Brand USA, the public-private entity that promotes inbound travel to the U.S., will host an event in
Beijing next week promoting continued growth in tourism between the
U.S. and China.
The 2016 U.S.–China Tourism Year
ceremony will be held Feb. 29. The event will feature speeches by Brand USA CEO
Chris Thompson and U.S. Ambassador to China Max Baucus as well as a video
message from President Barack Obama.
The ceremony is part of a broader
effort to attract more Chinese tourists. Among other actions, the U.S. has extended
the length of China visa eligibility for business and leisure travelers as well
as for students.
Through the first six months of
last year (the most recent period tracked), the number of Chinese
travelers who visited the U.S. jumped 18% from a year earlier to 1.16 million,
according to the U.S. Department of Commerce.
Only Canada, Mexico, the U.K. and
Japan had more international tourists to the U.S. than China.