More destinations offer visa-free travel
Print Edition
Vann Zhang is planning a big family trip to Thailand early next year, and once that would have meant a big headache preparing visa applications for all 15 family members.
Now, however, China and Thailand have agreed on mutual visa-free entry and she hopes the new policy will be put in place soon.
“The amount of application materials would be huge, and the whole visa fee would also be a considerable expense,” said Zhang, a 29-year-old white-collar worker. “Now, I’m hopeful we will save both trouble and money.”
Zhang said the family may postpone their travel until the visa-free policy is put into place.
Although not confirmed yet for a specific date, travel service insiders say the announcement will be made soon, and the mutual visa-free policy is expected to be adopted starting as early as next year.
“Once the visa-free entry is valid, Chinese tourists can just pack and go to Phuket Island, just like going to Sanya,” said He Yong, deputy general manager of the travel business department of Ctrip.com, China’s major online travel service.
Tour groups from China now can get visas on arrival to Thailand, while individual travelers need to apply before going. The visa costs 230 yuan (US$37) and takes three to five days to obtain after handing in the application.
The terms of visa-free travel is now being negotiated by the Chinese and Thai governments. When Premier Li Keqiang visited Thailand in October, the two governments reached an agreement on opening mutual visa-free entry for people with ordinary passports.
“As one of the earliest countries that opened to Chinese tourists, Thailand remains one of the most popular overseas travel destinations for Chinese travelers, as it has been for the past two decades,” said He. “The visa-free policy no doubt will strongly stimulate an already-heated market.”
Usually Chinese tourists go to Phuket Island or Pattaya to enjoy the beach, but in recent years, Chiangmai, in the mountains of northern Thailand, has become a new favorite. A Bangkok-Chiangmai package for individual travelers costs around 4,000 yuan.
“I have several friends who have been to Chiangmai, and all of them loved the place,” said Zhang. “The city is tranquil, delicate and historical. So although I’ve been to Thailand once, when I went to Bangkok and Phuket, I still want to go to Chiangmai with my family.”
Although Thailand is considering charging an entry tax as of next year — meaning travelers staying for more than three days may have to pay 500 Thai Baht (US$15) — the tax is still less than the current visa fee.
Meanwhile, some other countries have also modified their visa policies for China, which likely will draw more Chinese tourists in the near future. More than 20 countries and regions have opened visa-free entry or visa-on-arrival for Chinese travelers. Although most are not frequently visited by Chinese tourists, an increasing number of traditional travel destinations have enacted simplified visa application procedures for Chinese visitors.
Chinese citizens can now stay longer in Mauritius without a visa — the limit has risen from 15 to 30 days.
The country has become one of the most popular honeymoon destinations for young Chinese couples as island and beach packages have boomed in Chinese market in recent years.
During October’s Golden Week, Mauritius was among the “top 10 hottest destinations” listed by Ctrip.com.
“Now the visa-free policy will give travelers more convenience,” said He. “We can expect a further market increase next year.”
Meanwhile, Jordan has opened visa-on-arrival to Chinese citizens. Travelers can get the visa with round-trip air tickets, or air tickets to the third country, and other travel documents when arriving in Jordan.
Although the Dead Sea-side country is a less known travel destination for Chinese tourists, it has great potential if combined with other Middle Eastern countries to form a tour package. The Israel-Jordan package is now quite popular, for example. Ctrip said its Israel-Jordan package is solidly booked until the end of the year, and next year, it will add new items to the itinerary. Petra, the ancient city in the southern desert in Jordan, will be available as part of the package while tourists can also experience floating in the salty Dead Sea.
“Although most of the visa-free countries where Chinese people can go are not traditionally popular destinations, they are worth visiting anyway,” said Lily Chang, who travels every year.
“The problem is that travel service companies don’t have packages covering the destinations, while individual travelers are afraid of facing language barriers, so not many people are willing to go. If people are brave enough, they will find these places are very beautiful.
“Also, there are no straight flights between China and some of the visa-free countries, which is another problem.”
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
