Shanghai issues prepaid travel cards for inbound travelers' convenience

Tourists are pictured on their way to Shanghai Museum in east China's Shanghai Municipality on May 22, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Aiping)

SHANGHAI, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Shanghai has released Shanghai Pass, a multipurpose prepaid travel card, to facilitate easy payment by inbound travelers and other visitors not in favor of mobile payment.

With a maximum balance of 1,000 yuan (about 140 U.S. dollars), Shanghai Pass can be applied at various scenes such as public transportation, cultural and tourism venues, and shopping malls, according to the Shanghai City Tour Card Development Co., Ltd., which issues the card.

The card can be purchased and recharged at the airports of Hongqiao and Pudong, and major subway stations such as the People's Square Station. The card can be used in buses, subways, taxis, ferries, and tourist attractions such as Shanghai Oriental Pearl Tower, Shanghai Museum and Shanghai Wild Animal Park, the company said.

An ice cream, a Shanghai Pass multipurpose prepaid travel card and proof of purchase are pictured at the Shanghai Museum in east China's Shanghai Municipality on May 22, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Aiping)

Cardholders can have the remaining balance refunded when they leave the city.

They can also use the card for public transportation in many other cities, including Beijing, Guangzhou, Xi'an, Qingdao, Chengdu, Sanya and Xiamen, the company said.

A clerk processes a payment with a shopper's Shanghai Pass multipurpose prepaid travel card at the gift shop of Shanghai Museum in east China's Shanghai Municipality on May 22, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Aiping)

Chinese authorities have taken an array of measures to enhance the convenience of tourism for inbound visitors, as foreigners who primarily rely on bank cards and cash may find obstacles and challenges with cashless or non-card mobile payments, which is currently the predominant method of payment in China.

Shanghai received 1.27 million inbound tourists in the first quarter of this year, up 250 percent year on year, and is expected to receive about 5 million inbound tourists for the whole year, according to the Shanghai Municipal Administration of Culture and Tourism.