WUHAN (China Daily/ANN): Twenty-two major tourist attractions that reopened in Hubei province, the hardest hit region by the Covid-19 contagion in China, had received 520,400 visitors from Friday to Sunday (May 1-3), as people enjoy their first public holiday since the regional lockdown was lifted.
Although numbers were down significantly year-on-year, the tourism market is gradually recovering in the province as pandemic control measures are still in place.
According to the provincial culture and tourism bureau, the number of visitors received was down 83 per cent year-on-year between Friday and Sunday, while tourism revenue plunged 94.5 per cent to 30 million yuan (US$4.2 million).
To avoid overcrowding and protect against risks of potential infection, the bureau earlier said that tourists should make bookings before visiting local scenic sites, and tourist flow should be limited to no more than 30 per cent of the maximum capacity.
In the province's capital Wuhan, around 178,000 visits were made at the city's 21 A-level tourist attractions on Saturday, down 58 per cent from a year earlier, the bureau said.
Tourism revenue plunged 71 per cent to 5.44 million yuan, it said.
Wuhan's landmark Yellow Crane Tower received around 1,000 visitors on Saturday, only 18.5 per cent of its daily maximum capacity, said the bureau.
The province lowered its novel coronavirus emergency response level from the highest to the second-highest level on Saturday, with adjustments to prevention and control measures also instituted.
No new confirmed Covid-19 cases were reported in Hubei on Saturday.
The province has had no new confirmed Covid-19 cases for 29 consecutive days since April 4, according to the provincial health commission.
To revitalise the province's tourism sector, the provincial government established special funds of 100 million yuan to help tourism-sector enterprises influenced by the pandemic, according to a notice issued on Friday.
Enterprises and government institutions are encouraged to give their employees a half-day extra vacation each Friday this summer to boost the tourism sector, according to the notice.
Medical workers around the country who came to aid the province's fight against the contagion can bring three family members to the province and enjoy free admission to any tourist attraction for the rest of their life, according to the notice.
Han Street, a major shopping district in Wuhan, now has most of its shops open, but the number of visitors is still significantly lower than before the pandemic. - China Daily/Asia News Network
Already a subscriber? Log in
Get 20% OFF The Star Digital Access
Cancel anytime. Ad-free. Unlimited access with perks.
