| Date | Area | What changed | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-06-30 | Transport | Xi'an East Station opens with the Xi'an–Shiyan high-speed line On 30 June 2026, Xi'an East Station went into service as the Xi'an–Shiyan high-speed line opened — a new gateway to the south and a major new hub for the city. | Full notice →Our guide → |
| 2026-02-17 | Entry & visa | China widens visa-free access — 50 countries, 240-hour transit at 65 ports Through 2025 and into early 2026 China expanded both visa-free tracks: unilateral visa-free entry now covers 50 countries (valid to 31 Dec 2026), and 240-hour visa-free transit reaches 65 ports across 24 provinces. Xi'an's airport is a 240-hour transit port, so eligible travelers can visit visa-free for up to 10 days. | Full notice →Our guide → |
| 2024-12-17 | Entry & visa | Transit visa waiver extended to 240 hours (10 days) From 17 December 2024, the transit waiver jumped from 144 to 240 hours — 10 days — and Xi'an is fully in scope, making visa-free trips genuinely possible. | Full notice →Our guide → |
| 2023-12-01 | Entry & visa | China's unilateral visa waiver begins — 6 European countries first From 1 December 2023, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and Malaysia got visa-free entry to China for 15 days — the start of a wave that kept expanding through 2024 and 2025. | Full notice →Our guide → |
| 2020-12-28 | Transport | Metro Lines 5, 6 and 9 open — Xi'an jumps to seven lines Three new metro lines launched the same day in December 2020, taking Xi'an's network to seven lines and, for the first time, reaching the Terracotta Army's doorstep. | Full notice →Our guide → |
Tracker methodology: only changes verified against an official announcement are listed, with the date of the announcement (not our posting date). Corrections go through the site's editorial standard — every fact checked, every price confirmed on the ground.