The mutual visa exemption between China and Russia is only for tour groups. "If you depart from Heihe, you can consult local travel agencies after arriving in Heihe."
On October 15, the Heihe Municipal Culture and Tourism Bureau posted an article on its official WeChat account introducing the specific procedures for cross-border tourism between China and Russia. It stated that tourists need to prepare a valid passport and visa, and purchase a boat ticket to clear customs before going to Russia. If they do not have a visa, they can sign up with a qualified local travel agency in Heihe using a valid private passport, and the fastest they can experience cross-border tourism through the China-Russia group visa exemption is the next day.
On September 12, the website of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism announced the list of travel agencies (first batch) authorized to operate group tours for Chinese citizens to Russia under the visa-free policy, which includes a total of 268 agencies. Among them, there are three local travel agencies in Heihe.
Heihe Youth Travel Agency is one of these three agencies. Mr. Li, the person in charge of the agency, said that tourists who want to visit Russia but do not have a visa need to join a tour group organized by a travel agency qualified for cross-border tourism. After departure, they can stay in Russia for up to 15 days. "Book one day in advance, and you can leave with the group the next day. Currently, the tour packages to Blagoveshchensk offered by our Heihe agency are mostly two days and one night, costing 880 yuan per person, including transportation fees, entrance ticket fees, and accommodation costs."
For both out-of-town tourists visiting Harbin and local residents, as long as they have a passport, the expectation of being able to travel to Russia will become a reality. News from the Harbin tourism work conference on the 19th shows that this year, the city will actively apply for the 72-hour visa-free transit policy for Russia, and within the year, it is expected to open individual travel for Harbin residents to Taiwan. The goal is to receive over 60 million tourists and achieve total tourism revenue exceeding 80 billion yuan.
"If the 72-hour visa-free transit for Russia is implemented, it will make it more convenient for out-of-town tourists to travel to Russia," said Wang Jingyue, manager of the Xiangfang branch of Songhua River International Travel Agency. Currently, tourists from southern China who want to visit Russia need to send their materials to Harbin five to seven days in advance to process the relevant procedures. With the 72-hour visa-free transit policy, tourists can avoid such formalities, which is especially convenient for those making spontaneous decisions to travel abroad to Russia.
It is understood that this year, the Harbin tourism bureau will accelerate the construction of a pilot zone for Russia-bound tourism, using the development of a China-Russia tourism area as a condition and foundation to support the construction of Harbin's "Free Trade Zone" and airport economic zone. Efforts will be made to secure the establishment of a Russian consulate in Harbin, and actively apply for the 72-hour visa-free transit policy.
The Harbin tourism department will integrate tourism resources from cities within the province such as Yichun and Heihe, collaborate with the Russian Far East region, and establish a China-Russia cross-border tourism consortium. It will also seek support from national and provincial authorities to open individual travel for Harbin residents to Taiwan, consolidate cooperation with South Korea’s Hana Tour Group, and promote the operation of charter flights between Harbin and Incheon. New markets such as Israel and Europe-America will be explored, and the Harbin Jewish Culture and Peace Tour route will be promoted.
Leveraging half a century of accumulated ice and snow culture, the role of the Harbin International Ice and Snow Festival will be highlighted. Further efforts will be made to enhance the internationalization, marketization, standardization, and humanization of traditional core scenic spots such as the Harbin Ice and Snow World, Sun Island Snow Expo, and Ice Lantern Garden Party, as well as emerging attractions like Volga Manor and Ice and Snow Happy Valley. An ice and snow tourism system will be established, integrating resources such as the Ice and Snow World, Snow Expo, Ice Lantern Garden Party, Ice and Snow Happy Valley, and Volga Manor through aspects like tickets, transportation, facilities, and services. Government subsidies and corporate discounts will be increased to encourage more citizens to visit these scenic areas.
Harbin will use the "Charming Summer in Harbin" cultural tourism event as a platform to innovatively develop exhibitions and festivals such as the Wetland Festival, Beer Festival, Harbin Summer Music Festival, and Five-Colored Mountain Autumn Appreciation Festival, amplifying diverse cultural tourism brands. Development of cultural tourism projects such as the "731" Site Park, Acheng "Jin Yuan Culture" Tourism City, Daowai "Guandong Cultural Tourism Area" (Daotai Mansion, China-Baroque Block), Consulate Site, Middle East Railway, the large-scale live-action performance "On the Songhua River", the former site of the "Fourth Field Army" Command in Shuangcheng, the Wuyilongcheng in Yilan, and the "Well-Watching Sky" Site will be accelerated.
Accelerate the application for two world cultural heritage projects: Jin Yuan Culture and the Crime Evidence Site of the Japanese Invading Army Unit 731, as well as the application for ice and snow art to be recognized as an intangible cultural heritage of humanity.
Accelerate the construction of Wanda Cultural Tourism City. Once completed, the indoor ski resort will feature six ski runs of varying difficulty levels, capable of accommodating 1,500 skiers simultaneously. Collaborative efforts will be made to develop urban leisure projects such as Universal Ocean World, Yingjie Hot Spring Scenic Area, Taiping Lake Hot Spring Town, and Xiangfang Belgrano. The construction of the Sun Island Scenic Area will be strengthened, with a focus on advancing key projects such as the International Convention Center, Harbin Grand Theater, and Heilongjiang Provincial Museum.