The Ministry of Culture and Tourism and Gansu provincial authorities announced on 24 October 2025 a decade-long plan to turn the Hexi Corridor—a 1,000-kilometre stretch of the ancient Silk Road—into China’s first National Heritage Route. While primarily a cultural project, the plan carries clear mobility implications by committing to visa-on-arrival pilots at Dunhuang and Jiayuguan airports, expanded charter-train services from Kazakhstan and Mongolia, and multilingual smart-ticketing across 120 heritage sites.
Key milestones: • By 2027: launch of a unified e-visa portal for group tours from Belt-and-Road countries; • By 2030: completion of five model frameworks, including an “international tourism belt” with seamless ticketing and customs pre-clearance similar to Hainan’s offshore duty-free scheme; • By 2035: through-train connectivity from Lanzhou West to Urumqi-Kazakhstan high-speed link, cutting transit time for foreign tourists to China’s far west.
Business angle: Infrastructure upgrades open procurement opportunities for foreign engineering consultancies and hospitality groups. Mobility managers whose companies have energy or mining assets in Gansu can expect improved flight and rail options for rotating staff.
Sustainability note: The plan emphasises controlled visitor flows via timed-entry apps and carbon-offset packages, aligning with China’s broader push for “smart, green tourism.”
Key milestones: • By 2027: launch of a unified e-visa portal for group tours from Belt-and-Road countries; • By 2030: completion of five model frameworks, including an “international tourism belt” with seamless ticketing and customs pre-clearance similar to Hainan’s offshore duty-free scheme; • By 2035: through-train connectivity from Lanzhou West to Urumqi-Kazakhstan high-speed link, cutting transit time for foreign tourists to China’s far west.
Business angle: Infrastructure upgrades open procurement opportunities for foreign engineering consultancies and hospitality groups. Mobility managers whose companies have energy or mining assets in Gansu can expect improved flight and rail options for rotating staff.
Sustainability note: The plan emphasises controlled visitor flows via timed-entry apps and carbon-offset packages, aligning with China’s broader push for “smart, green tourism.”
