Spending patterns among China's inbound travelers are shifting toward card-based transactions, experiential and everyday scenarios, underscoring the nation's progress in improving bank card acceptance and payment convenience, said a recent report by the World Tourism Alliance.

世界旅游联盟发布的最新报告指出，中国入境游客的消费模式正转向以银行卡支付为主，并更多集中于沉浸式体验和日常消费场景，这凸显了中国在提升银行卡受理环境和支付便利性方面取得的显著进展。

It said experiencing Chinese culture is increasingly the primary motivation for foreign visitors. This growing appetite for cultural depth is driving a shift from "checklist sightseeing" to "immersive experiences", making China's cultural treasure trove a key driver of inbound tourism growth.
报告称，体验中国文化正成为越来越多外国游客的首要动机。这种对文化深度的渴望，正促使游客从“打卡式观光”转向“沉浸式体验”，中国丰富的文化资产因此成为入境旅游增长的重要推动力。

The trend reflects ongoing enhancements to China's card acceptance environment. The report noted that coverage among key merchants reached 99 percent by September 2024. Moreover, tax refund efficiency has also improved significantly. The State Taxation Administration has rolled out "immediate tax refund upon purchase" services since May, drastically cutting refund processing times and enhancing shopping experiences.
这一趋势反映出中国银行卡受理环境持续改善。报告指出，截至2024年9月，重点商户的银行卡受理覆盖率已达99%。此外，退税效率也显著提升。国家税务总局自5月起推行“即买即退”服务，大幅缩短退税处理时间，显著提升购物体验。

The National Bureau of Statistics said China welcomed 132 million inbound tourists in 2024, marking a 60.8 percent year-on-year increase, with foreign visitors accounting for 26.94 million of these arrivals.
国家统计局表示，2024年中国入境游客达到1.32亿人次，同比增长60.8%，其中外国游客达2694万人次。

Between the third quarter of 2024 and the second quarter of 2025, Malaysia, Singapore, Australia, South Korea, Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States emerged as the top source markets for inbound spending. Malaysia, Australia and Singapore posted standout year-on-year growth rates — each exceeding 50 percent, said the WTA.
世界旅游联盟称，在2024年第三季度至2025年第二季度期间，马来西亚、新加坡、澳大利亚、韩国、德国、英国和美国成为入境游客消费的主要来源市场。其中，马来西亚、澳大利亚和新加坡表现尤其突出，同比增幅均超过50%。

Shopping stood out with a nearly 90 percent rise in transaction value. The surge was driven primarily by a sharp increase in the number of credit and debit cards used, while average spending per card remained stable — signaling a broader consumer base rather than higher individual outlays, the report said.
购物类消费尤为亮眼，交易额增长近90%。报告指出，这一增幅主要得益于使用信用卡和借记卡人数的显著上升，而单卡平均消费保持稳定——这表明增长来自更广泛的消费群体，而非个体消费金额的提高。

The transaction value of transportation spending has been growing strongly, with card usage surging, thanks to greater ease of foreign card payments in transit payment platform systems. Since early 2025, the number of inbound travelers using foreign bank cards for Tap-and-Go metro access has surged, with usage up nearly 60 percent in the second quarter compared to the previous quarter, the report said.
由于交通出行支付平台对外卡支付的便利性提升，交通类消费的交易额保持强劲增长，银行卡使用量大幅上升。报告称，自2025年初以来，使用外卡“即刷即走”乘坐地铁的入境游客数量激增，仅第二季度就比上一季度增长近60%。

Tap-and-Go is rapidly becoming a preferred payment method for inbound travelers using urban transit, marking a step forward in the internationalization of China's public transport services. Beyond Beijing and Shanghai, other major cities such as Chengdu, Sichuan province and Guangzhou, Guangdong province are also following suit. Major global card networks are also aggressively promoting this payment scenario, offering rebates and cashback incentives.
“即刷即走”正迅速成为入境游客使用城市公共交通的首选支付方式，这标志着中国公共交通服务的国际化迈出重要一步。除北京和上海外，成都、广州等主要城市也在加紧跟进。国际主要银行卡组织也积极推广这一支付场景，并提供返现、优惠等激励措施。

Dennis Chang, executive vice-president at Mastercard, said: "Today, as Mastercard expands our domestic operations in China, we are proud to upgrade our Pay Like a Local payment facilitation program; enable inbound tourists to make QR code payments in China through Alipay and WeChat Pay; expand the acceptance of overseas-issued bank cards; and allow riders to use Mastercard directly for seamless Tap-and-Go urban rail transit — thereby ensuring improved consumption experiences for international visitors."
万事达卡中国区执行副总裁张安表示：“随着万事达在中国拓展本地业务，我们很自豪地升级‘像本地人一样支付’计划；支持入境游客通过支付宝和微信支付扫码付款；扩大境外发行银行卡的受理范围；并允许乘客直接使用万事达卡实现顺畅的‘即刷即走’轨道交通出行，从而进一步提升国际游客的消费体验。”

Visa, another US-based card payment provider, said overseas tourists' spending in China saw explosive growth in the first half.
另一家美国银行卡支付机构维萨（Visa）表示，今年上半年境外游客在中国的消费出现爆发式增长。

The company said transaction volume of its tap-to-pay service saw rapid year-on-year growth, with Guangzhou's inbound tourist tap-to-pay transactions surging over 100 percent. In transportation scenarios, its tap-to-ride service gained widespread popularity, and around 60 percent of overseas tourists in Beijing are using Visa cards for tap-to-ride public transit, according to the company.
该公司称，其“轻触支付”服务的交易量同比大幅增长，其中广州入境游客的轻触支付交易量激增逾100%。在交通出行场景中，其“轻触乘车”服务广受欢迎，目前在北京约有60%的境外游客使用Visa卡完成公共交通“轻触乘车”。

inbound travelers

入境游客

immediate tax refund upon purchase

即买即退

transaction value

交易额

transaction

/trænˈzækʃ(ə)n/

Tap-and-Go / tap-to-ride / tap-to-pay

即刷即走/轻触乘车/轻触支付

rebates and cashback incentives

返现激励

rebate

/ˈriːbeɪt/

Incentive