Also, for the first time, the Government Work Report last year included the number of outbound tourists.

Tourism is now more an indicator of Chinese living standards rather than a key economic indicator, Xiao said, adding that the country's diverse portfolio of industrial development means it is still too early to place the emphasis on a service industry such as tourism.

"The domestic market is so huge, but this doesn't mean we can ignore the inbound market, because a good demonstration of a quality destination and great hospitality is that a country cares equally about various types of people," Xiao said.

Sun Bowen, general manager of inbound tourism destination marketing at online travel agency Ctrip, said inbound tourism acts as an important conveyor of a country's influence, "so developing this market is a direct demonstration of the soft power of Chinese culture".

"(Inbound tourism) will not only increase foreign exchange earnings, maintain the balance of payments, but will also promote regional economic development in a more effective way," Sun said, adding that he believes eased visa applications will help attract more foreign arrivals.

Eased visa policies have also being launched in Shanghai, the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, the provinces of Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Liaoning, and other popular tourist cities. They include Guangzhou, Guangdong province; Guilin, Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region; and Xi'an, Shaanxi province. Travelers from 59 countries can visit the island province of Hainan for 30 days visa-free.

On Ctrip's platform, the number of bookings in 2018 related to inbound tourism rose by 50 percent year-on-year, according to Sun. In addition to Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou, cities such as Qingdao, Chengdu and Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, are also among the most-visited destinations.

Klook, a leading travel activities and services booking platform in Hong Kong, saw sales of China-related products record triple-digit year-on-year growth in the past 12 months.

Many international travelers are still focusing on big cities, such as Beijing and Shanghai, with strong interest in historical sites and seeing pandas. Meanwhile, in Hong Kong, travelers are drawn to "unique southern China attractions", said Anita Ngai, Klook's chief revenue officer.

Sun, from Ctrip, said that in 2017 the company organized a six-day trip with a subsidiary of the Confucius Institute, taking more than 60 foreigners from various countries to China's top attractions. Sun expects similar projects to be carried out with organizations in other fields, including traditional Chinese medicine.

Klook's Ngai said the services infrastructure may have created some barriers for foreigners. "For example, many visitors are curious about trying mobile payment in China, but the system is actually geared to domestic users," she said.

As China further opens up and continues to enhance connectivity with other countries, Sun sees huge opportunities being generated by the Belt and Road Initiative.

"We can see that Belt and Road countries are increasingly active in the inbound tourism market," Sun said, citing new international direct flights, cross-border tourism cooperation zones and border tourism pilot zones.

Xiao, from Hong Kong Polytechnic University, suggested regional collaboration to enable or encourage long-haul visitors to enjoy several Asian countries on one trip.

Looking to the future, Sun said big data will play an important role in tourists' decision-making and choice of destinations. "(Travel service providers) need to conduct targeted marketing based on the data analysis results collected from various channels," he said.

Ngai said Klook is preparing for the launch of its China rail products. She is looking forward to providing more in-depth services for inbound tourists and sees huge potential in walking tours for foreigners who want to immerse themselves in local culture.

Xiao said, "China will continue to be the major tourist source country for many years to come, and we will definitely be standing among the top destinations as well."