Travelers walk at a terminal hall in Beijing Capital International Airport, China.
Tingshu Wang | Reuters
Long wait times for visa applications are keeping people in China from traveling internationally as much as they’d wish to, Jane Sun, CEO of travel booking site Trip.com Group, told CNBC’s Eunice Yoon.
For instance, applications for a Schengen visa take two to 6 months, Sun said, “which is just too long.”
She claimed demand for international travel from China has “far exceeded” the 2019 level, before the pandemic. Demand for domestic travel has exceeded the 2019 level by 60%, she said.
One other challenge for outbound travel from China is the variety of flights, Sun said, noting flight capability to the U.S. is barely at 6% of what it was before the pandemic.
As of August, the U.S. only allowed 12 round-trip passenger flights per week from China to the U.S. That was slated to extend to 18 per week starting Sept. 1, and 24 per week starting Oct. 29.
Other regions have seen flights to and from China restored more quickly.
Flights to the Asia-Pacific region have recovered by greater than 50%, while flight capability to the Middle East has doubled from pre-pandemic levels, Sun said.
