Shanghai receives an influx of inbound travelers upon New Year

When Danny Thomas, a tourist from Australia, arrived in Shanghai on Wednesday, he recalled his last visit to the city 12 years ago.

"At that time, the highest building (Shanghai Tower) was unfinished and there were not many highrises," he told Shanghai Daily.

Thomas was amazed by the significant changes the city has experienced over the past decade during his second visit.

"Now, look at the skyline! And there are more highrises and more greenery on the street," he said. "Shanghai is more beautiful!"

Some 400 passengers from countries including the US, the UK, Canada and Australia were on the Silver Dawn, operated by Silversea Cruises, which arrived at the Shanghai Port International Cruise Terminal on the North Bund in Hongkou District on Wednesday afternoon, and embarked on a two-day trip to explore the city. It was the first cruise ship to visit Shanghai this year.

Thomas said: "People are really nice and food is delicious, and it's amazing when you look at the architecture, I am excited to visit the city again."

At a welcoming ceremony, the tourists enjoyed China's traditional dragon and lion dances and a display of intangible cultural heritage.

Among seven routes to explore Shanghai, they will take the Maglev train, visit Yuyuan Garden and Shanghai Museum, and enjoy a citywalk on the Bund.

Ben White is traveling with Thomas.

"China has many amazing things to see and China is more advanced than Australia in many things, for example, the high-speed train," he said.

It was UK resident Rona Boon's first visit to the city.

"People are friendly and the weather is lovely," she said. "The city is very clean."

"I would like to do some shopping and have a look of the culture and people's life here."

At the same time, a one-stop service spot for inbound tourists on the North Bund was officially launched on Wednesday, providing comprehensive and high-quality services for inbound travelers.

"The development of inbound cruise tourism keeps a very strong momentum," said Tang Ming, general manager of Hai'anxian Travel Agency which arranges tourism programs for cruise passengers and received over 14,000 inbound cruise travelers last year.

"Due to the good momentum, we expect there would be a 20 and 30 percent increase of inbound cruise tourists we would receive this year."

In 2024, Shanghai port recorded 1.3759 million visits by cruise passengers in total.

The arrival of the first cruise ship marks a solid step forward in the development of inbound tourism in Shanghai. It also heralds the vibrant development of Shanghai's culture and tourism industry in the new year, highlighting the exemplary effect of Shanghai as the "first stop" for inbound tourism in China.