Shiliuyun-Xinjiang Daily (Reporter Wang Jingjing) news: On March 6, 2024, Chen Peng, a member of the first cross-border self-driving tour group from Jeminay Port in Jeminay County, Changji Hui Autonomous Prefecture, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, for the year 2024, visited the Astana Expo City in Astana, Kazakhstan. "It feels great to be able to drive my own car abroad for the first time," he said.

Photo taken on March 1, 2024 shows a group of 13 tourists depart from Jeminay Port in Jeminay County, Changji Hui Autonomous Prefecture, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, for a 12-day journey to experience the local charm of East Kazakhstan, marking the inaugural cross-border self-driving tour from Jeminay Port for the year 2024. (Photo by Liu Shurong)

Benefiting from the establishment of the alliance of tourism exchanges and cooperation between northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and five Central Asian countries last year and the policy of mutual visa exemption between China and Kazakhstan, the cross-border tourism market in Xinjiang continues to heat up. With the Spring Festival being just over, travel agencies are not only vying for tourists but also actively recruiting and bolstering their ranks of foreign language guides to welcome the early arrival of the cross-border tourism season in Xinjiang.

On March 1, 2024, Chen Peng and 11 other tourists from Anhui, Urumqi and other places, drove four off-road vehicles and left China from Jeminay Port, planning to spend 12 days experiencing the customs of East Kazakhstan. This is also the first cross-border self-driving tour group at Jeminay Port in 2024. In July 2023, the cross-border self-driving tour at Jeminay Port was restarted, and the vehicle formalities were simplified.

"The tour group to Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, departing on April 5 from Urumqi, has completed recruiting its customers," said Cheng Xuhu, general manager of Xinjiang Chunqiuzhilv International Travel Agency. The outbound tourists will fly directly from Urumqi to Almaty and then return directly to Urumqi from Tashkent, the capital of Uzbekistan. Over the course of nine days, they will visit two countries.

"Tourists from other regions have already booked travel groups departing from the Altay Prefecture in April, and this year, we aim to operate outbound tour mini-groups daily," said Chen Mingli, the head of Urumqi's Xieshou International Travel Agency. Last year, the agency organized multiple batches of tourists for trips to Kazakhstan.

To better serve tourists, Chen Mingli actively recruits professionals in both the Altay Prefecture and Urumqi City. After training, they will become tour managers, responsible for guiding visitors around Kazakhstan. At the end of February, a delegation of over 40 people led by Batalov Raimbek, the chairman of the Board of the Kazakhstan National Entrepreneurs Association (Atameken), visited Xinjiang to conduct tourism promotions and networking activities.

"At the meeting, many travel agencies in Xinjiang were coordinating cross-border tourism vehicle rental services and other related businesses, recognizing the warming trend of this year's outbound tourism market and planning ahead. We hope that with our joint efforts, Xinjiang's cross-border tourism market will become increasingly vibrant," said Wu Feng, head of the Xinjiang Travel Agency Association.

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