A file photo shows the stage play Chongqing·1949 is being performed at the Chongqing 1949 Grand Theatre. (Photo/Sun Kaifang)

Chongqing - "Gunshots seemed to echo right next to my ear, and the shells practically shook the seats. The rotating stage made it possible to see the actors' micro-expressions in vivid detail... It was breathtaking. I walked away with a deeper understanding of the city's history."

On the evening of March 27, a Malaysian tourist emerged from the Chongqing 1949 Grand Theater, full of praise for the performance.

She admitted that her Chinese was somewhat limited and had initially worried she might not understand the play. But once inside, she was relieved to find that all signs and posters included English translations, allowing her to fully enjoy the experience.

In an effort to better accommodate international travelers, the Chongqing 1949 Grand Theater underwent a major upgrade this year, becoming a more "language-friendly" venue. Since the launch of the 240-hour visa-free transit policy on December 17 last year, the theater has welcomed nearly 20,000 foreign visitors.

And it’s not just this theater—other attractions like the Chongqing China Three Gorges Museum, the Karst Tourism Area in Wulong District, and high-end hotels (four-star and above) are also stepping up efforts to make the city more accessible to international tourists.

Simplifying customs procedures for faster entry

On March 28, the T3B terminal at Chongqing Jiangbei International Airport officially launched a three-day trial run. 

On the first day, over 420 passengers experienced the largest standalone satellite terminal in China's central and western regions. This also marks the full operation of the airport with its “3 terminals + 1 satellite terminal + 4 runways” layout, capable of handling an annual passenger throughput of 80 million, a cargo and mail throughput of 1.2 million tons, and 580,000 aircraft movements. The airport provides strong support for Chongqing's inbound tourism and ensures smooth entry.

The T3B terminal of Chongqing Jiangbei International Airport officially began its three-day trial operation on March 28, 2025. (Photo/Chongqing Jiangbei International Airport)

In addition to infrastructure improvements, Chongqing Customs has stepped up with professional and efficient services in response to the surge in inbound tourism, ensuring a smooth experience for international travelers.

Chongqing Jiangbei International Airport Customs has embraced cutting-edge technology to streamline customs clearance. The airport has enhanced its intelligent travel inspection system with features such as non-contact infrared temperature checks, radiation monitoring, automated passenger information recognition, and risk interception at health and quarantine checkpoints. As a result, most passengers can pass through swiftly and without issue.

At both the checked baggage sorting area and the hand luggage inspection points, advanced pre-screening X-ray machines, high-speed CT scanners, and remote image analysis systems have been deployed. These tools leverage early-stage machine inspection and intelligent image processing to reduce waiting times and improve baggage handling efficiency.

To further improve the experience, customs officials have optimized passenger flow by installing smart inspection equipment at checkpoints. Additional carry-on baggage lanes and portable translation devices have also been introduced, enabling “zero-delay” customs clearance for inbound travelers.

“Customs clearance was smooth and efficient—it saved a lot of time,” said Li Junxi, a tourist from Singapore.

In July last year, Chongqing launched a one-stop port visa application system tailored for inbound tourism.

This system uses OCR technology to automatically collect passport information, replacing manual entry with digital processing. Travel agencies can log in online and submit group information remotely, completing the entire visa application process in just one visit. This significantly reduces costs and time, improves data accuracy, and simplifies the entry process for foreign tourists visiting Chongqing.

“The system is well-designed and offers an excellent user experience,” noted several local travel agency representatives. “It has greatly improved the speed and accuracy of information collection, while significantly reducing submission time and workloads.”

Improving convenience in transportation and payment services

In addition to making it easy for tourists to arrive, ensuring they enjoy the experience is a key factor in encouraging them to come again.

Upon entering the Chongqing China Three Gorges Museum, visitors will find a multilingual service desk on the first floor, with clear signage in English, Korean, Japanese, and other languages.

To better serve foreign tourists, the museum has upgraded its reservation system, guiding facilities, and signage system. The official website now offers both Chinese and English versions, providing easy access to information such as opening hours and special exhibitions. Online reservations can be made using passports or foreign residence permits, with quick verification via on-site QR codes. Key points within the museum are equipped with signage in six languages: Chinese, English, Japanese, Korean, Spanish, and French.

Additionally, the museum has hired dedicated English-speaking guides and partnered with universities to recruit multilingual volunteers. On average, they provide over 100 hours of guided services daily. Special features like the "Culture Inquiry Corner" have been set up, creating a multi-dimensional service system, offering unique exhibitions, and organizing immersive experience activities to promote the charm of the Bayu culture across borders.

As one of Chongqing's flagship products for inbound tourism, the cruise-based Three Gorges tour has been working on enhancing its international service level for over 40 years.

Yangtze Miracle, newly refurbished in 2024, is the popular, spacious, and elegant luxury Yangtze vessel supervised by the team of Yangtze Gold Cruises. This ship features impressive design and decoration and incorporates numerous advanced technologies.

Notably, the staff-to-passenger ratio on this ship is 1:1.93, meaning each crew member (including service staff) serves fewer than two passengers. This is one of the best ratios among Yangtze River cruise ships, allowing for more personalized butler-style service.

However, aside from the high-quality tourist facilities, the international service level in the city's public spaces still faces some challenges. For example, the ticket reservation process at some scenic spots is complicated, and in some cases, there are no options for foreign passports; most restaurants do not provide bilingual menus, have not trained staff in English, and lack Western-style utensils; mobile payments, online ticketing, and shared bikes still present "barriers" for foreign tourists; many hotels do not offer Western cuisine or foreign currency exchange services, making it difficult to meet the needs of individual, personalized, and younger inbound tourists.

In response to these challenges, relevant departments and districts in the city have already taken action to continuously improve the convenience of inbound tourism services. For example, to promote payment service convenience, the city added 2,550 foreign card POS machines last year, achieving 153 percent of the target; 95 foreign currency exchange points were established, reaching 135 percent of the goal.

Yuzhong District has set up 24 tax refund shops as the first choice for foreign tourists visiting Chongqing, promoting duty-free consumption and creating a convenient and comfortable international shopping environment. Additionally, the district has introduced an innovative "immediate purchase and refund" system, allowing overseas tourists to claim their tax refund on the same day at participating stores by presenting their receipt and tax refund form.

Enhancing the international service experience 

Currently, 16 departments, including the Chongqing Municipal Commission of Culture and Tourism Development, the Foreign Affairs Office of Chongqing, the Municipal Commission of Economy and Information Technology, the city's Communications Administration, and the Chongqing Municipal Public Security Bureau, have jointly issued a plan to promote inbound tourism for 2024-2026. This plan focuses on problem-solving, collaboration, and innovative development, aiming to improve the overall service level and enhance the quality and efficiency of inbound tourism, said a Chongqing Municipal Commission of Culture and Tourism Development representative.

Chongqing will further optimize the group tourist visa policy at entry points, simplify the customs clearance process, enhance the convenience and experience of inbound tourism air travel, improve travel convenience, optimize communication services, and increase payment convenience.

According to the plan, the city will continue to focus on improving the shopping environment, launching language accessibility initiatives, enhancing the internationalization of cultural and tourism sites, promoting international tourism talent training, building international tourism service platforms, and strengthening safety and emergency management services to further elevate the international service level.

(Dai Xuelin, as an intern, also contributed to this report.)

(Chongqing Daily contributed to this report.)