The Universal Beijing Resort said on Wednesday that it will reopen in phases starting from Saturday. The theme park will open on Saturday, capping passenger flow while the park’s two theme hotels are set to reopen on June 24 and July 1 respectively.

The phased reopening of the Universal Beijing Resort comes as major Chinese scenic spots announced exempting admission fees to boost tourism during the summer vacation, which experts said will greatly boost consumption and tourism during peak travel season.

Since June, nearly 500 scenic spots across China have announced free ticket offers or favorable prices for special groups such as students and medical workers in a bid to revive tourism, after COVID-19 flare-ups in many Chinese cities were contained.

Some scenic spots in Zhangjiajie, Central China’s Hunan Province better known as the "Avatar" mountains will open to tourists free of charge in December.

The Huashan Mountain in Shaanxi Province as well as the Lushan Mountain in East China’s Jiangxi Province is set to open free to tourists in June.

The Government of Qingdao, East China’s Shandong Province said 11 A-level scenic spots in the city with total admission fees of 590 yuan ($87.73) will be exempted for tourists across the country from July 1 to December 31.

Gulangyu, a pedestrian-only island in Xiamen, East China’s Fujian Province has announced a waiver of admission fees for its libraries and gardens until the end of August.

Data from Trip.com showed that a total of 4,000 free tickets for Zhangjiajie National Park in June have been booked, up 667 percent from the previous month.

Since the Lushan Mountain issued free tickets on June 6, it has received 53,800 tourist visits in the first three days of the promotion, according to Trip.com.

Fang Zeqian, an industry analyst with Ctrip Research Institute, said that preferential policies such as free admission will not only increase the attractiveness and competiveness of scenic spots for the summer holiday but also promote secondary spending such as catering and ground transportation, generating more business revenues.

Global Times