Tourists visit the Yellow Crane Tower in Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province, April 29, 2020. Wuhan's landmark Yellow Crane Tower partly reopened to the public on Wednesday. For the time being, there is still a visitor number limit and online booking is needed. Photo: Xinhua

Overall recovery continues in Central China's Hubei Province, which was the country's most severely impacted province by COVID-19,  with the provincial government announcing the reopening of cinemas and the resumption of domestic travel by tourist groups.

Travel agencies and online travel companies can now organize cross-province tour groups and sell "flight ticket+hotel" packages, according to a notice issued by the department of culture and tourism of Hubei on Friday.

Aerial photo taken on July 7, 2019 shows tourists going sightseeing at a tea garden at Wujiatai Village in Xuanen County of Enshi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture, central China's Hubei Province. Photo: Xinhua

Scenic spots will limit the number of tourists to 50 percent of their usual maximum. International tourist groups to and from Hubei remain suspended, the notice said.

It urged local regions to reinforce administration on COVID-19 prevention.

Travel agencies need to collect tourists' information, health documents and test result for the coronavirus and their updated  "health code" must show they have not visited a high-risk area.

People wanting to travel in tour groups must also "avoid eating wild animals." 

If one member of a tour group has suspected COVID-19 symptoms, the group's travel  should be halted and travel agencies must directly report the incident to related departments.

In another development, the Hubei film bureau on Friday night announced that cinemas in Hubei could reopen starting Monday with the approval of provincial virus prevention authority.

Moviegoers should book tickets online with their real names and  less than 30 percent of seats will be filled.

The China Film Administration announced on Thursday that cinemas in low-risk areas can reopen starting July 20, while those in high-risk areas will remain closed. 

Hubei has been declared a low-risk area since April 18.

Global Times