(Yicai) Jan. 29 -- China and Thailand have signed a reciprocal 30-day visa-free agreement, sparking an immediate surge in interest in travel between the two countries.

Searches for ‘Thailand’ on Trip.com soared more than seven times yesterday, when the deal was inked, from the previous day, the Chinese travel platform’s data showed, while searches for ‘China’ on its Thai version jumped over four times.

Under the agreement, Chinese and Thai passport holders can stay in each other's country for up to 30 days without a visa, with the deal coming into effect on March 1.

Visa waivers will greatly ease the exchange of people between the two countries, Trip.Com Vice President Qin Jing said, adding that their tourism resources complement each other, and China is also the nearest winter sports destination to Thailand.

The permanent visa waiver will further attract Thai tourists, likely making them a top three source of inbound tourists to China this year, Qin said.

Searches for plane tickets and hotels soared over six-fold, with Bangkok, Phuket, Chiang Mai, Koh Samui, and Pattaya the most popular destinations in Thailand and Shanghai, Chengdu, Harbin, Shenzhen, Beijing, Tianjin, Chongqing, and Zhangjiajie the top choices in China.

Bookings to Thailand for the upcoming Chinese New Year, which falls in the middle of next month, surged over 13 times as of yesterday from a year earlier. Family trip and deep travel have become a new trend, while Chinese tourists are willing to spend more on food and activities.

Lunar new year bookings for China soared more eight-fold, with Shanghai, Kunming, Guangzhou, Chengdu, Beijing, Xiamen, Harbin, Nanjing, and Nanning the most popular cities.

China has also signed visa waiver deals with Singapore, Malaysia, and Thailand, greatly boosting the popularity of travel to Southeast Asia, Qin pointed out.

Editor: Martin Kadiev