Tourism in
China
Forbidden city (Beijing)
Modern
tourism in China sprang up in the early 1950s. In 1954, the China
International Travel Service was established, with 14 branches in Guangzhou,
Shanghai, Beijing and other major cities. In 1964, the State Tourism
Administration of China was formally established.
Since the initiation of
the policies of reform and opening to the outside world in 1978, China's tourism
has entered a stage of rapid development. In 1998, the number of tourists
entering China reached 63.48 million, of which 7.11 million were foreign
tourists, 35 times the figure for 1978.
Consequently, the foreign exchange
income from this industry reached US $12.6 billion, 48 times that of 1978.
Currently, China has become an important tourism destination in Asia, and ranks sixth in the number of arrivals in the world. Domestic tourism is also
growing vigorously.
In 1998, the number of domestic tourists reached 695
million, spending a total of 239.1 billion yuan - 10 percent and 74 percent
increases over 1995, respectively. With the improvement of Chinese
people's living standards, Chinese citizens have an increasingly strong interest
in traveling abroad. In recent years, Chinese citizens have traveled to
Southeast Asia and Europe.
Foreign travel agencies are now opening offices
in China to attract Chinese to travel abroad.
Now,
China is fast on its way to becoming a country with developed tourism, and
constantly improving tourism facilities and services. It is estimated
that, by 2020, China will be the world's No. 1 tourism destination and the
fourth largest nation of tourists.
China's
transportation system, comprising railways, highways, water transport and civil
aviation, has developed in a robust way, along with the tourism industry.
China has set up 1,122 domestic and international air routes, and conditioned
buses ply among all the scenic spots to provide comfort and convenience for
tourists. At hotels, tourists may book train, bus, ship and air tickets to
any destination.
Chinese
books, paintings, native products, rare medicinal herbs and handicrafts are all
popular with foreign visitors. And handicraft shops can be found in most
scenic spots.
TOURISM
RESOURCES
China is a vast land, rich in tourism resources.
It has scenic spots and historical sites, spectacular landscapes and
colorful and varied national customs. At present, there are
two major tour routes in China: One is the "S" shaped
traditional tour route, containing famous political and cultural
cities such as Beijing, Xi'an, Shanghai, Suzhou and Hangzhou; the
other one is the crescent-shaped tour route containing coastal open
regions, such as the Liaodong and Shandong peninsulas and the
Yangtze and Pearl river deltas.
Following the "S" shaped tour
route, tourists may climb the Badaling Great Wall and visit the
Imperial Palace and Temple of Heaven in Beijing, and view the
terracotta soldiers and horses excavated from the Mausoleum of the
First Qin Emperor, the Stele Forest and the Great Wild Goose Pagoda
in Xi'an, wander along the bustling Bund and Nanjing Road and
through the Pudong New Zone in Shanghai, enjoy Suzhou's gardens and
the sights of the West Lake in Hangzhou.
Following the crescent-shaped tour route,
visitors may get some idea of the enormous changes which have taken
place in the open coastal cities since the initiation of reform and
opening to the outside world, and appreciate the charming seaside
areas in north and south China. Moreover, the coastal towns
all have holiday villages and various recreation facilities.
In the '99 International Ecological Tourism Year, China is
sponsoring an ecological tour route.
The purpose of this new program is to
enhance people's understanding and knowledge of environmental
protection through ecological tours. The tour begins on the
Inner Mongolia Prairie and continues via Shanzi's Hengshan Mountain
(one of the famous five mountains). The others are Taishan in
Shandong, Hengshan in Hunan, Huashan in Shaanzi and Songshan in Henan), Mount
Wudang, sacred to Taoists, in Hubei, the Three Gorges
of the Yangtze River, Shenongjia in Hubei, Wulingyuan near
Zhangjiajie in Hunan, Jiuzhaigou in Sichuan, and Guilin City, Beihai
beach and areas bordering on Vietnam in the Guangxi Zhuang
Autonomous Region.
Of them, Zhangjiajie and Jiuzhaigou are
highlights and have been designated as key tour areas for the
Ecological Tourism Year. This ecological tour route contains
scenic spots, historical sites and prairies in north China and
strange peaks, grotesque rocks, elegant waters and rural scenery in
south China, famous mountains and large rivers inland and Beihai
beach in Guangxi, providing tourists with opportunities to
experience the time-honored civilization and spectacular landscapes
of China.
Chinese music, dance and opera, and the culture
and customs of ethnic minorities are treasure stores of tourism
resources. Coming to China, tourists appreciate folk art,
including uniquely charming Peking Opera performances and comic
dialogues, and also learn about ethnic customs such as the Dai Water
Sprinkling Festival, Ti Torch Festival, Bai March Street, Zhuang
Singing Festival and Mongolian Nadam Fair. Besides, tasting
Chinese cuisine is an absolutely necessary part of tourism in China.
The Beijing Roast Duck of the Quanjude Restaurant, Mongolian boiled
mutton, Guangdong's roasted piglet, Hangzhou's West Lake vinegar
fish, Sichuan's spicy bean curd and a variety of local-flavor snacks
are only some of China's culinary delights.
TRAVEL
ORGANIZATIONS AND TOURIST SERVICE
The State Tourism Administration, functioning
under the State Council, is the administrative organ of the nation's
tourism trade. Its functions are to formulate policies and
establish systems for developing tourism, draw up development plans,
organize foreign publicity and issue tourism information, and
supervise and examine the implementation of policies and plans.
The State Tourism Administration has branches in all provinces,
autonomous regions and municipalities, as well as offices in Tokyo,
New York, Paris, London, Frankfurt and the Hong Kong Special
Administrative Region.
There are travel agencies in every city in China.
Among them, the following three major agencies host and make
arrangements for tourists coming to China:
China International Travel Service - With
headquarters in Beijing and branches in all provinces, autonomous
regions, municipalities and some of the open cities, it specially
serves foreign tourists.
China Travel Service and the Overseas Chinese
Travel Service of China - Both cater to overseas Chinese
residents, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan compatriots, and foreign
Chinese returning as tourists or to visit relatives. Both are
headquartered in Beijing, and have branches in open cities, open
areas and hometowns of overseas Chinese, as well as permanent
offices in Hong Kong, Macao and Thailand.
China Youth Travel Service -Based in
Beijing, it hosts mainly young foreign people, young overseas
Chinese and young compatriots from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan.
In addition, there are the China International
Sports Travel Company, China Culture Travel Service, China People's
International Travel Company, China Tian'e International Travel
Company and China Women's Travel Service, all catering to foreign
tourists.
Since the initiation of the policies of reform
and opening to the outside world, China has built, expanded and
renovated many hotels and restaurants to satisfy the needs of
tourists. China today has over 3,000 star-rated hotels.
Leading five-star hotels are the Palace Hotel, Grand China Hotel and
Shangrila Hotel in Beijing, the Hilton Hotel, Garden Hotel and New
Jinjiang Hotel in Shanghai, the White Swan Hotel, China Hotel and
Oriental Hotel in Guangzhou, the Fulihua Hotel in Dalian and the
South China Sea Hotel in Shenzhen. Besides, there are now
hotels to meet the needs of travelers in all large and medium-sized
cities and special scenic areas.
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