Shenzhen, China’s southern tech hub, has experienced a significant rise in overseas visitors this year, driven largely by the country’s expansion of visa-free entry and the ongoing integration of the Greater Bay Area, which connects Guangdong province, Hong Kong, and Macau.
According to state broadcaster CCTV, Shenzhen’s international airport recorded over 152,000 visa-free entries by foreign nationals in 2025, marking a 160.3% year-on-year increase. Total foreign passenger entries rose by 54.6% to 531,000. The city has become increasingly popular not only among visitors from China’s two special administrative regions but also among tourists from Malaysia, South Korea, Japan, Vietnam, and Singapore.
To accommodate this growing demand, Shenzhen will launch a direct flight to Dubai in July, with several new international routes to urban centres like Vientiane, Osaka, Singapore, Tokyo, Bangkok, and Hanoi added earlier this year.
Renowned as a technology powerhouse and manufacturing hub, Shenzhen’s appeal lies in its proximity to Hong Kong, modern infrastructure, and affordability. Marc Guyon, founder of Hong Kong-based Club France International, praised the city as “fun, modern, and less expensive,” making it a popular destination for both leisure and business.
Highlighting Shenzhen’s vibrant appeal, YouTube star IShowSpeed, who has 39.5 million followers, hosted a five-hour live stream from the city in early April, which amassed 8.7 million views.
China has eased entry requirements since late 2023, introducing visa waivers for a broader range of countries to revive tourism following three years of pandemic-related travel restrictions. Notably, the 240-hour visa-free transit policy, launched at the end of last year, has significantly bolstered tourism, though figures have yet to reach pre-pandemic levels.
In 2024, the number of travellers entering China through visa-free entry rose by 112% to 20.1 million. Overall, 610 million inbound and outbound trips were recorded last year, of which approximately 65 million involved foreign visitors — an 83% increase from the previous year.
Despite the uptick, numbers still fall short of pre-pandemic figures; in 2019, foreigners made up nearly 98 million of 670 million cross-border trips. Nonetheless, Shenzhen’s robust tourism growth underscores the city’s pivotal role in China’s post-pandemic recovery.
-South China Morning Post
