Tourism in Tibet

Potala Palace in Lhasa, the capital of Tibet

Tourism in Tibet has recently become one of the country's development strategies. In 2015, Tibet received more than 20 million tourists, and its total annual tourism revenue reached 28 billion yuan, accounting for more than 25% of the region's GDP and contributing more than 20% to Tibet's economic growth ^[1] .But at the same time, Tibet's tourism resources are also very fragile. With the influx of many tourists into Tibet, Tibet's national culture, customs, and habits have also been affected. ^[2] Therefore, it also advocated the protection of local businesses while developing tourism resources . ^[3]

Industrial development

Following the completion of the Qinghai-Tibet Railway in July 2006, tourism in Tibet expanded rapidly.2006 Tibet received more than 2.5 million tourists, including 150,000 foreigners ^[4] ].In 2007, this figure rose to about 4 million. However, the 2008 Tibetan unrest，closed tourist areas between March and June, and visitors dropped to 2.25 million that year.^{[ citation needed ]}

Between January and June 2009, more than 2.7 million tourists visited Tibet, triple the number in the same period in 2008, providing 2.29 billion yuan in local revenue ^[5] .In 2010, Tibet received 6.85 million domestic and international tourists, with tourism revenues of 7.14 billion yuan, or 14 percent of its GDP. Between January and November 2012, Tibet received a record 10 million tourists, ^[6] surpassing the 8.69 million in 2011. ^[7] In 2015, tourists exceeded 20 million for the first time. It expected that by 2020, Tibet will receive more than 30 million tourists annually, and the total annual tourism revenue will exceed 55 billion yuan . ^[8]

Travel resources

Namtso is the second largest lake in Tibet

Natural landscape

Mount Everest North Slope

The natural landscape of Tibet is divided into three categories: the temperate and humid alpine valleys of eastern Tibet, the alpine mountains and semi-arid river valleys of southern and western Tibet, and the alpine plateau deserts and meadows of northern and northwestern Tibet. Since the Tibetan Plateau, on which Tibet is situated, is an assemblage of a series of mountain systems, plateaus, broad valleys, and lake basins, surrounded by the Himalayas, Gangdisê, Tanggula, and Kunlun mountain ranges, there is a wide variety of topography and geomorphology. ^{[10] [11]}

Cultural attractions

Tibet's human landscape includes how Tibetans live and survive, ethnic customs, and temple culture. ^[12] The results of the third national cultural relics census show that there are now 4,277 immovable cultural relic sites in Tibet. Famous historical and cultural cities include Lhasa, Shigatse, and Gyantse. Attractions include the Potala Palace, the Jokhang, the Norbulingka, the Tashi Lhunpo Monastery, the Himalayas (Mount Everest), Mount Kailash, Namucuo, Yamdrok, and Yangbajing (including hot springs and glaciers). Among them, the Potala Palace in the center of Lhasa, which became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1994, To minimize the human damage caused by tourists to the Potala Palace's adobe architecture, the Potala Palace restricts the number of visitors and the time of the day. Therefore, finding a ticket to visit the Potala Palace is often tricky during the peak tourist season.

Holiday celebrations

Tourism festivals are held throughout Tibet to attract many tourists to Tibet. ^[8] Many of these festivals have solid religious overtones ^[13] From the Tibetan New Year to the Peach Blossom Festival in Linzhi in the spring, the Yalong Cultural Festival in Shannan, the Everest Cultural Festival in Shigatse and the Lhasa Snowdon Festival in the summer, to the Tibet Tourism and Cultural Expo, festival tourism has become a booster for the development of tourism in Tibet. Among them, the Tibetan New Year is the most important festival in Tibet; ^[14] At the same time, the Snowdon Festival is held from the 15th of June to the 30th of July in the Tibetan calendar every year, during which there is a grand scale of the sunbathing Buddha ceremony and great and enthusiastic performances of Tibetan opera. ^[15] In addition, there are also the Monlam Prayer Festival, the Merangi Small Puja, the Ongkor Festival , the Arrow Plugging Festival, the Snana Yatra, the Lunar New Year Bratva Jumping Assembly, and many other festivals and events. ^[16]

Travel procedures

• When mainland China residents travel to Tibet, they can enter Tibet with their Resident Identity Card, Still when they are over 16 years old and want to travel to border areas such as Mount Everest, they need to hold a valid border permit ^[17] .

  

  Example of entry letter for foreigners into Tibet

• Requirements for persons who do not hold a passport or ID card of the People’s Republic of China

• Hong Kong and Macao may enter Tibet directly with their Home Visit Cards.

• Before traveling to Tibet, people from foreign countries need to apply for a PRC visa (except for visa-free passport holders), They also need to use a "Letter of Approval for Foreigners Travelling to Tibet" (referred to as "Letter of Approval for Travelling to Tibet") issued by the Tibet Tourism Bureau through a travel agency.
• Before traveling to Tibet, people from Taiwan are required to apply for the "Letter of Approval for Taiwan Compatriots to Enter Tibet" (入藏函) issued by the Tibet Taiwan Affairs Office (西藏台湾事务办公室) through the travel agency, in addition to holding a compatriot's permit.
• Foreigners holding non-tourist visas are not allowed to enter Tibet as tourists, those holding business or study visas are required to produce certificates from the relevant local units in Tibet, and those holding journalist or official tickets must be contacted through China's foreign affairs departments. ^[18]

• Overseas travelers will have their Tibet entry letters checked at airports, railway stations, and road checkpoints, and they will be handed over to the group guide for safekeeping after entering Tibet. At the end of the trip, the travel agency will return the letter of entry to the TAR Tourism Bureau for filing, and no letter of admission will be allowed to be taken out of Tibet. ^[18]
• Overseas travelers must apply for a Border Area Travel Permit (for foreigners) or a Border Guard Permit (for Taiwanese) based on the Tibet Entry Letter if they need to travel to the border areas. Tibet is located on the border with other countries such as India and Pakistan and, therefore, has more sensitive areas for border defense activities.

This is according to the regulations of the China National Tourism Administration, as Tibet is primarily located in the environment of plateau mountains. The area is vast for unique ethnic traditions, cultural monuments, and environmental protection. Also, due to the limited capacity of Tibet's traffic conditions and tourist service facilities, under the condition of ensuring the order and safety of tourists traveling to Tibet and medical resources, different tourism policies have been formulated, for example, tourists from outside the country are not permitted to enter Tibet traveling on their own. They must travel in organized and planned groups. Travelers intending to enter Tibet can then go through the relevant procedures at the offices of the TAR Tourism Bureau in Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu and Golmud, or commission a travel agent to do so. At the end of the process, the travel agency will issue the applicant with a letter of entry to Tibet, with which they can purchase an air ticket or bus ticket to Tibet.

Media

"Tourism in tibet" magazine is a comprehensive monthly magazine on tourism, fashion, and culture sponsored by the Tibet Autonomous Region Tourism Bureau. It introduces Tibet's geography and culture to readers and provides travel strategies and information. ^[19]

References

1. 肖, 正春 (2016-08-05). "旅游业带动西藏经济社会全面发展" [Tourism drives Tibetan economic and social development in an all-round way]. www.vtibet.cn (in Chinese). Archived from the original on 2017-03-05. Retrieved 2023-11-17.
2. 吴必虎, 余青 (2000). 中国民族文化旅游开发研究综述[Review of research on the development of ethnic cultural tourism] (in Chinese). 民族研究. p. 92.
3. 宗, 晓莲 (2001). 西方旅游人类学研究述评[Review of Western Tourism Anthropology Research] (in Chinese). 民族研究. p. 87.
4. "中国西藏之声网" [China Tibet Net]. Archived from the original on 2018-01-26. Retrieved 2016-08-05.
5. "历年西藏旅游人数与收入统计-西藏旅行官网" [Statistics on the number of tourists and income in Tibet over the years-Tibet Travel Official Website]. www.tibetcn.com. Retrieved 2023-10-11.
6. 人民网., 《人民日报海外版》. "西藏迈向世界一流旅游目的地" [Tibet moves towards becoming a world-class tourist destination]. Archived from the original on 2016-12-20.
7. 西藏旅行网., 新华网. "千万游客去西藏旅游考验西藏文物古迹安全" [Tens of millions of tourists traveling to Tibet test the safety of Tibetan cultural relics and historic sites]. Archived from the original on 2017-01-04. Retrieved 2012-03-21.
8. "西藏旅游前9个月接待游客2100万人次-西藏旅行官网" [Tibet Tourism Received 21 Million Tourists in the First 9 Months - Tibet Tourism Official Website]. www.tibetcn.com. Retrieved 2023-10-11.
9. 新华每日电讯. "色林错成为我国第二大咸水湖泊" [Selinco becomes the second largest saltwater lake in my country]. Archived from the original on 2015-11-30. Retrieved 2014-07-22.
10. 陈, 显顺 (1999年). 可持续发展与西藏的环境保护事业 (in Chinese). 西藏研究. p. 84.
11. 巴, 登珠 (2000年). 西藏地学（综合）旅游资源调查 (in Chinese). p. 105.
12. 徐, 嵩龄 (2001年). 旅游业应是西藏经济的主导产业 (in Chinese). 西藏研究. p. 60.
13. 西藏手册., 中国西藏信息中心. "西藏的节日" [Tibetan festivals]. Archived from the original on 2016-03-25. Retrieved 2005-06-27.
14. 《藏族风俗文化》 (in Chinese). 西藏人民出版社.
15. "国家地理" [national geographic]. www.cctv.com. Retrieved 2023-10-11.
16. 中国西藏信息中心. "西藏各节日时间表" [Tibetan festival schedule]. Archived from the original on 2011-08-23. Retrieved 2016-12-16.
17. 西藏自治区人民政府. "边境证". Archived from the original on 2016-12-10. Retrieved 2016-12-15.
18. "入藏函". Archived from the original on 2018-01-29. Retrieved 2016-12-15.
19. 重庆畅游文化传播有限公司. 《西藏旅游》 (in Chinese). 西藏旅游杂志社. ISSN   1005-2526.