A Chinese diver swims among coral and fish in Saipan, one of the leading US destinations for Chinese tourists. Zhneg Chen/China Daily

Rising Chinese visitor volumes to the United States are expected to surge even more in 2016, following the liberalization of visa rules a year ago. Yang Feiyue and Erik Nilsson report.

The US-China Tourism Year starting next month will likely make the swelling stream of Chinese washing over US shores a torrent.

So will the increase of flights. And tour discounts.

Chinese visa applications increased 41 percent since the announcement during the APEC conference in Beijing in November 2014 that China and the United States would adopt a reciprocal multi-entry 10-year tourism visa policy.

Nearly 99 percent of applicants get visas, says Yan Xin, publicity manager of China's largest online travel agency, Ctrip.

US officials have processed about 2.5 million Chinese visas since the APEC announcement, Jing Daily reports.

Over 560,000 Chinese visited the United States in the first quarter of this year, a fifth more than the same period last year. About 2.2 million Chinese visited in 2014, spending $24 billion, reports the US' official tourism promotion organ, Brand USA. Chinese rank No 2 in US visitor spending, Jing Daily reports.

"Experienced" Chinese travelers, at 17 percent, said the United States topped their travel wish list if costs weren't a concern, CNN reported in January 2014. The visa policy announced 10 months later has proven the magic wand to make their American dreams come true.

What this has already meant is that Chinese are traveling beyond gateways like San Francisco, Los Angeles and New York.

That said, LA expects double-digit increases over the next three years, during which NYC expects 1.2 million Chinese.