(Yicai) March 26 -- Tourists from Thailand, who ranked in China's top 10 for foreign visitors last year, are taking advantage of the reciprocal 30-day visa waiver policy between their country and China that kicked in on March 1.

The border checkpoint at Xishuangbanna in China's southern Yunnan province saw visitor numbers from Thailand surge 17-fold in the first 15 days of March compared with a month earlier, while Thais entering via Yunnan’s Kunming port surged 866 percent to 7,100, with over 6,600 eligible for visa exemption.

Though China and Thailand do not share a land border, Yunnan and Thailand are only separated by about 200 kilometers at the closest point, with the number of Thai tourists entering the province by land and air soaring since the start of the visa-free policy. 

Thai people are interested in China’s Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture because they share a language and customs similar to those of the Dai ethnic minority. Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and other major Chinese cities are also a big draw for Thai visitors.

It has become much more convenient for Thai tour groups to enter China thanks to the visa-free policy, Xinhua News Agency reported, citing Yu Bo, a tour guide with Yunnan International Travel Service's Xishuangbanna branch. 

They used to have to apply for a visa on arrival at Yunnan's Mohan port after taking a train from the Laotian capital of Vientiane to Boten on the China-Laos border. But now they can enter directly via the Laos–China Railway, Yu added.

Thai tourists mainly fly to Kunming Changshui International Airport or take the Laos–China Railway to Mohan station.

Thai people needed to apply for a visa in Thailand three to four weeks before traveling to China previously, so the 30-day visa waiver policy saves a lot of time and about THB2,000 (USD55) in costs, said Chen Meijuan, a manager at Thailand's Dongyu International Travel and Trade.

China and Thailand have complementary tourism resources, with Chinese visitors heading to Thailand for sunshine and beaches, while Thai travelers go the opposite way on ice and snow tours.

Editor: Martin Kadiev