BIT24 has been confirmed as an excellent opportunity for international dialogue and exchange, with many new members from both Italy and abroad. Among the latter, we would like to highlight the great return of China, one of the most fascinating destinations in the world, with its ancient history, vast cultural heritage and landscape, combined with technological and digital development, which make this country a destination rich in diversified tourist proposals.

After years of standstill, China finally reopened its borders to incoming and outgoing travel in March 2023, recording interesting numbers on both fronts.

As Melinda Brindicci, Italian spokesperson for the China Tourism Bureau, reports, “in the first two months after opening, Chinese tourists have already shown a great desire for Italy; in fact, the number of tourist visas issued from Italy to Chinese citizens has risen by 30% compared to 2019 levels”. These figures are also confirmed by the forecasts made by the China Outbound Tourism Research Institute, released by the European Travel Commission, which predict as many as 2 million Chinese tourists in Italy by the end of this year. Brindicci says, “In fact, Italy is one of the most attractive destinations for fashion, food and wine, and lifestyle, winning the favor of 38 % of Chinese travelers”.

However, Italian interest in China is also on the rise, with increasing numbers of Italian tourists, either in groups or individually, choosing China as a travel destination. Brindicci continued by saying, “Precisely to meet these needs and to accommodate as many tourists as possible, through 2023 China has simplified the visa application procedure and will exempt all applications for business, tourism, family visit and transit visa types with 1 or 2 entries from fingerprinting. Furthermore, the possibility to stay for a maximum of 144 or 72 hours without a tourist visa is maintained for transit in China, depending on the airport”.

The Chinese Ministry of Culture and Tourism is actively working to present the Chinese destination to the world. This year it launched a new slogan and logo: “The slogan ‘NiHao!China’ with a very sweet panda as the logo is our welcome to China, one of the most beautiful and fascinating countries in the world”.

With its return to BIT, China confirms the recovery of global tourism flows, offering international markets a positive indication of its openness to new opportunities for development and cultural exchange. During the exhibition, the Land of the Dragon will also host a number of smaller Chinese provinces at its booth, which will promote destinations that are still little known to foreign travelers, with the aim of expanding exchange opportunities as well as the number of arrivals.

Brindicci concludes, “We are certain that in the coming years China will continue to be particularly fascinating and attractive to everyone, but especially to Italians, who are passionate about culture and traditions. China has always relied on its heritage, its wealth, its hospitality, its digitalization, its state-of-the-art infrastructures; all of which make travelling to this land effortless and smart, but profound in terms of personal enrichment and knowledge of the ancient culture of this people”.

“BIT will be an important comeback for us after several years of standstill, it will be an opportunity to relaunch tourism through the international platform that this important trade fair offers us”.