Erenhot Port experiences a tourism boom as “China Travel” gains traction. Inbound and outbound trips have surged, enhancing bilateral ties.
HOHHOT, CHINA – As “China Travel” continues to gain momentum worldwide, the arrival lobby of Erenhot Port is bustling with eager travelers waiting to clear customs and embark on their adventures across the country.
Erenhot, in north China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, is the largest land port on the China-Mongolia border.
Booming Tourism
“‘China Travel’ is a real hit in Mongolia. I’ve already traveled to multiple cities in China, including Hangzhou and Xi’an,” said Batmunkh, from Ulaanbaatar, the capital of Mongolia.
He added that like him, many tourists in Mongolia are drawn to China because of convenience in traveling and reasonable vacation cost.
Meanwhile, many Chinese tourists chose to travel to Mongolia to enjoy the landscape and folk customs of the neighboring country. Hao Xiaoming, a 34-year-old resident in Wuhan, capital city of central China’s Hubei Province, just concluded a five-day trip to Ulaanbaatar by train.
“I enjoyed the grasslands and characteristic residential houses in Mongolia,” said Hao, adding that the trip was partly motivated by a Mongolian song which can be translated as “The Night of Ulaanbaatar.” The song is popular among Chinese people and its lyrics had been translated into Chinese.
According to data from the port’s entry-exit border inspection station, from the beginning of this year to Sept. 5, Erenhot highway and railway ports recorded over 1.75 million inbound and outbound trips, up 95 percent year on year, and 442,000 transport vehicles, nearly double its growth year on year.
The readings speak volumes for China-Mongolia ties. In recent years, China and Mongolia, as close neighbors with great cultural affinity, have expanded collaboration in tourism, education, medical care and trade to enhance the well-being and mutual learning of the two peoples.
Mongolian Goods in Town
Numerous shop signs on streets and alleys in Erenhot are displayed in three languages: Chinese characters, traditional Mongolian used in China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, and Cyrillic Mongolian commonly used in Mongolia.
In an import commodity exhibition area of a warehouse store in Erenhot, there is a wide range of imported Mongolian goods on the shelves, ranging from honey, wheat flour, beef jerky, milk tea powder and camel wool to cashmere.
Gu Xiaojing, an Erenhot local, is a frequent shopper at Yaojin import supermarket. As the weather has been getting cold recently, she bought Mongolian wool knee pads and sheepskin gloves from the store.
“We like Mongolian honey and wheat flour,” she said.
Li Wei, manager of the supermarket, said that Mongolian goods were very popular in the store, which also offer commodities imported from Japan, France and Germany.
The popularity of Mongolian goods has also prompted Mongolian enterprises to expand their business in China. For instance, renowned cashmere brand GOBI Cashmere has flagship stores in both Erenhot and Xilinhot in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.
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