Since 2023, the mainland has concluded mutual visa exemption agreements with many countries, and implemented a unilateral visa exemption policy for some countries. The 72 or 144-hour transit visa exemption policy has also been extended to 54 countries. This kind of open-door policy has attracted many foreign tourists who are already curious about China to observe and experience it for themselves. British travel bloggers Ryan and Ben are one of them.
Thanks to the Chinese government's visa-free policy, in early May this year, British travel bloggers Ryan and Ben flew directly from Thailand to Beijing. In six days, from the modern CBD to the classical and traditional Panjiayuan, they checked in one by one, from buses and subways, shared bicycles, special snacks, milk tea desserts. Through the video, they also shared their true feelings about this trip to China to overseas netizens.
Ryan, UK Travel Blogger: We were walking down the street and I noticed that there were a lot of public toilets here. None of the other countries I've been to have encountered such a dense concentration of public toilets.
British travel blogger Ben: Petty theft is also very, very rare, and there are almost zero serious crimes against tourists. Beijing is much safer than Paris, London or other similar cities.
Ryan, British Travel Blogger: We've finally figured out what this is, and we see them everywhere. They are shared charging treasures, as long as you scan this QR code, there will be a shared charging treasure pop up, and then you can charge your mobile phone!
Ben, who has returned to the UK, recently gave us a remote video interview. He used three key words to describe the feelings of this trip to China.
British travel blogger Ben: First of all, friendliness, everyone was friendly and willing to help us. Then there's security, and in China we feel very safe. The other thing is surprising, what we heard before is one thing, and what we see with our own eyes is another. Our true feelings surprise us, compared to what the (Western) media tell us.
Six days is not a long time, and Ryan and Ben have a full schedule to make the most of their experience in China. They visit local supermarkets, sample coffee and ice cream from Chinese chains, and even walk the streets of Beijing at 3 or 4 a.m.
British travel blogger Ben: The flight arrived late at night and we walked quite a long distance (to get to the hotel) but we felt very safe.
On Ryan and Ben's overseas social media platforms, their videos in Beijing have received many likes from foreign netizens.
An American netizen who has lived in China for 14 years left a message, saying, "Enjoy, don't worry, you will be safe." ”
Some British netizens said, "I like your China series so much, China looks very modern and the price is reasonable." Imagine if you could buy an ice cream tube for only 22p (about 2 yuan) in the UK, and the people who bought it could line up from the UK to China! ”
British travel blogger Ben: We're already planning our next trip to China. We want to see Shanghai and then Chengdu to see the pandas. What we are most looking forward to is the opportunity to visit rural areas in China. For us, we found China to be a very nice place, a really good country. We would like to come back to China to learn more about [China].
Source: CCTV news client