China

China: Shanghai Taxi Gang Preys on Tourists; Unusual Hostage Incident in Xi’an

Date: March 12th, 2008 |

A Shanghai taxi gang has been preying on tourists arriving in the city center on the high-speed train from Pudong Airport by demanding exorbitant fares and then robbing or intimidating their victims to pay up. A recent case of a $1,000 ride that should have cost a few dollars caused a police crackdown and eight [read more]

Tibet: Funding Planned to Upgrade Lhasa Toilets

Date: December 19th, 2007 |

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Tourism to Tibet has increased dramatically since the opening of the rail link to Lhasa in 2006, with more than a million visitors this year to the Potala Palace, the former residence of the Dalai Lama, and some 4 million tourists overall. With that influx comes pressure on facilities of all sorts, so Chinese tourism [read more]

China: Beijing Air Pollution May Not Improve for Olympic Games

Date: October 31st, 2007 |

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A report by the UN Environment Program suggests that pollution in Beijing will not improve much before next year’s Olympic Games. Some pollution declined between 2000 and 2006, but the decline stopped and concentrations of four major pollutants began to rise again. Concentrations of particulate matter from construction sites, dust storms and the burning of [read more]

China: Security Tight for FIFA Women’s World Cup

Date: September 12th, 2007 |

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The FIFA Women’s World Cup soccer tournament runs Sept. 10-30 in five cities: Chengdu, Hangzhou, Shanghai, Tianjin and Wuhan. Thirty-two games are scheduled and security will be tight. Chinese authorities tend to deal swiftly with protests and will no doubt be especially vigilant because they want to maintain order as the 2008 Olympics in Beijing [read more]

China: New Road Signs in Shanghai Help Visitors Find Their Way

Date: July 19th, 2007 |

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Officials have made traveling around Shanghai and other provinces in the Yangtze Delta region a little easier for visitors by posting graphical signs for tourist attractions such as temples, museums, historic towns and golf courses. Traffic signs have also been updated, with those for scenic spots and parking lots combined to aid traffic flow. The [read more]

China: Heavy Snow Disrupts Travel

Date: January 24th, 2008 |

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Heavy snow disrupted travel in several provinces in central China at the beginning of the travel season for Lunar New Year. The holiday begins Feb. 7 but many Chinese travel weeks in advance to avoid the crush of travelers on trains and buses closer to the new year. Snow closed roads and caused dozens of [read more]

China: Tourist Restrictions on Great Wall, Ming Tombs

Date: November 29th, 2007 |

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Tourist activities at the Great Wall may be restricted in the coming months as officials implement a general plan for China’s top tourist sites. The plan calls for no more than 53,300 daily tourist visitors and a limit of 16 million annually to Badaling Great Wall and Ming Tombs. Other attractions such as Juyongguan Great [read more]

China: Smoking Banned in Beijing Taxis

Date: October 3rd, 2007 |

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Smoking is now banned in Beijing’s taxis as officials try to clean up the city ahead of next year’s Olympics. The ban effects both drivers and passengers and is the latest in a series of moves meant to improve etiquette in the city. Officials already have other behavioral campaigns underway against spitting and littering and [read more]

China: Beijing Looks for Ways to Stem Air Pollution

Date: August 22nd, 2007 |

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Stung by criticism that Beijing’s air pollution could cause some of next year’s Olympics events to be rescheduled, Chinese officials ran a test to remove 1.3 million vehicles from the streets for four days to see if air quality would improve. According to officials it did, dropping from an index of 115 before the test [read more]

China: Pirated Drinking Water in Beijing

Date: July 11th, 2007 |

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Officials are investigating a report in the Beijing Times that claimed that more than half of the water coolers in Beijing contain counterfeit water. The report said the jugs are filled with tap water or purified water from small suppliers who place bogus seals on them and pass the water off as name brands. The [read more]