than 100% compared to the previous week. Bookings from Malaysia to China are up 67% week on week.
Although the wider Chinese inbound market is still down on pre-pandemic levels, DidaTravel’s year-to-date inbound hotel sales to China have seen 151% growth vs. the same period in 2019.
China only fully reopened for tourism in early 2023.
According to DidaTravel’s year-to-date total transaction value, Spain, Malaysia, and Italy have been among the top 20 source markets for inbound China travel in 2023.
The most booked destinations in China are Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou and Shenzhen.
Rikin Wu, CEO of DidaTravel, said: “We were really excited about the growth opportunity for China’s inbound tourism sector as result of this news.”
“We are committed to supporting our global partners not only hotels, but also tours, experiences and transfers.”
DidaTravel sources its inventory through direct contracts with hotels, chains and channel managers.
It has a portfolio of over 70,000 direct hotel contracts – as well as 1,000,000 hotel products from over 600 global suppliers.
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Learn more about : DidaTravel ( Asia Pecific )
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Editor for TravelMole North America and Asia pacific regions. Ray is a highly experienced (15+ years) skilled journalist and editor predominantly in travel, hospitality and lifestyle working with a huge number of major market-leading brands. He has also cover in-depth news, interviews and features in general business, finance, tech and geopolitical issues for a select few major news outlets and publishers.
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