Pakistan-China Tourism Expected to Boost in 2023
After three unfortunate years of tourism between Pakistan and China because of the Covid-19 pandemic, the decision to hold the Pakistan-China Year of Tourism Exchanges in 2023 will help to surge tourism in both countries.
In a recent interview, the Managing Director of Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation (PTDC), Aftab-ur-Rehman Rana stated:
“China is the country that produced the largest number of tourists for the rest of the world before the COVID-19 pandemic. The recent policy of resuming outbound tourism for Chinese citizens in an orderly manner would help in restoring the confidence of the world in terms of the promotion of tourism while making a good contribution to the global economy”.
He said that Pakistan and China have a strong bond of friendship which is the reason that people love to meet and experience the culture of each other's countries. He added that Pakistan is not just interested in welcoming Chinese tourists to the country but also to send Pakistani tourists to China.
“Our tour operators have already started holding online meetings with their Chinese counterparts. Under the exchange programs, both countries are planning to help tour operators of both sides to meet personally so they can revive their contacts and design packages and products which could attract the right kind of tourists on both sides,” as stated by the PTDC official.
He said that Pakistan is already preparing to welcome Chinese tourists. The Pakistani government is working on producing new literature on tourist destinations in the Chinese language for the ease of Chinese tourists. Pakistan International Airlines has also started operating its flights between Islamabad and Beijing with discount offers.
Adding more to it, Rana said China has also helped in improving the country’s tourism by building road infrastructure under the CPEC project. He believed that CPEC would help further enhance local tourism and attract investment into the tourism infrastructure which will help in the development of Pakistan.
