5月1日起59國人員海南入境旅遊免籤

China will offer greater visa-free access to tourists from 59 countries arriving in Hainan province starting May 1 in a move to support the island's reform and opening-up, the State Immigration Administration announced last Wednesday.

國家移民管理局上週三宣佈，爲支持海南全面深化改革開放，自5月1日起，我國將在海南省爲59個國家的遊客提供更多的入境免籤服務。

Under the new policy, group and individual tourists from 59 countries can visit Hainan visa-free and stay there for up to 30 days, on the condition they book their tour through travel agencies.

根據這項新出臺的政策，通過旅行社，59國的團體或個人遊客將在海南享受入境旅遊免籤政策，免簽入境停留時間最多30天。

Countries benefiting from the policy include Russia, the UK, France, Germany, the US, South Korea and Japan.

這一免籤政策將惠及俄羅斯、英國、法國、德國、美國、韓國和日本等國。

Hainan has offered a 15-day visa-free stay for group tourists from 21 countries since 2000, and added another five countries to the list in 2010.

自2000年起，海南已經爲來自21個國家的團隊遊客提供了15天的免簽證停留，並在2010年又增加了另外5個國家。

"By extending the policy to individuals and the stay to up to 30 days, the government aims to attract more international tourists, nurture the tourism industry and meet the needs of foreign individuals," said the administration's vice head Qu Yunhai.

國家移民管理局副局長曲雲海表示：“將政策擴大到個人並延長至30天，政府的目的是吸引更多的國際遊客，促進旅遊業發展，滿足外國個人遊客的需求。”

The island has become a famous tropical resort for overseas tourists in recent years, with the number of overseas tourists exceeding 1.1 million in 2017, up nearly 50 percent year on year.

近年來，對海外遊客來說，海南島已成爲一個著名的熱帶度假勝地，2017年海外遊客的數量超過了110萬，同比增長近50%。

"The policy will inject vitality into Hainan and bring us closer to our goal of becoming a world-class destination," said Sun Ying, director of the provincial tourism development commission.

海南省旅遊發展委員會主任孫穎表示：“這一新政策將爲海南注入活力，使我們更接近成爲世界級旅遊目的地的目標。”