72-hour visa-free policy prompts improvements to welcome travelers

Travelers at Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport can enjoy Mapo tofu and have a shower before they board their flight as part of the improved services at the airport's restored international terminal.

China's western portal city Chengdu, in Sichuan province, has attracted more overseas visitors since it brought in the 72-hour visa-free policy last September, said an airport official.

The airport has improved its facilities to provide better services to international guests.

After five months of construction, the first-class cabin and tax-free shops in the airport's international terminal were completed in late April.

The new first-class cabin can host 140 people at one time. It is the only first-class cabin to provide cooked meals and showers in central west China, an airport official said.

The official told reporters that the meals included some renowned Sichuan cuisines such as Mapo tofu and spicy diced chicken with peanuts.

The cabin follows a Sichuan theme, with folding screens decorated with the pictures of pandas and Sichuan embroidery, both hallmarks of the province's culture.

French windows give travelers views outside and the new 400-square-meter tax-free shop was inspired by counterparts in Hong Kong, Taipei and Singapore.

The shop offers perfume, cosmetics, tobacco and wine as well as food, health-care products and travel accessories.

More top perfume and cosmetics brands are due to be added to the shop's range, according to an airport official.

An airport spokesman told reporters that they supported the 72-hour visa-free policy through commercials and by improving hardware construction and elevating the management level.

Chengdu was the fourth Chinese city, after Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou, to implement the 72-hour visa-free policy for foreigners.

In 2013, the overall capacity of Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport reached more than 500,000 tons.

There were altogether more than 250,532 airplanes taking off and landing from the airport, with the daily average number of the airplanes surpassing 687. To date, Chengdu has opened 73 international flights. Statistics from the Exit-Entry Administration Department of Chengdu Municipal Public Security Bureau showed that between September and March, 3,029 foreigners passed through Chengdu customs.

Most of them were from the United States, Britain and Germany.

A spokesman for the exit-entry administration department said the bureau made preparations for the new policy. He said these included training the city's public security departments and hotels and the launch of a round-the-clock hotline in both English and Chinese to answer questions about the policy.

The department promoted the policy through visits to foreign accumulated communities, companies and colleges, brochures sent to foreigners in Chengdu and messages broadcast on local TV stations.

The spokesman said the department also helped foreigners who have to stay longer than 72 hours in Chengdu by processing all the permits needed within three working days.

xuxiao@chinadaily.com.cn

Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport offers better services to visitors from home and abroad. Huang Jinguo / For China Daily

(China Daily 06/19/2014 page18)