Efforts Made to Attract More Tourists to Huangshan

Huangshan City in Anhui Province is promoting its winter tours. This winter its target is to receive 500,000 tourists.

The city is offering a discounted rate for its winter tours. From now on to March 15, 2000, entrance fee to the Huangshan Scenic Area has been lowered. In addition, major hotels have offered a 50% discount off their quoted price of rooms. Meanwhile, hotels of district and county level are advertising 20% off for group lodging and 10% off group meals.

The city has done its best to make the visit to Huangshan a pleasant experience. Presently the city is continuing to improve the communications network. And in order to meet the demands of passenger transport between Huangshan City and other cities, great care has been taken to keep the smooth operation of flights from Huangshan to Shangshan, Guangzhou, Beijing and Hefei. There are two to five flights a week between Huangshan and these cities, and chartered planes also will continue to fly the Huangshan--Hong Kong route in winter.

The city has also upgrade its facilities to ensure the winter safety of tourists coming to the Huangshan Scenic Area. Hotels in the whole city offer anti-skid shoes, canes and straw sandals for tourists who want to climb up the mountain. And in case of an emergency, there is a comprehensive medical network including several first-aid centers.

To make winter tours even more attractive, hotels are promoting unique eating events by holding Gourmet Week activities. During each of the Gourmet Week, tourists will have a good sampling of Anhui delicacies.

Remains of an Ancient Hall Discovered in Dunhuang

Chinese archaeologists have made a great breakthrough by discovering at the front of the Nine-Story Tower (Cave 96) in Mogao Grottoes layers upon layers of ancient hall remains left over from the Tang (618-907) to the Qing (1644-1911) dynasties. Some cultural relics have been unearthed.

According to Peng Jinzhang, a research fellow of Dunhuang Research Institute and participant to the excavation, his archaeological team has discovered many segments of the ancient hall's foundation 1.5 meter underground. They include four pillar based and two pits for pillar bases, of the Tang Dynasty, foundation of the hall's back wall and two-step stairs leading to the hall in north and south.

According to historical records, the Nine-Story Tower was constructed in 695 during the Tang Empress Wu Zetian's reign. Originally, it was a four-storied building. The hall was destroyed and reconstructed many times over past dynasties. Now only the grotto's eaves, built between 1928 to 1935, remain. Unfortunately, there are neither pictures nor records to determine its size and interior detail. The discovery is of great importance for archaeologists to study its original state and its changes over the centuries.

Construction of the Xiaolangdi Tourist Area in Full Swing

The Xiaolangdi Tourist Area in Henan Province's Mengjin features typical Yellow River culture. With the reservoir is filled with water, the 130-km Yellow River valley from Xiaolangdi to the Sanmenxia Reservoir in the upper reaches will become a water area of 270 sq km. Many mountains in the reservoir will turn into peninsulas or islands when the water level becomes higher.

The beautiful natural and man-made sites along the south bank of the Yellow River provide conditions for developing the Xiaolangdi Tourist Area. Planners foresee that the recreational activities over water along the Yellow River will become the leading attractions the tourist area.

At present, construction of the area's infrastructure facilities is in full swing. A 18.9-kilometer highway at cost of 12 million yuan will be constructed to enhance the area's tourism industry.

Wenchang City Plans to Build Soong-Family Folklore Park

A cultural garden featuring Soong family history, in commemoration of the late Chinese great leader Soong Ching Ling, will be constructed in the ancestral residence of the Soong family in Wenchang City, Hainan Province.

On the basis of the Soong family ancestral residence, the unique folklore garden will be developed into a tourist attraction. The commemorative garden will highlight the great contribution made by Soong Yaoru and his family to social progress over the past 50 years.

The park boasts natural scenery and imitations of ancient architecture. It will be an ideal place for visitors to pay respects to the late Soong family members and enjoy the scenery and entertainment. It will also be a good place to conduct non-governmental cultural and economic exchanges sponsored by overseas Chinese organizations.

A New Tourist Area in Quanzhou

With the increase of tourists to the famous Luoyang Ancient Bridge in southern Fujian's Quanzhou, the new Luojiang Tourist Area will take shape soon.

Constructed in the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127), the Luoyang Ancient Bridge is located where the Luojiang River empties into the sea. Amazingly the bridge has been kept intact withstand over a thousand years of weathering.

It is the first bridge spanning over the sea in China. The bridge is not far from the picturesque Xiangong Mountain. As early as 1,500 years ago, people began building temples, pagodas and pavilions on the mountain. So it is no wonder that the mountain has long since become a famous mountain of Taoism, Confucianism and Buddhism.

Nearby, an amusement center over the Yang'en Lake at foot of the Xiangong Mountain, has been completed. The center is intended as a place for recreational activities, sightseeing, vacation-making and short-course training.

To further improve tourism environment, the local government has earmarked special allocations for constructing more hotels and roads. In 1998, the government offered ten projects for soliciting funds from Chinese and overseas investors. Many investors are keenly interested in these projects. Presently the local government has signed agreements with outside investors on building a Quanzhou Folklore Village and Majia Hongyuan Vacation Village, absorbing more than 80 million yuan.

Landform Tours Becoming Popular in China

Many Chinese scenic area have their unique landforms, such as Mount Danxia, Zhangjiajie and Zhangshiyan. These special landforms are now becoming important tourism attractions.

Chinese geologists and geographers divide Chinese landforms into several kinds, namely, the Danxia, Zhangjiajie and Zhangshiyan landforms, each possessing its own characteristics.

So far, over 30 Zhangshiyan Landform regions have been identified in China. Among them, the most famous are Zhangshiyan and Cangyan Mountain in Hebei Province, Mountain Yuntai in Henan Province and Wulao Peak in Shanxi Province and Wulao Peak in Shanxi Province. All of them have been listed as state-level scenic spots. Among the some 500 Danxia landforms, 21 have been listed as state-level scenic spots, such as Mount Danxia in Guangdong Province, Mount Wuyi in Fujian Province and Mount Longhu in Jiangxi Province. They have been developed for tourism. Over 30 kilometers of paved roads have been constructed in the Zhangjiajie Scenic Area, and more than 40 hotels have been built. The area received over 300,000 tourists annually.