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China sees 499M trips Jan-Aug, visa-free entries up 26.8% year-on-year

Global Times
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Tourists from Egypt take selfies in front of the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests at the Temple of Heaven Park in Beijing, capital of China, July 28, 2026. Thanks to the visa-free entry policies, China has witnessed an increasing number of foreign tourists visiting China this summer. According to the official data, 77.7 percent of foreign visitors entering China in the first half of the year enjoyed visa-free entry policies. (Xinhua/Ju Huanzong)

Tourists from Egypt take selfies in front of the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests at the Temple of Heaven Park in Beijing, capital of China, July 28, 2026.  (Photo: Xinhua/Ju Huanzong)

China recorded 499 million inbound and outbound passenger trips in the first eight months of this year, up 8.7 percent year-on-year, China Media Group reported on Thursday, citing official data.

Among foreign arrivals, 23.72 million entries were made under visa-free policies, accounting for 77.6 percent of the total, or a year-on-year increase of 26.8 percent, the National Immigration Administration said at a meeting held on Thursday in Lianyungang, East China's Jiangsu Province.

During this period, Chinese mainland residents made 242 million passenger trips, up 10 percent year-on-year, while residents of Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan made 196 million trips, up 8.9 percent year on year.

Foreign nationals made more than 61.28 million trips, an increase of 19.5 percent, the administration noted.