China declared Australia as a unilaterally visa-free country June 17, sparking a surge in travel interest between the two nations.

According to data from China's international travel platform Trip.com by Ctrip, just half an hour after China's announcement of including Australia in its unilateral visa-free list, searches by Australian tourists for keywords related to "China" increased by over 80% compared to the previous day. Similarly, data from China's travel platform, Qunar, showed a surge of over 40% in flight searches for "Australia" after the announcement.

Data from Tourism Australia indicates that China is one of the most crucial international markets for Australia's tourism industry. Before the pandemic, China ranked first in terms of the number of inbound tourists and total spending in Australia.

Apart from Australia, since 2023, China has unilaterally waived visas for many countries. Last week, New Zealand was newly included in China's list of unilateral visa-free countries. China has also implemented unilateral visa-free policies for nations like France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland, Ireland, Hungary, Austria, Belgium, Luxembourg, among others, and has reciprocal visa exemptions with countries like Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, and Georgia.

Moreover, on May 15, the Chinese National Immigration Administration announced a comprehensive visa-free policy for foreign tourist groups traveling on cruises entering all coastal ports in China. This initiative underscores China's commitment to facilitating tourism and promoting international exchanges through simplified visa policies.