China's expanded visa-free policies have sparked interest among international travelers for traditional Chinese culture and fueled a surge in local cultural tourism.
In the first 11 months of 2024, China welcomed 29.218 million foreign visitors, with 17.446 million entering visa-free, up 123.3 percent year-on-year.
This surge is leading to a growing demand for immersive cultural experiences. China, home to 1,557 nationally recognized intangible cultural heritage items, offers them opportunities to explore these traditions.
In Quanzhou City, east China's Fujian Province, string puppet show has been a popular attraction for international visitors.
"The plate spinners and the puppet that balances the jug on their head, the lion dance and the ribbon dance also. I like seeing these things," said an American visitor.
"I think it's very interesting. I've never seen a doll like this before. And I think it's a very imaginative way. See what the culture sort of outfits were like. I really like it," said an Indonesian student participating in a doll clothes-making workshop
A survey by the China Tourism Academy revealed that over 60 percent of respondents cited experiencing Chinese culture as their primary reason for visiting. World Heritage sites, the four ancient capitals, and intangible cultural heritage items like paper cutting, flower headband, and shadow puppetry are proving to be major draws for international tourists.
Shaolin Kung Fu, one of the most famous traditional martial arts in China, is a globally recognized symbol of Chinese culture. The Shaolin Temple in Quanzhou has seen an influx of international visitors eager to witness and learn this martial art.
"Because martial arts transcend borders. It's a body language understood worldwide," said Li Gang, head coach of Quanzhou Shaolin Temple Warrior Monks Troupe.
Eros, an Italian living in the city for nearly a decade, is a devoted Shaolin Kung Fu enthusiast. He attends performances every month and shared photos on social media to share the moment with his family and friends.
Thanks to the visa-free policy implemented for Italians by the end of 2023, Eros's mother and friends were finally able to visit him and experience Chinese culture.
"If you watch the show, you can just feel the power, the energy. I needed to send my passport for my visa to Chinese consulate. So, you need to plan in this one month before. You don't need to follow this rule now. And you can easily come to visit China," he shared.
China's visa-free policies boost cultural tourism, with Kung Fu leading the way for global visitors
China will continuously build a robust domestic market to bolster its economy and counter external challenges in accordance with the requirements and arrangement from the annual Central Economic Work Conference, which put domestic demand at the forefront of eight key tasks for next year's economic work, according to experts.
The tone-setting conference was held in Beijing from Wednesday to Thursday in which the Chinese leadership decided priorities for the economic work in 2026.
Over the past four years, domestic demand has contributed an average of 86.4 percent to China's economic growth, according to the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), China's top economic planner.
"The top priority is to expand domestic demand as the key reason for this is that our demand is relatively weak. The first step here is figuring out how to increase consumption," said Chen Binkai, vice president of Central University of Finance and Economics.
Consumption has continued to play a leading role in the country's economic growth this year. In the first three quarters, final consumption expenditure contributed 53.5 percent to economic growth, an increase of 9 percentage points compared to the whole of last year.
The annual Central Economic Work Conference proposed that in 2026, a special campaign to boost consumption will be implemented in depth, the supply of high-quality goods and services will be expanded, policies on new and emerging industries will be optimized, unreasonable restrictions in the consumption field will be eliminated, and the potential of service consumption will be unleashed.
"Previously, much of the consumption we have encouraged is for manufactured goods. However, the growth rate of our service sector is not as ideal as that of the manufacturing sector. Therefore, increasing some investment to encourage consumption in the service sector may play a better role in stabilizing growth and expanding domestic demand," said Huang Qunhui, a researcher of the Institute of Economics under the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.
Experts said that income is the primary factor determining consumption, and only by increasing residents' disposable income, can their consumption capacity be improved.
They also said that the conference, while emphasizing the promotion of consumption, also clearly pointed out the need to formulate and implement a plan to increase the income of urban and rural residents.
"The Third Plenary Session [of the 20th CPC Central Committee] mentioned the need to increase the proportion of residents' income, specifically the proportion of labor compensation within that income. The Fourth Plenary Session [of the 20th CPC Central Committee] further proposed implementing a specific income-increasing plan for urban and rural residents. Of course, consumption is not solely an income issue. We need to strengthen basic public services and improve our social security fund. If these issues are further improved and optimized, and residents have higher incomes, they will be more willing to spend more on consumption, especially on development-oriented consumption," said Huang.
Expanding domestic demand remains top priority for China's economic work in 2026: experts
