WANDERLUST NEWS
China announces visa-free travel for UK travellers China announces visa-free travel for UK travellers
The Red Dragon cuts red tape for British travellers bound for Beijing
30 January 2026
(Shutterstock)
British travellers can soon experience the glories of the Great Wall of China, the terracotta warriors and Tiananmen Square without any red tape.
Keir Starmer and Chinese president Xi Jingping yesterday announced the introduction of visa-free travel to China for Brits visiting for up to 30 days.
A firm date for the bureaucratic relaxation has not been given, but tour operators are expecting a surge in enquiries about Chinese itineraries.
Wendy Wu of China specialist Wendy Wu Tours said, “This will change the tourism landscape. I was calling for it and hoping for it. We took a hundred travel agents to China last November. They had an amazing time but were asking about the visa situation.”
Wendy was giving a talk on China at the Destinations Holiday & Travel Show when the news broke and said, “Everyone – the audience and myself – were jumping up and down with joy at the news. We have no idea how quickly it could happen, but it could be within days.
“This will make it so much easier to visit and so we predict that there will be a demand for short tours, not just the long ones our clients were taking, and for special interest tours. We’ve been preparing for that.”
The landmark deal brings China’s visa requirements for British nationals in line with those for citizens of others Western nations, replacing an arduous system that involves visiting an application, but it could be within days.”
The British government is touting the agreement and several others – including China halving import tariffs on whisky – as a warming of UK-China relations achieved by the state visit to Beijing.
While first –time visitors will want to see the bucket-list destinations, Wendy Wu also recommends the following.
Chongqing
A vertical, neon-lit megacity where skyscrapers rise from mountain slopes, rivers collide, and old-world alleyways buzz beneath futuristic skylines. Chongqing is China at its most bold, cinematic, and electrifying — a city that feels like the future wrapped in deep-rooted culture.
Zhangjiajie
A jaw-dropping fantasy landscape of mist-shrouded sandstone pillars that inspired Avatar, with glass walkways clinging to cliffs and forests stretching endlessly below. Zhangjiajie is pure, otherworldly China — dramatic, beautiful, and unforgettable.
