With the visa exemption this time and the recent opening and resumption of direct flights from China to Latin America such as Mexico, Brazil, and Cuba, it will significantly reduce the time and funding costs for tourists. It is expected that more Chinese tourists will start their Latin American journey.
According to CCTV news, on the evening of May 4th local time, Cuban Tourism Minister Juan Carlos Garcia announced that Chinese citizens holding regular passports can enter Cuba without a visa.
Half an hour after the release of the visa free news, the search popularity for keywords such as hotels and air tickets in Cuba on the Ctrip platform increased by more than 40% compared to the previous day. Residents in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangdong, Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Tianjin, Shandong, Fujian and other places showed a higher enthusiasm for searching Cuba.
At present, there are no direct flights from China to Cuba, but on May 17th, Air China will resume the Beijing Madrid Havana route, which is also the only route between China and Cuba.
On the Qunar platform, the current price for the Beijing Madrid Havana route is around 8200 yuan, with two flights per week and a return price of 5700 yuan.
In addition, Air China resumed its Beijing Madrid S ã o Paulo route on April 28th, which is known as the world’s longest route with a total distance of approximately 17500 kilometers and a total stop time of 23 hours and 20 minutes.
China Southern Airlines recently opened a new direct route from Shenzhen to Mexico City, with a total length of 14147 kilometers and a flight time of about 16 hours, making it one of the longer routes in the world.
Since the beginning of this year, multiple countries have implemented visa free entry policies for China, which have effectively promoted the growth of entry and exit. During this year’s May Day holiday, the number of flight bookings for multiple visa free destinations exceeded that of 2019. For example, during the holiday, the number of flight bookings for flights to Thailand and Malaysia exceeded 30%, the number of flight bookings for flights to Singapore and Georgia increased by more than twice, and the number of flight bookings for flights to Kazakhstan and the United Arab Emirates increased by more than twice.
Qin Jing, Vice President of Ctrip Group, stated that due to limitations such as distance and cost, Cuba is not a popular destination for Chinese tourists to leave the country. But Cuba, as well as Latin America such as Mexico and Brazil, have unique cultural and natural landscapes that are highly attractive to tourists. With the visa exemption this time and the recent opening and resumption of direct flights from China to Latin America such as Mexico, Brazil, and Cuba, it will significantly reduce the time and funding costs for tourists. It is expected that more Chinese tourists will start their Latin American journey.