FROM March 1, tourists from mainland China will be able to visit five more countries for leisure travel under the ADS agreement i.e. Approved Destination Status.

The countries are the Bahamas, Tonga, Mongolia, Granada, and St Lucia. The new additions bring the total number of countries and regions Chinese tourists can officially visit on leisure holidays to 81, according to the China National Tourism Administration. The total number of countries and destinations that have signed the memorandum of understanding for the ADS is 117 hence, Chinese are looking forward to visit more and more foreign destinations.

During the China National Travel and Tourism Congress CNTA confirmed that the total number of outbound travel from China reached 31 million and this number may exceed 34 million in 2006. The World Tourism Organisation is revising their prediction of China sending 100 million visitors prior to 2020 as predicted earlier.