(CGTN photo)

With the summer holidays well underway, China's overseas tourism market is as hot as the sun. Data from C-trip revealed that 60% or a record 30 million Chinese tourists taking a break this summer will be travelling abroad, meaning that the competition is on among foreign countries to attract those tourists and their cash.

Top foreign destinations for Chinese travelers this summer are Japan and Southeast Asian nations, but other countries are being added to China's favorite travel destinations. Russia and the United Arab Emirates are among the top 20, and other countries along the Belt and Road Initiative are attractive to newcomers.

The travel service provider predicts China will send 25 million people to Belt and Road countries this year.

To attract more tourists, many countries are making efforts to make travel easier for Chinese tourists. Serbia and Belarus have both commenced visa-free policies for Chinese citizens this year. Canada, on the other hand, is setting up seven new visa application centers in China this year, in cities including Nanjing, Chengdu, Hangzhou and Jinan.