NANNING - The number of people passing through the China-Vietnam border port of Dongxing in South China's Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region reached 9.97 million in 2017, up 28 percent year-on-year.

Dongxing is the third largest land port in China, and the only port connecting China and Vietnam via both land and sea. Since 2013, China has allowed foreigners to conduct visa procedures at the city.

Chen Xiao, an official with the city's border control office, said the city had established a shopping street for border trade commodities and a pilot duty-free shopping mall, with tourists allowed buying duty-free products worth up to 8,000 yuan ($1,252) every day in border trade.

Officials with Dongxing tourism bureau said the city launched self-driving tours to Mong Cai in Vietnam in November 2016. In January 2017, the two cities jointly promoted tourism in several Chinese and Vietnamese cities.

Dongxing has also launched online appointment system for border tourism applications. About 192,000 tourists traveled to Vietnam from Dongxing with border tourism permits during the first 11 months in 2017, up 15.7 percent year-on-year.