China sees 15.46 mln cross-border trips during National Day holiday

BEIJING, Oct. 8 (Xinhua) -- China saw a daily average of 2.21 million inbound and outbound trips during this year's week-long National Day holiday, which ended on Wednesday, up 6.7 percent year on year.

Border inspection authorities nationwide recorded a total of 15.46 million inbound and outbound trips over the holiday week, the National Immigration Administration said in a statement on Thursday.

Mainland residents made more than 4.44 million outbound trips during the period, up 9.3 percent year on year, according to the administration.

Data from major Chinese online travel platforms Mafengwo and Ctrip show that long-haul destinations such as New Zealand and Iceland gained popularity among tourists during the holiday.

Foreign nationals made 682,000 inbound trips over the holiday week, up 5.4 percent from last year, of which 505,000 entries were under visa-free policies, up 9.2 percent.

From January to August this year, China recorded 61.29 million inbound and outbound trips by foreign nationals, up 19.5 percent year on year, including 23.72 million visa-free entries, a 26.8 percent increase year on year.

Since December 2023, when China launched a trial policy granting unilateral visa exemptions to visitors from six countries, it has expanded unilateral visa-free entry to travelers from 50 countries as of September. The policy allows eligible visitors to stay for up to 30 days.

It also extended the visa-free transit period for certain countries from 72 or 144 hours to 240 hours in December 2024. There are 57 eligible countries so far.