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Visa waiver boosts Beijing visits

Dai Bin, professor of tourism at Beijing International Studies University, said the policy will help increase spending by overseas visitors.

According to the Beijing Port Office, the international airport received more than 7.06 million visits in January, a year-on-year increase of 9.2 percent.

The amount of outbound and inbound tourists during the month exceeded 1.79 million visits, a year-on-year increase of 13.7 percent, it said.

Beginning in 2013, the tourism commission has ramped up promotions across the world to attract tourists, including advertisements on CNN and The National Geographic Channel, and distributing information on its visa waiver policy at Chinese embassies and consulates.

Yang Jinsong, a professor of international tourism at the China Tourism Academy, said the rise in transit passengers is a good sign that Beijing's inbound tourism is recovering.

Still, Yang called the city a "struggling startup" compared with other destinations, including those in Southeast Asia, because China's inbound tourism market has been spotty in recent years. Many tourists have recently been more attracted to the Asian destinations of Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia.

About the broadcaster:

Nelly Min is an editor at China Daily with more than 10 years of experience as a newspaper editor and photographer. She has worked at major newspapers in the U.S., including the Los Angeles Times and the Detroit Free Press. She is also fluent in Korean.