BEIJING – The number of tourists visiting Tibet could rise to 6 million in 2010, double this year’s number, China’s Xinhua news agency said on Thursday, citing a local government report.
Tourism could bring at least 6 billion yuan ($785.2 million) or at least 12 percent of the region’s gross domestic product, Xinhua said, quoting a regional government document on further development of the tourism industry.
Train service from Beijing to the Tibetan capital of Lhasa began last July, opening the door to a surge of Chinese and foreign tourism to the region.
Tibetan activists have warned that tourism and migration by Han Chinese could swamp Tibet’s distinctive culture, with Tibetan people receiving less than their share of new jobs and income.
The regional government will spend at least 10 million yuan a year by 2010 to promote Tibet’s tourist destinations and an additional 30 million yuan to develop new attractions in remote areas, Xinhua said.
“Tibet will largely rely on government spending to speed up infrastructure construction and attract more tourists,” the document said. “Meanwhile, it will improve services and turn the region into an attractive destination for worldwide tourists.”
More than 2.5 million tourists visited Tibet last year, including 154,800 from overseas. They spent 2.77 billion yuan in the region, Xinhua said.
This year, Tibet expects to host 3 million tourists and bring in 3.4 billion yuan in tourism revenue, Xinhua said, citing Jin Shixun, director of the development and reform commission, the top planning body for the regional government.
A record 340,000 tourists visited Tibet during holidays in the first week of May, Xinhua said. In the first four months of this year, 198,000 tourists travelled to Tibet, an increase of 30 percent, it said.
