A 'friendly' airport in Paris to boost relationship with China

Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris held a "Chinese Friendly Airport" ceremony on Dec 4 to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and France and the Year of Sino-French Culture and Tourism. This is the second airport after Istanbul to implement the program.

Pushed by then French president Charles de Gaulle, France became the first Western country to establish diplomatic ties with China in 1964, and 60 years later, the airport is building itself into a friendly airport for Chinese tourists.

The transformation is not without thresholds. It requires close cooperation with Chinese airports. At the airport in Paris, flight and other information is available in Chinese on every signboard. Real-time information about flights to and from China is announced in Chinese and even hot water is available considering the habits of Chinese tourists. The airport's official website, terminal information video, tax refund, check-in, cash dispensers, all have a Chinese interface.

The transformation into a "Chinese Friendly Airport" is also a practical need as Charles de Gaulle Airport is one of the main entry points for Chinese tourists to France and other European countries. At its peak in 2019, the number of Chinese tourists to France was a record 2.2 million, generating 3.5 billion euros ($3.76 billion) in revenue for France. However, since the COVID-19 pandemic, the numbers are down to only one-third of what they once were.

On Nov 24, China decided to allow holders of ordinary passports from six countries, including France, to enter China visa-free — from Dec 1 to Nov 30, 2024 — for business, tourism, visiting relatives and friends or in transit for no more than 15 days. This measure is expected to restore the normality of Sino-French tourism. The 2024 Olympic Games in Paris offers an opportunity for the renewed boom of bilateral tourism between the two countries. Paris is expected to receive 1 million international visitors during the Games, and since China is France's largest source of tourists in Asia, it is natural that Chinese tourists will become their important service target.

Sixty years ago, there were almost zero French tourists to China, but now France is one of the most important sources of tourists headed for China. The "Chinese Friendly Airport" in Paris will surely help China and France usher in another wave of cultural and tourism exchanges.