The China Pavilion drew widespread attention as it opened at the 2025 World Travel Market, or WTM, in London on Tuesday, 4th November 2025.

Held at ExCeL London in the United Kingdom’s capital, the annual event is one of the world’s largest and most influential tourism trade fairs, bringing together more than 5,000 exhibitors from over 180 countries and regions.

Themed “Chinese Tourism: Innovation, Integration & Sustainable Growth,” the pavilion spans more than 400 square metres, nearly double the area of last year’s display and setting a new record. A corridor built with bamboo connects the stands of 13 provincial-level regions and eight airline companies, all showcasing rich Chinese cultural elements.

Wang Qi, minister of Chinese embassy in the UK, highlighted the nation’s growing role in global tourism, saying it has the world’s largest domestic tourism market and is both a major source of outbound travelers and an increasingly attractive destination for international visitors.

He pointed to a series of recent measures aimed at improving inbound travel, including expanded visa-free entry, tax refund services, convenient mobile payment systems, and multilingual support, which are all designed to make travel in China easier for visitors.

The measures are already having visible results. In the third quarter of this year, more than 7 million foreign travelers entered China visa-free, accounting for 72.2 percent of all foreign arrivals — a 48.3 percent increase year-on-year.

“We want international friends to experience China more easily, more comfortably, and more closely,” Wang said.

Zhang Li, director of the China National Tourist Office in London, emphasized the significance of tourism in strengthening international understanding.

“Tourism is a bridge of friendship,” he said. “People-to-people exchanges are the most sincere and direct way to bring hearts closer. When we travel, we not only see landscapes, we meet each other.”

Zhang Li, director of the China National Tourist Office London, said tourism serves as a vital bridge for mutual understanding, friendship, and peace, emphasizing that people-to-people exchanges are the most direct way to strengthen international ties.

Evelyne Freiermuth, government affairs director of the World Travel & Tourism Council, said China’s vitality and innovation are injecting new impetus into the global tourism ecosystem.

Zhang Weiguo, director-general of the China Center of International Cultural Exchange and Tourism Promotion, said China is actively integrating into the global tourism landscape through forward-looking policies that not only stimulate domestic market vitality but also create new opportunities for the global tourism industry.

Louise Bryce, partnerships director of Visit Britain, underlined the importance of Chinese tourists to the British tourism market. She said Britain and China both boast rich cultural and tourism resources and are strengthening cooperation in air travel, regional development, and cultural exchange to promote mutual visits and deeper ties.

China is showcasing its largest-ever delegation at this year’s WTM – around 200 representatives from 13 provinces, municipalities and regions, joined by 56 travel firms and eight major airlines – in a united effort to promote Chinese culture, tourism and aviation.

The country’s expanding visa-free list has become one of the major talking points at WTM, widely seen as a catalyst for global tourism recovery.

The event comes just days after Beijing announced an extension of its visa-free entry policy for more than 40 countries until the end of 2026.

This year’s WTM runs from Tuesday to Thursday.