U.S. travel agent delegation eyes business opportunities of China tourism wave

SHANGHAI, Sept. 22 (Xinhua) -- During her first visit to China, Jennifer Chernay posed for photos on a bench along the winding corridor of the Yuyuan Garden in Shanghai Municipality, holding a puppet panda in her hands.

The garden Chernay visited has many attractions, including traditional Chinese pavilions, trees, ponds and views of the skyscrapers in Shanghai's financial zone.

"Yuyuan Garden is a place where traditions meet modernity. I like it," said Chernay, a travel consultant at Kahala Travel.

From Sept. 9 to 20, she and more than 10 other U.S. travel agents, many of whom were visiting China for the first time, explored cities such as Beijing, Xi'an, Chongqing and Shanghai, riding the "China Travel" wave, which has become a popular trend on social media.

"I think it would be a great experience for my clients to taste China's spicy Sichuan food or Beijing duck, and see friendly Chinese people," Chernay said.

She said that Emperor Qinshihuang's Mausoleum Site Museum in Xi'an, where the tour delegation was able to appreciate the Terracotta Warriors and experience making their own warrior models, had left a deep impression on her.

The group found it difficult to make the little Terracotta Warrior figurines, so it was "mind-blowing" to think that ancient Chinese people built them by hand, she said, noting that she was impressed by their wisdom.

Gabriel Valeriano, a marketing assistant at California-based Elite Voyages, said: "In China, there are high-speed trains from one city to another, and many places have subways and public buses. Public transportation is easy and we do not always need to rent a car."

Valeriano said that in-depth tourism connecting cities like Beijing, Xi'an, Chongqing and Shanghai would be attractive to his clients. "People should see the past, present and future of China," he added.

He said that traveling to Asia has become more popular as the country has had more exposure on social media in recent years, and that China's 144-hour visa-free transit policy is beneficial to the development of Asia cruise tours.

"We are designing cruise tours of over 10 days to Asia, which connect countries including China, Japan and the Republic of Korea," he said, adding that tourists can stay in each country for a few days and experience different cultures.

CTG Travel employee Bo Lin said that the travel agent tour aimed to boost travel from the United States to China and reinforce the outcomes of the 14th China-U.S. Tourism Leadership Summit held in Xi'an in May. CTG Travel is one of the organizers of the trip.

"We showcased China's rich tourism resources, from ancient architecture and traditional culture to the modern life of residents, to our U.S. friends," Bo said, adding that the tour also gave the travel agents the opportunity to learn about China's latest efforts to promote convenience in inbound tourism.

In the first seven months of this year, the number of foreign visitors to China soared 129.9 percent year on year to 17.25 million, according to the National Immigration Administration.

China has been continuously optimizing its visa-free transit policy and enhancing its mobile payment systems. This month, Shanghai updated its guide for inbound travelers. The comprehensive guide in English covers communication, payment, transportation, hotline numbers, visas, tax refunds and emergency assistance, among other topics.

"I think there is a lot of potential and great growth points for China's tourism market," Chernay said.