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Airports are important channels for high-standard opening-up. Since the beginning of this year, Nanjing has further expanded airport functions to facilitate customs clearance and deepen Sino-foreign exchanges and cooperation. These have sped up people-to-people exchanges between China and foreign countries. It is reported that, from January to February, Nanjing’s inbound and outbound trips reached 398,900, marking a year-on-year increase of 245.79%.
01
Faster Transit: One-ticket-for-all-flights and Through-check Baggage Service Facilitates Customs Clearance
On March 31, a flight departing from Shenyang arrived in Nanjing. 18 passengers on the plane were transferring to Phuket through the international through check-in service at the Nanjing Lukou International Airport. “Thanks to the one-ticket-for-all-flights and through-check baggage service, flight transit at Nanjing is very convenient.” All passengers spoke highly of this service.
The new transit model of international through check-in service was launched at the Nanjing Lukou International Airport in January this year. It allows passengers to transfer from domestic flights to international flights and from international flights to domestic flights through transit channels. With this model, passengers only need to check themselves and their luggage at the departure station, go through customs procedures, health quarantine and baggage inspection at the transit station, and collect all of their luggage at the final station. This has reduced their customs clearance time by 20%.
On February 6, Juneyao Air officially launched an international flight connecting Osaka, Nanjing and Bangkok with Nanjing Lukou International Airport as the transit station. It is another international connecting flight since the airport recovered the passage for transfer of international, Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan connecting flights in August last year. It further expanded the airport’s transit functions and transit coverage.
“Eligible passengers can go through transit formalities at the inbound floor, which will greatly reduce their customs clearance time and walking distance. It is also safer, faster and more convenient.” The relevant responsible person of the Nanjing Municipal Bureau of Commerce said that this would make Nanjing a transit choice for more passengers and further elevate Nanjing’s position as an aviation hub.
“I used to transfer from Beijing or Hong Kong. This time, I learned about Nanjing cuisine on social platforms before taking the flight and chose to transfer from Nanjing in a hope to taste local food,” said Ms. Yu, a foreign passenger who was transferring to Sydney at Nanjing. Speaking highly of the convenient process from formalities handling to baggage check-in, she said that she would choose to transfer from Nanjing in the future.
02
More Convenient Shopping: Convenient Payment and Departure Tax Refund Attracted More Tourists to Purchase Goods at the Nanjing Lukou International Airport
How should inbound visitors pay for goods conveniently after arriving at the Nanjing Lukou International Airport? Just a few days ago, the Payment Service Center for Overseas Visitors set up a station at the airport and several staff members were appointed to provide special services at the station. A payment service guide for inbound travelers to Jiangsu titled “Charm of Jiangsu, Better Payment” is offered in multiple languages, including Chinese, English, and Korean.
On March 15, Jiangsu Province convened a work meeting to optimize payment services, proposing the goal that by mid-April, key venues and major businesses in Nanjing and other major cities would fully accept payments via domestic and foreign bank cards, cash, or mobile payment.
For scenarios requiring frequent payment at the airport, signs and marks such as payment guides for overseas arrivals in the international arrival area have been put up. Besides, mobile payment guidance and consultation services are provided for inbound passengers. Relevant departments have reinforced training for business owners on catering to overseas consumers’ payment needs. Business owners also indicate available payment methods at prominent locations in their stores.
Diversified shopping scenarios and convenient departure tax refunds are also necessary for attracting travelers to shop at the airport. At the Nanjing Lukou International Airport, the reporter saw a diversity of cuisine at the nostalgic Jinling food section and the retro-style section, various kinds of cosmetics, clothing and other goods (including many international brands) in the commercial area, as well as stores of Nanjing specialties such as Nanjing Brocade, Jinling Yuhua Stone, Nanjing souvenirs from which the travelers may purchase Nanjing specialties. “Nanjing’s food is very delicious and mobile payment is also very convenient in China.” said a foreign tourist entering China from Nanjing on March 31.
It is reported that, in order to facilitate consumption, ongoing efforts have been made to facilitate the departure tax refund policy at ports. Since the beginning of this year, 57 applications for tax refunds on purchases made by overseas visitors have been processed, involving an amount of 1.522 million yuan. The first pilot program of “Instant Tax Refund Upon Purchase” for overseas travelers in Jiangsu Province was launched at Deji Plaza at the end of last year. Allowing consumers to apply for tax refunds on the spot after shopping at designated tax-refund stores, this policy has attracted more global visitors to make purchases in Nanjing.
03
Open New Flights to Enhance Nanjing’s Position as An Aviation Hub
Recently, the Nanjing Municipal Bureau of Commerce and relevant departments are preparing for the opening of the “Nanjing-Kuala Lumpur” route. The flights are expected to operate three times a week after it is opened.
A passenger who travels from Nanjing to Kuala Lumpur must transfer from Singapore, Guangzhou or Shanghai. The opening of the new route will greatly facilitate the travel from Nanjing to Kuala Lumpur.” Zhang Xiongjie, Chairman of Jiangsu Jingzhi Cultural Tourism Industry Development Co., Ltd., told the reporter. Many people have traveled from Jiangsu to Malaysia to engage in engineering construction or business trade or tourism. The year 2024 marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Malaysia. Malaysia is also vigorously promoting the development of Jiangsu’s tourism market. The opening of the new route is expected to further deepen business and tourism exchanges between the two sides.
It is reported that Nanjing has opened new passenger routes to 20 international cities and regions in Italy, Australia, and Singapore as well as Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan. There are more than 350 international flights every week, and the inbound and outbound trips last year reached about 1.4327 million, ranking 10th in China.
On March 31, the airport officially implemented the summer flight season flight plan for 2024. It is reported that in the new season, the passenger routes from the Nanjing Lukou International Airport will cover 84 domestic cities and 19 international and Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan destinations, and more flights to Milan, Seoul, Singapore, Jeju, Nagoya and other places will be launched. Covering holidays such as Tomb Sweeping Day, Labor Day, and Dragon Boat Festival, the new season will witness the effective release of travel demand and potential, thereby further facilitating people-to-people exchanges between China and foreign countries.
The relevant responsible person of the Nanjing Municipal Bureau of Commerce announced the plan to continuously improve the customs clearance capacity, expand service functions, and upgrade transit facilities of the airport. These measures are aimed at providing international passengers with better transit experience, so that the airport will become a new choice for more passengers and Nanjing’s position as an aviation hub will be further elevated.
