-Zhao Xuwang
Dear guests:
Good morning, everyone!
I am very happy to attend today’s industry event and be invited to introduce the situation of Chinese tourism.
China’s modern tourism started with the reception of inbound tourists 40 years ago. Today, it has evolved from inbound tourism to outbound tourism to domestic tourism. After 40 years of development, China’s tourism has fully matured and has made great progress in travel agencies, hotels, scenic spots and transportation. Take 2023 as an example. China’s domestic tourists reached 4.891 billion, an increase of 2.361 billion over the same period last year, a year-on-year increase of 93.3%. In 2023, there were 82.03 million inbound tourists. Chinese residents traveled abroad 87.63 million times. Tourist satisfaction remained high, and China’s tourism industry accelerated into a new stage of high-quality development.
764 years ago, Arniko, a craftsman born in Patan, went to Tibet and later to Beijing and other places. Arniko lived in China for 45 years and designed and presided over the construction of 16 large buildings of various types and a large number of statues. The most brilliant of them is the White Pagoda of Miaoying Temple in Beijing. At the same time, he also trained a large number of architectural talents.
To this day, the Nepalese-style pagodas brought by Arniko can be seen everywhere in the five Tibetan provinces and regions of China, and many Nepalese handicrafts can also be seen in the homes of ordinary people in the five Tibetan provinces and regions. Some major cities in China (such as Beijing, Guangzhou, Shanghai, Chengdu, etc.), and even the coastal city of Xiamen in southern China, have Nepalese restaurants.
These have always witnessed the friendly exchanges and cultural exchanges between the peoples of China and Nepal in the past, present and future.
Former Nepalese President Bhandari highly praised Arniko’s exquisite craftsmanship and historical achievements, and at the same time affirmed such Nepal-China friendly activities: “I believe that such activities can not only show the artistic brilliance of Nepal, but will also further promote the long-standing friendly exchanges between Nepal and China.”
764 years ago, Arniko, the cultural exchange envoy between China and Nepal, had to cross snow-capped mountains and rivers to go to China, and the journey was difficult. Now China is already a completely different scene. It took Arniko nearly a year to get from Xizang to Beijing. Now it only takes more than three hours to fly from Xizang to Beijing. Moreover, six cities in China now have direct flights to Kathmandu. China waives visa fees for Nepalese guests, which will facilitate Chinese tourists to visit Nepal and Nepalese guests to travel to China.
We warmly invite and welcome Nepalese guests to travel to China, especially the unique route products recommended by Mr. Dikesh just now, which allow our Nepalese guests to experience high-speed transportation, modern cities, delicious food and beautiful scenery while witnessing the long-standing friendly exchanges and cultural integration between the people of China and Nepal… Of course, we can also customize special travel route products for Nepalese guests to fully meet the needs of Nepalese guests.
As we all know, China now implements a 144-hour transit visa-free policy for tourists from relevant countries, which also facilitates foreign guests traveling to Nepal to visit China. This also increases the attraction of foreign guests who choose Nepal as a tourist destination.
China and Nepal are geographically connected by mountains and rivers, culturally learn from each other, and economically mutually beneficial. The friendly exchanges between the people of the two countries span thousands of years, and now have become strategic partners for development and prosperity. Nepal, located at the southern foot of the Himalayas, not only has rich exotic scenery, but also has a profound cultural heritage that is connected to Chinese culture, which is increasingly attractive to Chinese tourists. According to the latest data released by the Nepal Tourism Department, Nepal will receive more than 1 million international tourists in 2023. Among them, more than 60,000 Chinese tourists, ranking third among all countries.
I believe that with the joint efforts of the tourism industry of the two countries, both the number of Nepalese guests visiting China and the number of Chinese guests visiting Nepal will reach new highs in 2024. Let us use culture as a medium to open a new chapter in the tourism industry of the two countries, and use tourism as a bridge to further develop the traditional friendship between the two peoples that spans thousands of years!
I wish this promotion event a complete success!
-Zhao is Special Grade Tour Guide of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of China
