\tTourists admire the skyline in Shanghai, which allows foreigners to visit for up to 72 hours without a visa. Since the new policy was implemented in January, some 8,300 foreign transit passengers have made use of the policy, according to the city's border inspection department.<\/p>\n
\tShanghai authorities said the city's policy allowing citizens from 45 nations to stay up to 72 hours in the city without a visa has noticeably boosted tourism.<\/p>\n
\tBut business insiders said a lot more can be done to bring more transit passengers to the city amid an overall drop in inbound visitors this year.<\/p>\n
\tAccording to figures provided by the border inspection departments at the city's Hongqiao and Pudong airports, the number of passengers benefiting from the policy has continued to rise since the beginning of this year, when tourists from countries including the United States, Japan, France and Australia were permitted a 72-hour visa-free stay if they hold third-country visas and plane tickets.<\/p>\n
\tBy Sept 1, around 8,300 foreigners had benefited from the policy, the inspection departments said.<\/p>\n
\tIn August alone, about 1,300 air passengers took advantage of the scheme — the most in a single month and a 95.2 percent rise from January.<\/p>\n
\tUS citizens made the most use of the policy, with 1,200 making three-day visa-free stays in Shanghai in the first eight months.<\/p>\n
\tMore than 670 tourists from European countries that have frequent exchanges with China, including Germany, France and the United Kingdom, also benefited from the policy during the period.<\/p>\n
\tShanghai is also trying to consolidate its status as a global hot spot by allowing visitors arriving by passenger liners to spend three days in the city without a visa.<\/p>\n
\tPending approval from the central government, the city plans to extend the policy to cruise terminals, and set up duty-free stores and tax-refund outlets there.<\/p>\n
\tBut tourism experts said on Thursday that the rise in transit passengers is lower than they expected.<\/p>\n
\tThe weak global economy has deterred many potential travelers from Japan and South Korea, with tourist arrivals from Japan falling by 54.5 percent and from South Korea by 22.3 percent in the first six months.<\/p>\n
\tNow four cities, Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou and Chengdu, employ the 72-hour visa-free policy.<\/p>\n
\tTransit passengers arriving at Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport are allowed to stay in the Guangdong provincial capital for three days without a visa and to visit anywhere in the province during their trips.<\/p>\n
\tKunming, capital of Yunnan province, plans to be the fifth.<\/p>\n