Young entrepreneurs offer customized services to foreign tourists

Tour guides of the Shanghai-based company Eastbound and Beyond pose for a group picture with foreign tourists at the Bund in Shanghai. (Photo courtesy of the interviewee)

In Chengdu, capital of southwest China's Sichuan Province, someone visiting the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding three times a week may not necessarily be a panda fanatic, but a tour guide who speaks English.

On her latest trip, Lin Qianmei arrived at the base entrance before 7 a.m. to meet a group of foreign tourists. This base is a must-see destination for visitors from anywhere in the world. From there, the itinerary might continue to Dujiangyan, the Leshan Giant Buddha, Mount Emei, or Jiuzhaigou.

Data from the National Immigration Administration shows that foreign nationals made 38.05 million cross-border trips to and from China in the first half of 2025, up 30.2 percent year on year. Specifically, 13.64 million foreigners entering China without a visa in the first six months of the year. This category accounted for 71.2 percent of total foreign entries and represented a 53.9-percent year-on-year increase. In summer, the booming trend of "China Travel" continues to gain momentum.

Many young people are seizing this wave of inbound tourism as a golden opportunity. In cities popular with foreign visitors, young entrepreneurs are starting businesses that offer city walks, cycling tours, street food experiences, and other niche services.

Jiang Xi, co-founder of the Shanghai-based company Eastbound and Beyond, said the company's guides take foreign tourists to the matchmaking corner in People's Park, while in Fuxing Park, local "aunties" invite visitors to join in square dancing.

Foreign tourists received by the Shanghai-based company Eastbound and Beyond dance together with locals at Fuxing Park, Shanghai. (Photo courtesy of the interviewee)

A report on China's inbound tourism development for 2024-2025, recently released by the China Tourism Academy, shows that increasingly diverse demands from foreign visitors are driving an equally diverse supply of tourism services.

According to Sun Yunlong, deputy director of the Tourism Department at Fudan University and director of its Master of Tourism Administration (MTA) program, young people have been quick to recognize and meet the needs of foreign travelers—especially those seeking individualized itineraries, niche destinations, and lifestyle-focused experiences.

He noted that young and middle-aged foreign visitors are often highly independent and look for personalized experiences that traditional standard tour packages can't deliver. This fast-growing segment is creating new opportunities for young entrepreneurs.

More and more visitors aren't content with just casual sightseeing—they want to immerse themselves in local life and feel the city's rhythms during their stay in Shanghai for a few days, which means higher expectations for tourism operators, Jiang said. This also means that more foreign tourists are gaining an authentic, multidimensional understanding of China through their travels.

Having worked in Shanghai for several years, Jiang and three travel-loving friends—all in their 30s—joined forces in 2024 to start a business of developing tourism products. They now offer eight products targeting Shanghai and nearby Suzhou, attracting around 25 orders a month.

"We must avoid doing the same things as everyone else. If tourists can get the same experience somewhere else, then our work has no value," Jiang said, hoping to provide warm, in-depth city experiences rather than mere casual sightseeing.

One of the most popular products developed by Jiang's team is a water town tour. To find the right destination, the team visited every water town in Shanghai before choosing Fengjing, which still retains a lived-in atmosphere—residents wash clothes by the water, and the pace remains unhurried.

Another highlight is an electric scooter tour of "old Shanghai," allowing foreign tourists to weave through neighborhoods around modern landmarks in search of the city's historical layers. Jiang's team aims to let foreign tourists explore the city like a local.

Chen Ming and foreign tourists pose for a group picture in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality. (Photo courtesy of the interviewee)

Wang Xiaoyu, a researcher and special expert for the World Tourism Cities Federation, said one emerging feature of inbound tourism is regional expansion to lower-tier cities—with cities like Chongqing and Harbin seeing a surge in bookings.

Wang believes inbound tourism businesses should further segment the markets by tourists' origins and preferences. For example, many European and American visitors, unfamiliar with Chinese community culture, are often drawn to "local life" experiences. By contrast, tourists from Singapore and Malaysia, whose community culture resembles China's, show greater interest in traditional Chinese culture. The rapid rise of half-day and one-day "flash mob" tours also requires operators to keep innovating.

Chen Ming, an entrepreneur in Chongqing, initially set out to design AI-powered itinerary-planning software for foreign visitors. But realizing that many basic needs were still unmet, he pivoted to offline services. His team now offers community walks, hikes, hotpot dinners with locals, nightlife tours, and Chongqing noodle cooking classes.

Throughout his entrepreneurial journey, this former interaction designer has noticed more Chinese apps launching English versions.

"People in the online community are beginning to understand that foreigners are coming, and we need to make some adaptive measures for them," he said.