-
中国政府上个月宣布将对外国游客全面重新开放边境，但高昂的价格和缺乏直达航班使人们难以预订机票。62岁的刘伟最近在当地的一家旅行社花了几个小时来获得前往中国的长期签证，而从圣地亚哥到大连的往返商务舱机票价格在6000到10000美元之间。
-
近三年来，中国有一些世界上最严厉的旅行限制，对商务旅行者、游客和中国公民的亲属封锁了边界。设法进入中国的海外游客有时被迫隔离长达两个月，一些旅行者甚至不得不接受肛拭子Covid测试。大学关闭了与大陆的学术交流，跨国公司将其供应链转移到其他国家。
-
12月，中国突然结束了其 "动态清零 "政策，并开始放松边境限制，取消了对国际入境人员的检疫要求。上个月，中国政府恢复了旅游签证的发放，并表示将恢复大流行期间暂停的10年期签证。来自Expedia.com的数据显示，从美国到中国大陆旅游的搜索比一个月前猛增40%。
-
住在新泽西州泽西城的52岁的Jessie Huang希望能去看望她86岁的父亲，他住在中国上海。她一直无法找到低于2,000美元的机票，而且已经七年没有见到她的父亲了。她通过微信与父亲保持联系，由于航空公司迟迟不增加飞往中国的航班，以及美国和中国之间的地缘政治紧张局势，机票的价格一直居高不下。
-
美国和中国大陆之间的直飞航班很难获得，而国内航空公司由于成本优势，正在游说中国航空公司使用与他们相同的航线。许多国家的公民进入中国还必须进行PCR测试，由于边境政策的突然变化，领事馆正在努力处理签证。
-
5月初的假日假期，团体旅游的预订量激增，商务旅行者一直在填补进入大陆的高级舱位。中国已经为外国商务官员铺设了红地毯，对43家美国公司的调查显示，50%的CEO计划在2021年上半年访问中国。企业主对中国的重新开放充满希望，并渴望与投资者和合作伙伴重聚。
-
The Chinese government announced that it would fully reopen its borders to foreign travelers last month, but the high prices and lack of direct flights have made it difficult for people to book tickets. Liu Wei, 62, recently spent hours at a local travel agency to obtain a long-term visa to China, and round-trip business-class tickets from San Diego to Dalian cost between $6,000 and $10,000.
-
For nearly three years, China had some of the harshest travel restrictions in the world, sealing off its borders to business travelers, tourists and relatives of Chinese nationals. Overseas visitors who did manage to enter China were sometimes forced to quarantine for up to two months, and some travelers even had to undergo anal swab Covid testing. Universities shut down academic exchanges with the mainland, and multinational companies shifted their supply chains to other countries.
-
In December, China abruptly ended its “zero Covid” policy and began to ease border restrictions, removing quarantine requirements for international arrivals. Last month, the Chinese government resumed issuing tourist visas and said it would reinstate the 10-year visas suspended during the pandemic. Data from Expedia.com showed that searches for travel from the United States to mainland China jumped 40 percent from a month earlier.
-
Jessie Huang, a 52 year old living in Jersey City, NJ, is hoping to visit her 86 year old father who lives off the coast of Shanghai in China. She has been unable to find tickets under $2,000, and has not seen her father in seven years. She keeps in touch with him through WeChat, and the cost of tickets have stayed high due to airlines being slow to ramp up flights to China, and geopolitical tensions between the US and China.
-
Direct flights between the US and mainland China are hard to get, and domestic carriers are lobbying for Chinese airlines to use the same routes as them due to the cost advantage. A negative PCR test is also mandatory for citizens of many countries to enter China, and consulates are struggling to process visas due to the sudden changes in border policies.
-
Bookings for group tours have surged for the early May holiday break, and business travelers have been filling up the premium cabins into the mainland. China has rolled out the red carpet for foreign business officials, and a survey of 43 American companies showed that 50% of CEOs planned to visit China in the first half of 2021. Business owners are hopeful about China’s reopening and are eager to reunite with investors and partners.