CRI听力:Lhasa Tourism Strategy Unveiled

When we think of Tibet, Mount Chomolungma, the holy Namtso Lake, and its unique culture might come to mind, as well as possible altitude sickness which can be all too common for those not accustomed to the air in Tibet.

However, Tibet is looking to attract more and more tourists to the region and in the next few years, this mysterious land will opened up its treasures to even more visitors who will be able to savor all that Tibet has to offer.

A ten-year project to tap the tourism potential in Lhasa, capital of Tibet, was recently unveiled in a conference in Beijing. CRI's Du Lijun has the details.

Winter is a quiet season for tourism in Tibet. There's little green in sight at this time. However, Li Xia, a manager of Lhasa Tourism Project says Lhasa's winters are beautiful and not as cold as many people would think.

"Known as a city of sunlight, Lhasa has plenty of sunshine and you can enjoy it without limits. There are plenty of hot springs in Tibet. So in winter, it is good to go to spas in Lhasa. The hot springs there stand out with their traditional Tibetan Medicine. What's more, you can also go to watch blacktop cranes in Linzhou, a county in Lhasa."

And, as Li Xia further explains, Lhasa has much to offer even to the adventurous explorer.

"Lhasa River is regarded as the mother river of the people in Lhasa. It breeds the Lhasa folk customs. Plateau wetlands like Lalu are very rare in the world. The tourism development project will see many tourism facilities as well as interesting events available in such places."

Some people would think that with fewer plants releasing oxygen in winter, it may not be a good idea to travel to high-altitudes Tibet where the air is already thin.
 
But Secretary-General of the International Tourism Studies Association, Wu Bihu, who is also in charge of the Lhasa Tourism Project, says this should not be a concern at all.

"The oxygen content in the air in Tibet is almost the same all year round. It changes very little as the weather changes. If you are OK there in summer, you will be doing equally fine in winter. It's often psychological reasons that prevent a person from traveling to Tibet, not the oxygen content of the air."

And the Lhasa Tourism Project manager Li Xia advises that visitors not to be too much concerned about altitude sickness. She says according to the development project, medical aid facilities will also be established in the region to ensure visitors will have a safe and sound trip to this fascinating land of mystery.

For CRI, I'm Du Lijun.