Foreign tourists take photos of the Corner Tower of the Palace Museum under Beijing's blue sky and white clouds on June 9, 2026. Beijing has made notable environmental strides in recent years, achieving breakthroughs in air quality, water ecology and urban greening. Photo: IC

Beijing ports surpassed 10 million cross-border trips between January 1 and Monday, up 10.5 percent year-on-year and reaching the milestone half a month earlier than last year, with inbound foreign arrivals becoming a particular highlight, CCTV News reported.

The capital's latest progress in cross-border travel underscores the country's continued efforts toward further opening-up, with policy dividends such as unilateral visa-free arrangements and other facilitation measures being further expanded, a Chinese analyst said.

According to the CCTV News report, cross-border passenger flows at Beijing ports have remained at a high level this month, with a notable increase in inbound foreign arrivals. As of Monday, foreign nationals entering and exiting through Beijing ports this year totaled 3.436 million, accounting for 34.4 percent of total cross-border traffic, up 31.5 percent year-on-year.

Of these, 1.259 million entries were made under visa-free or temporary entry permit policies, representing 71.7 percent of all inbound foreign arrivals. Travel demand was mainly driven by tourism, business exchanges, and visits to relatives and friends.

The number of residents from the Chinese mainland entering and exiting through Beijing ports exceeded 6.033 million trips, accounting for 60.3 percent of total cross-border passenger traffic. South Korea, Thailand, and Singapore were among the most popular destinations.

The results from the Beijing port came just weeks after other major ports announced their inbound and outbound trip statistics, also reflecting substantial growth.

At Shanghai Pudong International Airport, the total number of inbound and outbound passengers in 2026 has exceeded 15 million, the first among all national airport ports, and it reached the milestone five days earlier than in 2025. This accounts for roughly one-quarter of all cross-border air passenger trips nationwide, maintaining its position as the country's leading airport port, the Paper.cn reported.

Inbound foreign passenger flows have also continued to rise. As China's visa-free policy keeps expanding this year, foreign nationals accounted for about 5.15 million of the 15 million total cross-border passenger trips, up 24 percent year-on-year, according to the report.

In South China's Shenzhen, the trend is similar. As of June 6, the number of inbound foreign passengers entering China via Shenzhen Airport Port this year increased by 33.9 percent year-on-year, covering travelers from 190 countries and regions including Malaysia, South Korea, and Singapore. Visa-free arrivals accounted for 63.2 percent, up 47.1 percent year-on-year.

China has implemented unilateral visa-free entry for 50 countries.

The inbound passenger flows at major national ports such as Beijing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen are highly representative, showing that foreign tourists and business travelers continue to view China as an important investment and tourism destination, Yang Jinsong, a tourism expert with the China Tourism Academy, told the Global Times on Monday, noting that this trend further underscores China's commitment to high-level opening-up.

The analyst said that the unilateral visa-free policy has played a significant role in driving this trend, while the continuous improvement of supporting measures, including payment convenience, further enhanced the ease of travel and the consumption experience for foreign visitors.