Foreign tourists in China benefit from improved payment systems

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Tourist attractions across China have been improving their payment services and enhancing the travel experience for foreign visitors.   The Emperor Qinshihuang's Mausoleum Site Museum in Xi'an City, capital of northwest China's Shaanxi Province, houses the world-renowned Terracotta Warriors. It has launched a new online platform allowing foreign tourists to book their tour and make payments online.

The service is now available to tourists from 39 countries and regions, supporting 24 languages and 29 currencies for online ticket booking and payment.

Since the rollout of this platform, over 3,300 tickets have been sold through the online system.   "The service I feel is very good. It's very convenient, very easy," said a tourist from Australia.

Shanghai, China's economic powerhouse, has completed the first stage of its mobile payment upgrade for taxis. Passengers can now pay seamlessly without cash using domestic and international bank cards, alongside popular Chinese digital wallets like UnionPay.   Foreign tourists and local taxi drivers have hailed the convenience brought by the improvement.  

"This [bank card payment] is really, really fast, like less than one minute, just 10 seconds," said a visitor from Costa Rica.

"Having the mobile payment device in the taxi is convenient for us drivers because we don't have to make change. However, we still keep cash on hand in case the foreign passengers want to pay that way," said Wang Lei, a taxi driver.   Hehua International Airport in central China's Zhangjiajie, which has recently seen a surge in South Korean visitors, has launched a round-the-clock visa issuance service for foreign tourist groups. The city's customs clearance process has also been streamlined to facilitate smoother entry for international travelers.   "We want to eliminate the procedure of passengers' second check after they have retrieved their luggage without adding extra checkpoints, so that the average time for inbound passengers to clear customs can be slashed from 30 minutes to less than 10 minutes," said Wu Zhenpin, an official from Zhangjiajie Customs.

Foreign tourists in China benefit from improved payment systems

A French student from the School of Chinese Language and Literature at Beijing Foreign Studies University recently called for more educational exchanges between the two countries.

During an interview with China Global Television Network (CGTN), Bouaoud Elies shared his experience living and studying in China.

After graduating from the business school at Beijing Foreign Studies University, Elies decided to stay in the country. He said he continues to study Chinese to improve his competitiveness and explore the huge trade opportunities between the two countries.

"I mean I love it here. I don't want to go back to France. I would like to become the bridge between France and China. So, if I can do this, thanks to the Belt and Road Initiative, the Silk Road, now the relations between France and China are very good. So, I think a lot of things will happen," he said.

Elies also said he hopes that more French students could visit China and develop a better understanding of the country.

France was the first major western country to establish full diplomatic ties with China, and the history of educational exchanges can be traced back more than a century and a half when China sent its students to France to study maritime affairs.

Since then, exchanges have deepened considerably.

"In China, we have established 14 French training centers. In France, we have established 19 Confucius Institutes. These institutions serve as bridges for mutual understanding and trust between the youth and people of the two countries, enhancing language and cultural connections," said Yang Dan, Director General of the Department of International Cooperation and Exchanges under the Ministry of Education.

French student calls for more educational exchanges with China