02 January 2009

Tibet slashes prices to lure tourists

2008 has been a tough year for Tibet. Last March, the country saw one of its bloodiest riots that didn’t only affect its people but the whole travel industry as well. Deaths have been reported and important structures such as hospitals and schools have been burned to the ground. The country’s capital, Lhasa, has become one of the dangerous places on earth during the riot.

This came as a big blow to the travel industry in Tibet. Before the riots, Tibet had experienced one of the biggest years in travel industry. In 2008, they had more than 4 million tourists coming from different countries. This year, even optimistic experts don’t expect that travellers will reach 3 million.

In the efforts of attracting more tourists, the country announced slashing as much as 70% in some of its hotels in key areas in Tibet. Aside from accommodations, different airlines have also agreed to reduce costs in travel to Tibet. Reportedly, up to 80% from the original price of the airline tickets will be slashed off especially to flights to the country’s capital.

The government also invited key tourism officials from China to show their latest winter package offers. Hopefully, the officials will be impressed with the revived package and would bring the good news to different travellers to mainland China.

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