China sees thriving inbound tourism during National Day holiday

China's inbound tourism has seen a continuously robust growth during the National Day holiday, buoyed by relaxed visa policies, including the 144-hour transit policy.

The week-long holiday started on Tuesday, setting the stage for a bustling inflow of international travelers.

During the period, the Silk Street, a famous shopping destination in the Chinese capital city of Beijing, is expected to see a more-than-50-percent increase in the number of international travelers year on year, especially those from European countries and the United States.

Its sales are expected to grow by 100 percent, with sales of creative gifts and silk clothing jumping remarkably.

Transportation hubs in Shenzhen, a city in south China's Guangdong Province, have witnessed a flurry of activity, as holidaymakers make their way through railway stations and airports.

"This year, the number of international travelers entering China through Shenzhen's airport for business negotiations, cultural exchanges, sightseeing, and relative visits has exceeded 360,000, a year-on-year increase of about 143 percent. Among them, the number of international travelers entering China under visa-free policies has surpassed 130,000, a growth of more than five times from the previous year," said Liang Rui, deputy head of the Border Inspection Division of the Shenzhen Airport Border Inspection Station.

China extended the visa-free policies to more countries on Monday, covering Portugal, Greece, Cyprus, and Slovenia.

Following the announcement, searches for China-related keywords by tourists from these four countries on the Ctrip overseas platform soared 60 percent month on month.

Since the beginning of this year, travel bookings by tourists from these four countries skyrocketed by 120 percent, 150 percent, 166 percent, and 182 percent, respectively, from the previous year.

Data from booking platforms showed that inbound travel bookings have outpaced that of outbound tourism during this holiday, surging by 60 percent year on year.

"During the National Day holiday this year, the growth of the number of international tourists traveling to China has exceeded 60 percent, far surpassing the growth of outbound tourists. Visitors from the United States, Russia, and Malaysia saw growth rates exceeding three times. The international tourists prefer immersive travel experiences, so, in general, they will stay more than seven days here," said Chen Linan, director of public affairs at Ctrip.

China sees thriving inbound tourism during National Day holiday

China sees thriving inbound tourism during National Day holiday

China sees thriving inbound tourism during National Day holiday

China sees thriving inbound tourism during National Day holiday

The continuing conflict between Israel and Lebanon has not only displaced people from their homes, but also pushed farmers off the land they depend on in the south of the country, as an estimated 80 percent have stopped working due to damaged fields, unsafe roads, and fears of contamination.

Despite Israel and Lebanon agreeing last Thursday to a three-week extension of an original 10-day ceasefire deal which began between in mid-April, deadly Israeli strikes have continued to hit southern parts of Lebanon, resulting in numerous deaths and widespread damage.

Controversy has also arisen over the Israeli military's efforts to extend the territories it occupies in southern Lebanon as part of what it terms as a "security buffer zone" along the border.

Lebanese residents have been warned against returning to their homes within this area, with Israel announcing that anyone who approaches this so-called "Yellow Line" will be considered a threat.

However, in spite of these difficulties, some farmers in the southern city of Tyre are trying to keep their connection to the soil alive.

A group of women have been bravely planting on borrowed land, because their own is now too dangerous to reach. Here, there are growing herbs such as basil, sage, rosemary, mint and thyme in neat rows.

For displaced local farmer Zainab, who hails from the border town of Naqoura, this field is not home, but it is where she has found a way to keep going amid times of crisis.

"I was displaced from my own land. I'm a farmer. I used to farm my land in Naqoura, so I started farming here, too. As you know, most of us from the south are farmers. Agriculture is the main thing we do," she said.

Across southern Lebanon, roughly 80 percent of local farmers have stopped working either because they are unable to reach their land or they fear it is no longer safe.

More than 17,000 farmers have been affected, with their fields damaged by shelling, fires, bulldozing, and contamination.

Officials have condemned the Israeli attacks on the region which have put the livelihood of ordinary people at risk and have cost some innocent civilian their lives.

"Under the recent acts of aggression, there was difficulty for the farmers to get to their lands. Most of the times they would even be targeted. I know some farms owners who hired workers to harvest the crops -- as a result, unfortunately, some of them were killed," said Alwan Charafeddine, the Deputy Mayor of Tyre City.

Agriculture is a key part of the Lebanese economy, but also the backbone of daily life in the south of the country. The region produces staples like olives, citrus, tobacco and vegetables, and when farmers are forced off their land, the consequences are felt across the country.

"I left the land. I left the crops I had planted, which, according to the season, were cabbage, cauliflower, fava beans and peas. More than leaving the land, I left my whole life behind, and now I'm here," said Zainab.

"After the targeting of the bridge that connected Tyre with Sidon, it became hard to get many of the supplies we used to get through there, which has caused the prices of agricultural products to rise," said the deputy mayor.

But amid these hard times, a glimmer of hope remains. On land belonging to local authorities, the Seeds of Tyre project is giving displaced women work, a source of income, and an outlet which allows them to pass on their skills.

Using donated seeds of aromatic herbs, they are producing basil and rose water and orange blossom, generating a small economy which is taking root in the middle of a much larger loss.

For Zainab, working the soil here offers some stability at a time of conflict, with this temporary field helping farmers tick over as they wait for safe access to their own land.

Farmers turn to temporary fields as swathes of land destroyed in southern Lebanon