Foreign countries battle for Chinese tourists

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Data from Chinese travel agency Ctrip shows that a historic high of 30 million Chinese people are traveling overseas this summer. The competition is on among foreign countries to land those tourists and their cash.

Ctrip predicts that China will send 25 million people to Belt and Road countries this year, and that the number will reach 150 million between 2016 and 2020. While making their travel plans, however, visa applications remain a big concern for Chinese tourists.

Countries along the Belt and Road are making efforts to make travel easier for Chinese tourists – Serbia and Belarus have both launched visa-free policies for Chinese citizens this year.

And seeing the efforts being made by the Belt and Road countries, others aren't just sitting around waiting for the Chinese tourists to notice them. Canada, for example, is setting up seven new visa application centers in China this year, in cities including Nanjing, Chengdu, Hangzhou and Jinan.

There are now 62 countries that have announced either visa-free or visa-on-arrival policies for Chinese tourists. Travel agencies predict a total of 140 million Chinese tourists will go abroad this year.