Internationalisation facilitated through 'sister' relationships establishes transnational, cooperative partnerships and cultural exchanges between institutions within and between geographic locations. This case study describes the long-term sister city internationalisation partnership between two sister universities, one Chinese and one American, that is facilitated through the Confucius Institute project. Ten years of joint activities and events between the years 2009 and 2019 were examined. Benefits to each partnering entity as well as ongoing challenges are presented. Results also uncovered how internationalisation within sister city Confucius Institutes are promoted and implemented. Limitations and implications are discussed.