文章认为，中国最大的障碍是其几乎无现金、且高度本地化的线上系统所造成的摩擦。游客在购买火车票等简单任务上仍可能遇到困难，即使他们把国际 Visa 或 Mastercard 卡绑定到 Alipay 或 WeChat Pay，付款失败时也会出现问题。2023年，Alipay 和 Wechat Pay 允许外国访客连接国际银行卡，但体验仍不稳定，促使包括网信监管机构在内的11个机构制定了一项为期2年的框架，以消除障碍。文中指出，这将需要来自 Ant Group Co. 和 Tencent Holdings Ltd. 的更强支持，例如多语言机场服务站、试付款协助以及24小时热线。
这一问题影响重大，因为更好的通行便利可能会把外国入境人数推高到疫情前水平以上；然而，中国仍未恢复到2019年国际过夜游客的峰值，尽管去年边境出入境总量创下纪录。根据官方数据，2023年1月边境重开、经历3年关闭后，北京放宽签证规则，使用免签入境的访客数量去年上升了50%。文章最后指出，进一步扩大免签入境范围——可能包括美国人——会有帮助，但更大的考验在于中国能否展现开放姿态，并让基本旅行功能可靠到足以与其他目的地竞争；否则，即便政策有所改善，中国的旅游雄心仍将受到限制。
China is intensifying efforts to attract international tourists as part of a wider campaign to lift domestic spending, but officials still face significant barriers to turning policy into a smoother visitor experience. Last month, 9 government bodies led by the Commerce Ministry unveiled new measures to expand unilateral visa-free entry beyond the 50 countries already covered and to push major online platforms, including ride-hailing and food-delivery apps, to add more language options for users who cannot read Chinese. The push reflects a recognition that tourism is not just about entry rules, but also about whether travelers can navigate a digital economy built around local IDs, Chinese phone numbers, and domestic bank accounts.
The article argues that China’s biggest obstacle is the friction created by its near-cashless, highly localized online system. Tourists may still struggle with simple tasks such as buying train tickets, and even those who link international Visa or Mastercard cards to Alipay or WeChat Pay can run into problems when payments fail. In 2023, Alipay and Wechat Pay allowed foreign visitors to connect international cards, but the experience remained uneven, prompting 11 agencies, including the cyberspace regulator, to set out a 2-year framework to remove barriers. The piece says this will require stronger support from Ant Group Co. and Tencent Holdings Ltd., such as multilingual airport kiosks, trial-payment help, and 24-hour hotlines.
The stakes are high because better access could lift foreign arrivals above pre-pandemic levels, yet China has still not regained its 2019 peak for international overnight visitors, even though total border crossings hit a record last year. After borders reopened in January 2023 following a 3-year shutdown, Beijing loosened visa rules, and the number of visitors using visa-free entry rose 50% last year, according to official data. The article concludes that further expansion of visa-free access, potentially including Americans, would help, but the bigger test is whether China can project openness and make basic travel functions reliable enough to compete with other destinations; without that, the country’s tourism ambitions will remain constrained despite policy improvements.