Foreign influencers discover Guangdong under new visa-free policy

Video by Marina Vilchinskaia

China announced a significant relaxation of its visa-free transit  policy Dec. 17, extending the permitted stay for eligible foreign  travelers from the previous 72 and 144 hours to 240 hours, or 10 days.

Foreign travelers from 54 countries can now enter  China visa-free to visit 24 provinces, regions and municipalities,  including Guangdong.

The host is hosting the promotional conference for Guangdong's culture and tourism, which was held Dec. 16 in Guangzhou. Photos courtesy of Marina Vilchinskaia

In response, the Guangdong Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism hosted the "Discovery of Wonderful Guangdong" international travel merchants inspection activity from Dec. 16 to 20.

On the first day of the event, a promotional conference for Guangdong's culture and tourism was held in Guangzhou, where guests learned about Guangdong and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA).

This event was specifically organized to welcome the  peak travel season for the Spring Festival, inviting international  travel merchants and travel enthusiasts from around the world to  participate in a five-day tour, where they can experience the natural landscapes, local customs, and cultural heritage of Guangdong.

Participants were divided into several groups to  explore different cities and attractions in Guangdong. One of these  groups included influencers. They shared their impressions of exploring Guangdong on overseas social media platforms during these days.

The itinerary for the travel group included Route A: a tour of the fashionable GBA's changing and developing journey. The group visited Guangzhou, Dongguan, Shenzhen, and Jiangmen.

As part of a tour of Guangdong, a group of  tourists came to Shenzhen on Dec. 18-19. Blogger from Iran Pakniat  Parichehr came to the city for the first time and shared her first  impressions of Shenzhen: “On the way I'm coming here, I understand that this is a modern city with tall buildings and also nature. It's very beautiful.”

Instagram blogger Lev Cherepano records a vlog before visiting the Tencent building. 

In Shenzhen, foreign influencers explored three locations. Before visiting the first location - Tencent, Instagram blogger Leon (Lev Cherepano) excitedly noted: “I love it, I really want to visit it. I wanted to visit one in Beijing, but I didn't have any time. So I'm very excited!”

After visiting the tech giant Tencent, all the tourists were very impressed. Shenzhen Daily reporter and blogger Marina Vilchinskaia, who was also a participant  of the group, noted: "Tencent showed us the latest in technological  development that perhaps only Shenzhen has. I am so proud that I live in  this city, the city of innovations."

Then the group visited the tallest building in Shenzhen - Ping An International Finance Center in Futian. On the observation deck, they could see all the beauty of the city, as if in the palm of their hand. Another Instagram blogger Kapnin Artem, noted: “I really like it. This building was cool, and the view is also great."

The third location for tourists was the BYD company. Russian entrepreneur and influencer Ulianova Vlada is delighted with BYD: “This company is very technological. And I think now it's the first company on the electric car market. “

The "Discovery of Wonderful Guangdong" international travel merchants inspection activity ended Dec. 20. Over the course of five days, travelers from around the world visited some of the most popular places in Guangdong. During  this tour, many international influencers have already shared their  videos and posts about the province, promoting it abroad. Guangdong is  already ready to welcome international travelers for the Spring  Festival, especially with the new 240-hour or 10-day visa-free policy.