综合一区欧美国产,99国产麻豆免费精品,九九精品黄色录像,亚洲激情青青草,久久亚洲熟妇熟,中文字幕av在线播放,国产一区二区卡,九九久久国产精品,久久精品视频免费

Chengdu visa-free policy to lure more tourists

Updated: 2013-08-23 08:28

By Huang Zhiling in Chengdu (China Daily)

  Comments() Print Mail Large Medium  Small 分享按鈕 0
Zhu Zhangyi is excited that his hometown, Chengdu, Sichuan province, will become the fourth Chinese city after Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou to adopt a 72-hour visa-free policy.

"I'm sure it will bring more overseas tourists to Chengdu," said Zhu, deputy curator of the Jinsha Site Museum.

The policy, which will go into effect on Sept 1, will allow transit passengers from 45 countries who have valid visas and a flight ticket to a third country to stay up to 72 hours in Chengdu and cities and counties under its administration, according to the city government.

Those who overstay their visit may be fined, detained or deported from the country, said Chen Yongzhi, deputy chief of Sichuan Armed Police Frontier Corps.

When the policy is implemented, Chengdu will be the first city in an inland region of China to adopt the visa-free plan.

With a population of more than 14 million, the provincial capital of Sichuan received 122 million tourists last year. Around 1.6 million came from abroad, according to government figures.

Tourists have frequently visited the Jinsha Site Museum, located next to the archaeological site of the same name, since it opened in 2007. "Each year, about 1.2 million people visit our museum. But it is regrettable that fewer than 100,000 are from overseas," Zhu said.

In comparison, Hangzhou, the capital of Zhejiang province with a population of 8.8 million, received more than 3.3 million overseas tourists in 2012.

Robert Barsby, a British hotelier in Chengdu, said the visa-free policy will enhance the city's international image. He said it would be convenient for international business travelers to visit the city or access it in transit.

Shuangliu International Airport in Chengdu, the fourth largest in China in terms of passenger traffic, has 22 direct flights to 16 countries and regions around the world. The number of people passing through China via the airport is expected to surpass 2.3 million at the end of this year.

Luo Xiaohu, an officer with the Sichuan Armed Police Frontier Corps, said a major reason why Chengdu was chosen as the first city in an inland region to adopt the visa-free policy is because it has more international flights than any other city in central and western China.

Several foreign general managers at international five-star hotels in the city said they believe the policy may boost the hospitality industry, which has been sluggish since the country's new leadership discouraged government officials from extravagant galas and events this year.

Through the first half of this year, six international five-star hotels in the city, including Shangri-La, Regal Master and the Kempinski, lost 60 million yuan ($9.77 million) in room bookings, compared with the same period last year, said Barsby, general manager of the Regal Master Hotel in Chengdu, who has lived in China for almost 20 years.

huangzhiling@chinadaily.com.cn

 

平塘县| 亚东县| 阿拉善盟| 吉林省| 嫩江县| 新晃| 大方县| 广汉市| 西昌市| 迁安市| 洞口县| 九龙城区| 新昌县| 潜江市| 武山县| 古田县| 耒阳市| 龙山县| 璧山县| 青河县| 沙田区| 千阳县| 兴隆县| 维西| 赫章县| 鄂州市| 新化县| 阜宁县| 南皮县| 深水埗区| 安顺市| 淮北市| 迭部县| 南乐县| 句容市| 永川市| 宜良县| 闽侯县| 社旗县| 四会市| 新田县|