BEIJING: Mr. Luo Shugang, minister of culture and tourism, said that China has become the largest source of tourists in the world, with the number of overseas trips made by the Chinese last year reaching 150 million.
He told the press that last year Chinese made more than 5.5 billion domestic trips, with an average of four trips per person, which suggests that China has entered the era of mass tourism.
The minister also stressed the importance of civilised tourism: “On the one hand, measures need to be taken to ensure the safety of tourists. On the other hand, we have to advocate civilised behaviors among outbound visitors, making Chinese tourists representatives of China’s image, tellers of China stories and ambassadors of Chinese civilisation,” said Luo.
The minister also said that infrastructure at tourist sites should be further upgraded, and reception and service quality improved, so that the travel environment can be more comfortable and convenient.
Speaking of “the toilet revolution”, a campaign launched in 2015 that aims to increase the number and sanitation of toilets at tourist sites, Luo said that more moves will be made to increase the number of lavatories and improve sanitary conditions at major tourist attractions.
He said that while it will take two more years to solve the lavatory shortage, the country’s toilet revolution has made steady progress in the past four years, with 35,000 tourist lavatories built or renovated by the end of last year.
