Foreign visitors in winter down coats pose for a photo at the Tian'anmen Square in Beijing on December 25, 2025. The holiday season has driven an inbound tourism boom in China. Photo: VCG

The combined effect of the Christmas and New Year holidays, facilitated by China's convenient visa policies, has driven up the nation's inbound tourism market and cross-border passenger flows, as data from multiple ports indicate that inbound passenger numbers have continued to rise in recent days, with market confidence and activity picking up markedly.

Bolstered by China's visa-free policies as well as supporting measures to facilitate entry and exit, Shanghai Pudong International Airport has seen a peak in inbound foreign travelers, The Paper reported on Thursday. 

Over the week since December 18, the number of inbound foreign nationals at Shanghai Pudong International Airport has continued to climb, averaging more than 19,000 arrivals per day, up 16 percent from the previous period, the media report said. 

In terms of travel purpose, most foreign arrivals came for tourism or to visit relatives and friends. In terms of passenger composition, travelers from South Korea, Malaysia, Thailand, and Singapore have shown sustained growth, accounting for nearly 40 percent of all inbound foreign nationals, with the sharpest increase recorded among Malaysian travelers, the media report said. 

Throughout 2025, the "China Travel" craze has continued to gain momentum and the topic frequently goes viral on overseas social media platforms, which convinced industry representatives that China's inbound tourism is set to wrap up 2025 with robust data. The latest upswing is driven not only by the continued optimization of policies, but also by changes in how overseas visitors perceive China, some industry representatives said. 

Inbound tourism boom 

On December 17, 2024, the National Immigration Administration began implementing a 240-hour visa-free transit policy for some foreign nationals. As of December 17 this year, more than 45,000 eligible travelers had entered China through Beijing Daxing International Airport under the 240-hour visa-free transit policy, according to chinanews.com. 

Along with other entry convenience policies, in 2025, more than 830,000 foreign nationals have entered China through the Beijing Daxing International Airport, representing a year-on-year increase of about 54.6 percent, according to the report. 

Holiday periods such as Christmas and the New Year Day are naturally key time windows that inbound tourists go on vacations. As a result, overall inbound visitor numbers continue to grow, with passenger volumes showing a clear upward trend, Xu Xiaolei, marketing manager at CYTS Tours Holding Co, told the Global Times on Thursday. 

Since the second half of 2025, China's inbound tourism market has displayed several distinctive features such as more diversified mix of source markets, Xu noted. 

Unlike the past, when inbound tourism was dominated by traditional markets such as North America, Europe, and the Middle East, this latest wave has seen a notable increase in visitors from Southeast Asia, Central and Eastern Europe, countries along the Belt and Road, Central Asia, and neighboring countries including Russia, reshaping the overall composition of source countries, Xu said, adding that another prominent feature is the rapid rise in the proportion of younger travelers among inbound visitors.

From March to April, US internet influencer IShowSpeed went viral with his one-take citywalk livestreams across multiple Chinese cities, drawing massive crowds wherever he went.

In September, "speechless brother" Khaby Lame, with over 160 million followers, embarked on his China trip - interacting in traditional Chinese attire at Beijing's Forbidden City, learning the local dialect in Nanjing, and experiencing Wing Chun and Cantonese opera in Guangzhou - earning praise from both domestic and international netizens for his authentic experiences. 

British explorer Ed Stafford took on the "72-hour survival challenge" in South China's Shenzhen, using this novel format to showcase China's urban ecology and everyday life. 

The online popularity of China Travel content has converted into deeper understanding of the country, and some industry representatives have observed that besides the traditional popular cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen, more and more foreign visitors are now seeking out China's "hidden gem" places.

Chinese travel agency Qunar's data also shows that inbound tourists are not only visiting major cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen but are also expanding across a broader map of China - from Shijiazhuang in North China to Zhanjiang in South China, from Baotou in North China to Jieyang in the South China, according to the data sent by Qunar to the Global Times. 

Foreign visitors are flying to many third-tier, including Yuncheng, Zhoushan, Liuzhou, Qunar's data shows. 

Busy ports 

The holiday crowd is also seen at the ports connecting Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, marking a "northbound" travel boom. According to local media reports, Hong Kong's immigration department estimates that around 11.52 million entries and exits through various control points will take place during this year's Christmas and New Year holidays.

"The scene was comparable to the Spring Festival travel rush," Hong Kong resident Holzer Chan told the Global Times on Thursday after crossing into Shenzhen via the Shenzhen Bay Port to spend the holiday.

It took him nearly an hour and a half to clear customs on Thursday. 

"Because of the Christmas holiday, we came to Shenzhen to play and eat. Last night, on Christmas Eve, we had dinner at a restaurant, and Hong Kong was crowded; restaurants were fully booked, and prices were higher than usual. So we decided to come to Shenzhen today with friends for a holiday," he explained. 

With the expansion and efficiency improvements in connectivity across the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, Hong Kong's year-end shopping and entertainment season has brought a series of promotions and cultural activities, according to local media reports. 

Coupled with the "multiple-entry visa" policy, which greatly increases the frequency and convenience of Shenzhen residents traveling to Hong Kong, and the implementation of the online pre-declaration system for foreign entry cards, more and more foreign visitors are able to visit the mainland and enjoy its charm, local Wen Wei Po said.