Mohan ushers in 16,000 Thai tourists, 54% of whom visa free

International tourists travel through the Mohan Railway Station near the China-Laos border.

Located in south Yunnan’s Xishuangbanna prefecture but put under the jurisdiction of Kunming, Mohan is the largest land port between China and Laos and an important gateway for China to contact Southeast Asian countries. It’s also the top choice for Thai tourists to enter China.

Since the visa-free policy between China and Thailand came into effect on March 1, Mohan ushered in more than 16,000 Thai tourists, and over 54% of them passed through the Chinese border visa free. Thai tourists accounted for over 74% of the total visa-free crossings via Mohan.

International tourists travel through the Mohan Railway Station near the China-Laos border.

On July 19, the direct international passenger train between Bangkok and Vientiane was launched, evoking a surge of Thai passengers to visit China via China-Laos Railway. Meanwhile, more Chinese tourists have travelled to Laos, Thailand and other Southeast Asian countries by train.

According to the statistics at the Mohan Border Inspection Station, Mohan gate was crossed by more than 1,400 Thai tourists from July 19 to August 31, up by 50% year on year. Visa-free Thai tourists made up 56%.

International tourists travel through the Mohan Railway Station near the China-Laos border.

"China-Laos trains and the Thailand-Laos trains have enabled more people-to-people exchanges between China, Laos and Thailand," said Lao tour guide Souphakoson Amphone.
Amphone guided a 93-member Thai tour group who took trains all the way from Bangkok to Vientiane first and then from Vientiane to Kunming. They said that traveling by train is now faster and easier than by car.

Source: Yunnan Daily; Trans-editing by Wang Shixue