German citizens - no entry to Shenzhen via Baoan Airport without a visa

We wanted to fly from Bangkok to Shenzhen for 5 days 2 weeks ago (November 2023) and had already booked hotel, etc. The airline didn't take us because we didn't have a visa. Our explanations that we would apply for a VOA at Baoan Airport on arrival as German citizens were unsuccessful. This visa was not known. Another excuse was that the immigration office had already closed by then. In front of our eyes, our flight ticket was cancelled and we were left at the airport at night without further explanation. We have informed ourselves in advance on various official websites that the VOA is also available at Baoan International Airport and not only via entry via Hong Kong. Has anything changed here? We are now fighting with AirAsia to get our tickets refunded. Too bad, all holiday plans and the anticipation of Shenzhen were destroyed.