The year 2017 will be a vibrant and culturally rich one for China and Denmark, as the two nations have embarked on a cooperative tourism deal which will span the duration of the year. Here, Li Jinzao (right), chairman of China National Tourism Administration, and Brian Mikkelsen (left), Danish Minister of Industry, Business and Financial Affairs, shake hands at the signing ceremony of the memorandum in Beijing on Feb 24. [Photo/People.cn]

The growth rate of Shenyang’s outbound tourists to Denmark in 2016 ranks third among all cities in China, according to a Denmark focused tourism report launched by Chinese travel website tuniu.com, Shenyang Daily reported on March 1.

Tuniu.com said the top three Chinese departure cities of outbound tourists to the Scandinavian country in 2016 were Shanghai, Beijing and Nanjing, followed by Tianjin, Shenzhen and Chengdu. Second-tier cities such as Shenyang also sent an increasing number of tourists in the past year.

Additionally, although Denmark ranked as the 35th most popular destination for Chinese tourists in 2016, the European country witnessed a 140 percent increase from 2015. It benefits from being the point of transit Chinese visitors often use when travelling to other Scandinavian countries such as Sweden and Norway.

Visa liberalization is an important reason driving the influx of Chinese tourists to Denmark. In 2016 alone, Denmark opened a further five visa centers across first and second tier Chinese cities, Shenyang is among those to have received a visa center.

Denmark now has nine visa centers across China including ones in Beijing, Chongqing, Guangzhou and Shanghai. These centers greatly add to the convenience of travellers.

The number of Chinese visitors to Denmark is set to increase further during 2017, in part due to this being the China-Denmark Tourism Year 2017, an event launched in Beijing on Feb 24.

Denmark, and Scandinavia more generally, has grown in popularity with Chinese tourists in recent years as visitors are attracted to the array beautiful natural scenery, such as fjords and a chance to see the Northern Lights.

The Little Mermaid bronze statue stands by the water in Copenhagen, Denmark. Created in 1913, the statue created by artist Edvard Eriksen has long been a local tourist attraction. [Photo/People.cn]