Large foreign cruise ships visit Shanghai as inbound tourism recovery takes off
Large inbound cruise ship "Mein Schiff" carrying 2,500 foreign travelers berthed at Shanghai's Wusongkou International Terminal on Saturday for a two-day stopover, while another two cruise ships are also reportedly set to arrive in Shanghai recently, carrying nearly 1,000 foreign inbound tourists.
Most of the tourists on Mein Schiff are from Germany, Austria and Switzerland, according to a report published on the Shanghai government website.
The tourists were warmly greeted with boisterous dragon and lion dances, as well as specially designed gifts. Meanwhile, financial institutions were invited to the welcome ceremony to provide currency exchange and mobile payment service support.
Data showed that Shanghai received 10 inbound cruise ships between January and March this year, bringing with them more than 22,000 travelers. A total of 18 cruise ships are expected to visit Shanghai this year, carrying over 40,000 inbound travelers.
The successive arrivals of foreign cruise ships in China so far this year underscores the rebound of the inbound tourism market, Jiang Yiyi, a deputy head of the School of Leisure Sports and Tourism at Beijing Sport University, told the Global Times on Sunday.
The willingness of foreigners to visit China has increased, partly thanks to supportive measures including visa-free policies and the easing of problems for foreign visitors like mobile payment hurdles, according to Jiang.
In the latest development, from March 14 to November 30, 2024, citizens from six European countries - Switzerland, Ireland, Hungary, Austria, Belgium and Luxembourg - are able to visit China for business, sight-seeing, transit and other purposes for up to 15 days without having to apply for a visa.
As related policies continue to produce effects, the country's inbound tourism market - whether in passenger trips and revenue generated - will outperform that recorded in 2019, Jiang said.
Border inspection agencies across China handled nearly 5.19 million entry and exit trips during the just-ended Qingming Festival holidays which drew to a close on Saturday, data from the National Immigration Administration (NIA) showed Sunday.
The number of entry and exit trips by foreigners reached 500,000, an increase of 163.2 percent compared to the same period in 2023, NIA data showed.
Related articles
- Tom Holland enjoyed a post-show cup of tea and proudly waved to fans as he left the Duke of York's T2024-05-21
China issues red alert for tsunami
BEIJING, April 3 (Xinhua) -- China issued a red alert for tsunami after an earthquake jolted the sea2024-05-21Wang Chuqin, Wang Manyu Win All
Contact Us HomeNewsHighlightACWF NewsSocietyWom2024-05-21China's Chen and Quan Win Women's 10m Platform Synchronised at Swimming Worlds
Contact Us HomeNewsHighlightACWF NewsSocietyWom2024-05-21Uber and Lyft say they'll stay in Minnesota after Legislature passes driver pay compromise
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Uber and Lyft plan to keep operating in Minnesota after the state Legislature2024-05-21Could Al Murray's Pub Landlord be arrested over Scotland's new hate crime law? Stand
Pub landlord comedian Al Murray says Scotland's new hate crime law has put comedians at high risk of2024-05-21
atest comment