Guest fees not enough to protect old towns
Source: Xinhua |
April 19, 2013, Friday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
OLD Chinese towns that attract huge numbers of tourists from across the country are caught between a rock and a hard place in pursuing commercial development while preserving their old-style flavor.
Fenghuang Township in central China's Hunan Province recently angered local businesspeople by introducing a fee collection policy that officials say is meant to better protect the town.
Tourists are now required to pay 148 yuan (US$23.50) to enter the 300-year-old town. Prior to the policy, it was free to enter the town.
Disgruntled store owners and inn keepers closed their businesses and gathered at a dock to protest the policy.
Cai Long, deputy head of Fenghuang County, however, said the move was mainly aimed at raising money for the protection of the town and curbing the number of tourists.
Fenghuang is not alone in collecting rising fees from tourists during the country's tourism craze, said Yang Fuquan, vice president of the Yunnan Provincial Academy of Social Sciences.
Statistics from the country's tourism authorities show that domestic tourists totaled nearly 3 billion in 2012, a record high that is almost three times the combined population of the United States and European Union.
Yang, however, said authorities in these old towns need to do more than just put up a fence and collect fees.
In Yang's hometown, the Old Town of Lijiang, in southwest China's Yunnan Province, the local government is trying to strike a balance between preserving the traditional scenery and catering to the demands of tourists.
Unlike Fenghuang, no entry fees are collected in the 800-year-old town covering 3.8 square kilometers. However, tourists have to pay a maintenance fee when they check in at local inns or hotels for the night, a surcharge that has been more readily accepted.
According to He Hongyang, deputy chief of the ancient town protection bureau of Lijiang City, which administers the old town, about 1.5 billion yuan in such fees have been collected since 2001. The government has injected 1.8 billion yuan for the protection of the town since 1997.
The government has been soliciting ideas on how to better protect the town and sustain its development.
A patrol team resembling the ancient night watchmen, composed of local people and relocated businesspeople, was set up last year to better ensure public security while adding a touch of old flavor to the bustling town.
Fenghuang Township in central China's Hunan Province recently angered local businesspeople by introducing a fee collection policy that officials say is meant to better protect the town.
Tourists are now required to pay 148 yuan (US$23.50) to enter the 300-year-old town. Prior to the policy, it was free to enter the town.
Disgruntled store owners and inn keepers closed their businesses and gathered at a dock to protest the policy.
Cai Long, deputy head of Fenghuang County, however, said the move was mainly aimed at raising money for the protection of the town and curbing the number of tourists.
Fenghuang is not alone in collecting rising fees from tourists during the country's tourism craze, said Yang Fuquan, vice president of the Yunnan Provincial Academy of Social Sciences.
Statistics from the country's tourism authorities show that domestic tourists totaled nearly 3 billion in 2012, a record high that is almost three times the combined population of the United States and European Union.
Yang, however, said authorities in these old towns need to do more than just put up a fence and collect fees.
In Yang's hometown, the Old Town of Lijiang, in southwest China's Yunnan Province, the local government is trying to strike a balance between preserving the traditional scenery and catering to the demands of tourists.
Unlike Fenghuang, no entry fees are collected in the 800-year-old town covering 3.8 square kilometers. However, tourists have to pay a maintenance fee when they check in at local inns or hotels for the night, a surcharge that has been more readily accepted.
According to He Hongyang, deputy chief of the ancient town protection bureau of Lijiang City, which administers the old town, about 1.5 billion yuan in such fees have been collected since 2001. The government has injected 1.8 billion yuan for the protection of the town since 1997.
The government has been soliciting ideas on how to better protect the town and sustain its development.
A patrol team resembling the ancient night watchmen, composed of local people and relocated businesspeople, was set up last year to better ensure public security while adding a touch of old flavor to the bustling town.
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