By Songshan (Sam) Huang
China’s tourism industry has faced significant challenges since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2019, China welcomed 97.7 million foreign visitors. But in 2023, this plummeted to 35.5 million, representing less than 40 per cent of pre-pandemic levels.
The sluggish recovery of China’s inbound tourism has prompted widespread concern across government, industry, academia and the media. Leading tourism research journals in China have published dedicated articles discussing the factors influencing China’s inbound tourism recovery.
To address this trend, the Chinese government has implemented several policy measures. In July 2023, China reinstated its 15-day visa-free travel policy for visitors from Singapore and Brunei. In November 2023, this policy was extended to ordinary passport holders from France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and Malaysia. On 7 March 2024, China expanded its 15-day visa-free policy to include six…