China received 69.5 million inbound visits in the first six months of the year, compared to 62.3 million outbound visits, according to a National Tourism Administration report.
In 2016, the number of inbound visitors reached 138 million, a historical high since the international financial crisis of 2008 and an increase of 3.5 percent over the previous year.
Income from international tourism grew 5.6 percent to USD 120 billion in the same period.
This figure suggests the country's inbound tourism market has stepped out of its post-financial crisis depression and entered a new phase of sustainable growth, according to the administration.
The departure tax refund scheme policy, facilitated visa policy, increasing number of international flights and tourism events have played a positive role in reviving China's inbound tourism market, according to a September report from the China Tourism Academy.
People from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan make up the mainstay of visitors, while South Korea, Vietnam, Japan, Myanmar, the US, Russia, Mongolia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Singapore are the top 10 sources of foreign travelers to China.
More than 60 percent of inbound travelers spend between USD 1,000 to 5,000 during their trips to China on average, and the number of visitors from the countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative are actively rising, according to the report.
Trips to visit scenic spots, cultural relics and gourmet restaurants are among the most popular.
The tour took in many landmark scenic spots and was designed to introduce visitors to China's wealth of tourism sights and immerse them in Chinese tradition and customs.
Ctrip and a Confucius Institute subsidiary called the Chinese Testing International Company plan to jointly develop more Sinology-related trips and arrange for overseas people who study the Chinese language to travel in China.
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