Beijing wants passengers going through its airport to spend less time in lounges and more time out in the city emptying their wallets.
Earlier this year a plan was introduced allowing transit passengers from 45 countries to get 72-hour, visa-free access to Beijing only. However, visitors have found the process to get the waiver too onerous. Only about 60 people a day have applied for the visas, mostly from Russia, the U.S. and Germany. The airport authority wants to simplify the process and to offer incentives such as hotel discounts.
