A new trend is emerging in China’s inbound tourism market:
Indian business delegations are arriving in large groups in cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Xi’an, and Chongqing. Leisure travelers from Central Asia and Southeast Asia are filling commercial districts like Beijing Road in Guangzhou, while Shenzhen’s Huaqiangbei continues to welcome technology and smart manufacturing delegations from around the world.
With visa-free policies and other entry facilitation measures extended to more countries, China has seen a significant increase in international visitors. However, the industry has long faced a critical challenge:
Inbound travel agencies have access to valuable overseas customer networks, while hotels control the on-the-ground accommodation and service experience. The two sides often operate through disconnected channels, making it difficult to coordinate services and fully convert the visa-free travel boom into business value.
To address this challenge, the roundtable session “How Can Inbound Travel Agencies and Hotels Capture Overseas Consumer Demand in the Visa-Free Era” was held during the 2026 TravelDaily Digital Intelligence Conference· Greater Bay Area Edition on July 2.
Supported by more convenient transit and improved visa policies, visitor arrivals from Southeast Asia have grown rapidly. In particular, family travelers from Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam who are visiting China to explore their ancestral roots show particularly high repeat-visit rates.
Meanwhile, visitor growth from Central Asian and Russian-speaking markets has accelerated, driven primarily by business inspection trips and long-haul leisure travel. These travelers typically have longer planning cycles and extended stays, making them high-value segments for hotels.
India has also emerged as a key new growth market. In the first half of this year, arrivals of Indian business and leisure travelers to China increased significantly. Major destinations include Beijing, Xi’an, Chengdu, Chongqing, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen, highlighting the considerable potential of India as a source market for China’s inbound tourism sector.
As competition in the inbound tourism sector intensifies, hotels need to actively embrace external distribution channels. Beyond traditional online platforms, deeper collaboration with inbound travel agencies will become increasingly important.
At present, cooperation between hotels and travel agencies still faces challenges such as information asymmetry, high communication costs, and inconsistent pricing systems. Moving forward, both sides need to break down information barriers, improve cooperation mechanisms, and leverage their respective strengths to better match inbound travelers’ needs and achieve mutual growth.
In the future, hotels and travel agencies should establish regular, in-depth communication mechanisms, work together with sincerity and commitment, continuously improve inbound tourism services, and jointly tell China’s cultural and tourism stories to the world.
