The State Council has granted approval for a new national tourism development strategy, with two cities in Jiangsu province receiving notable recognition.
The Ministry of Culture and Tourism has recently issued the "15th Five-Year Plan for Building a Strong Tourism Nation." Within the plan's layout for tourism cities and distinctive tourism destinations, Suzhou has been listed as a "key tourism city," while Changshu has been designated as a "distinctive tourism destination."
Furthermore, under an "Inbound Tourism Promotion Plan," Suzhou has been included as a city to be cultivated as a focal point for inbound tourism.
The plan outlines clear objectives, aiming for significant progress in high-quality tourism development by 2030. The goal is to establish a more complete modern tourism system, making substantial strides towards building a strong tourism nation. The tourism industry's role as a pillar of the economy is set to become more solid, with its function in stimulating domestic demand, promoting employment, and invigorating the market further enhanced. The value-added of tourism and related industries as a share of GDP is expected to steadily increase.
Public satisfaction and sense of fulfillment from tourism are targeted to see marked improvement, supported by a continuously improving public service system for tourism, leading to sustained growth in public contentment with travel experiences.
In 2025, the city of Suzhou welcomed over 200 million tourist visits, representing a year-on-year increase of 10.4%. The city achieved a total tourism revenue of 222.7 billion yuan, up 9.1% from the previous year. Suzhou has been actively implementing inbound tourism promotion initiatives. Last year, the city received 5.736 million inbound visitor arrivals, a 14.2% increase, generating nearly $1.9 billion in tourism foreign exchange earnings, which rose by 25.7%.
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