In 2025, something remarkable is happening on the streets, high-speed trains, and ancient city walls of China. Foreigners are everywhere again. For many locals who remember the high-growth decades, seeing tour groups from Paris, students from Ohio, or backpackers from Sydney sparks a specific kind of nostalgia. It brings back the excitement of the days when China’s economic numbers were the talk of the world. After the long quiet of the COVID years, China’s inbound tourism hasn’t just recovered. It has exploded.
The Numbers Tell a Story
The numbers tell the story better than any adjective could. According to Ctrip, the country’s largest online travel agency, inbound arrivals more than doubled in 2025 compared to the year before. And these visitors aren't just looking around; they are spending. American tourists increased their spending by half, while visitors from French shores spent a massive 160% more than the previous year.
Zoom out to the national level, and the recovery looks even sharper. By the end of September 2025, the total number of foreigners entering and exiting had already beaten the entire year of 2024. In just the first eight months, over 25 million foreign tourists arrived. If the trend holds, we are looking at crossing 35 million by the end of the year. That would be a new historical record.
So, what is driving the China’s inbound tourism? Mostly, it is the access. In the first three quarters of 2025, nearly 21 million foreigners entered without needing a visa. That is up 50% from the year before and accounts for over 70% of everyone arriving. The big cities are feeling it too. Shanghai welcomed over 6 million tourists in that same period, a huge jump from 2024, with more people staying overnight.
A Rare Bright Spot in the Economy
This isn't just good for morale; it is a serious boost for the economy. Guangdong saw its inbound tourism revenue from foreigners hit 160 billion yuan. Guangxi and Beijing saw massive jumps too. If you look at the rough estimates for the whole country, the revenue from foreign visitors is on track to rise about 50% in 2025. We could be looking at $150 billion. To put that in perspective, that is half the earnings of China’s entire massive textile industry.
In a time when selling goods abroad is getting harder due to trade barriers, an industry that brings in $150 billion through local restaurants, hotels, and shops is a genuine lifeline. It creates jobs and gets money moving without needing to build more factories.
Why Are Travelers Coming?
If you watch the travel vlogs popping up online, you will see five reasons why people are booking these trips.
First, the culture is unique. From the Great Wall to festivals in Yunnan, there is a depth here you just can't find anywhere else.
Second, the infrastructure is shocking in a good way. Visitors are often stunned by trains that outshine Europe’s, spotless streets, and cities that run entirely on digital payments. A common sentiment you hear is that China feels like the future.
Third, the visa policies have opened the doors. Over 50 countries now have visa-free entry for a few weeks. Removing that paperwork hurdle was the single biggest catalyst.
Fourth, the value is hard to beat. A luxury hotel, a bullet train ticket, and a day of great food often costs less than a single mediocre night in Tokyo or Paris.
Finally, it is the safety and hospitality. Street crime is rare, and regular people are usually quick to step in and help if they see a foreigner struggling with a translation app.
Of course, it isn't perfect. You still have to deal with internet blocks and setting up payment apps, which can be a headache. Some visitors get frustrated. But for those who do a little prep work, the trip usually ends up being one of their best experiences.
People-to-People Diplomacy at Scale
The money is welcome, certainly. But this surge carries a weight that goes beyond what any financial chart can capture. For forty years, China focused much more on internal reform than on truly opening up. While domestic changes followed strict plans, opening up was usually just about lowering barriers for foreign money. Regular citizens only got passports and the chance to travel in the last couple of decades. So, while the world saw Chinese tourists everywhere, very few outsiders actually experienced China for themselves.
That balance is finally shifting. When regular people from Europe, America, Southeast Asia, and Africa walk the streets, eat hotpot with local families, or ride the maglev, they take home a real, three-dimensional picture of the place. No government ad could ever buy that kind of authenticity. It means politicians and the news media don't get to be the only ones telling the story anymore.
History teaches us that conflict often starts with caricatures, or when we see other people as totally alien. Friendly, face-to-face contact is the best way to fix that. Every tourist who goes home with stories of kindness and efficiency chips away at decades of stereotypes.
A Lever for Further Reform
This boom also offers something incredibly valuable: an outside perspective.
When visitors love the high-speed rail but struggle with the internet or payment apps, they shine a light on exactly what still needs work. Positive feedback reinforces what is going right, while honest criticism creates the pressure to fix what isn't. When reforms get stuck, few things break through the resistance like millions of guests pointing out what could be better.
Keep the Doors Open Wider
China needs to keep those doors swinging open. Expanding visa-free access, making payments easier for foreigners, and putting up better signs will go a long way. A tourist isn't just revenue. They are a walking ambassador who makes the world a little less suspicious and pushes the country to improve.
China’s inbound tourism surge of 2025 reminds locals what it feels like to be admired again. But more importantly, it reminds the world that the real China is far more impressive, and far more normal, than the version they have been fed for years. In the current global climate, that realization is worth a lot more than $150 billion.
