China and Russia Drop Visa Rules to Spark a Tourism Boom by 2030
In a move to boost tourism, China has introduced a visa-free entry policy for Russian citizens. Russian President Vladimir Putin has responded by announcing a reciprocal measure. The number of trips between the two countries is expected to surge significantly in the coming years.
The new visa-free policy, valid until September 14, 2026, allows Russian citizens to enter China without a visa for up to 30 days. This decision has sparked a significant increase in demand for tours and flights to China, with a surge of 50-100% reported.
Russian Minister of Economic Development, Maxim Reshetnikov, visited China in November 2021 and expressed optimism about the future of tourism between the two countries. He projected that by 2030, the number of visits will double compared to the pre-pandemic level of 2019. The Ministry of Economic Development supports this projection.
The impact of the visa-free policy is already evident. In the third quarter of 2022, trips by Russians to China increased by 13% compared to the second quarter and nearly 25% year-on-year. If this trend continues, mutual tourist traffic could reach 3.5 million trips by the end of the year, a 30% increase over last year. This would surpass the previous record set in Q3 2012, when 407,600 visits were recorded.
The visa-free policy between Russia and China is expected to significantly boost tourism in the coming years. With projections doubling the pre-pandemic level by 2030 and a surge in demand already evident, both countries stand to benefit from this measure.
