China's Hainan to promote cultural, tourism cooperation with France

This aerial photo taken on Oct. 1, 2023 shows tourists going sailing in Sanya, south China's Hainan Province. (Xinhua/Guo Cheng)

HAIKOU, Jan. 28 (Xinhua) -- Hainan, south China's tropical island province, aims to promote cultural and tourism cooperation with France in honor of the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and France this year.

Celebrating the 60th anniversary of bilateral diplomatic ties, China and France will jointly host the Year of Culture and Tourism to provide cultural experiences to the two peoples.

Hainan, with diverse tourism resources, will launch a series of activities, such as promoting the establishment of a European center for Hainan tourism and cultural exchange in France and holding tourism promotion activities, to enhance bilateral cooperation in culture and tourism, said the provincial department of tourism, culture, radio, television and sports.

Europe is an important overseas tourist source market for Hainan. About 410,000 European tourists, including 7,381 French tourists, visited Hainan in 2019, said the department, adding that the number of inbound tourists from France and other European countries has great space for growth.

China is implementing a unilateral visa-free policy for ordinary passport holders from France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and Malaysia on a trial basis. From Dec. 1, 2023, to Nov. 30, 2024, holders of ordinary passports from these six countries may enter China visa-free for business, tourism, visiting relatives and friends and transit for no more than 15 days.

The visa-free policy will create more opportunities for direct exchanges between Hainan and Europe. In the future, the two sides will deepen cooperation in tourism promotion, cultural exchanges and cultural heritage protection and inheritance, according to the department.

China aims to build Hainan into an international tourism and consumption center by 2025 and a globally influential tourism and consumption destination by 2035.