26 countries can now enjoy China's extended visa-waiver policy for the island destination of Hainan. The new program is the latest effort by the government to promote Hainan as a global tourism destination.

The State Council issued at the end of last year a plan for the transformation of Hainan into an international tourism island. The central government plans to develop China's only tropical island province into a platform for international economic cooperation and cultural exchange by 2020.

The picturesque island will also become a base for agricultural production and developing resources and services in the South China Sea. The government also aims to lift the value-added output of tourism in Hainan to more than 8 percent of its GDP by 2015 and more than 12 percent by 2020.

Construction of transport and tourist facilities are already underway on the island.