LIFE
CHINA DAILY Tuesday, July 30, 2019 | 19South Africa is taking action to
appeal to more Chinese to answer
the call of the wild.
South African Tourism, the coun-
try’s official tourism-marketing
agency, recently staged its annual
travel-trade road show with the
theme, “Wild, authentic South Afri-
ca”, in Beijing, Shanghai and
Shaanxi province’s capital, Xi’an.
It announced new strategies to
draw more Chinese visitors at the
events.
“Discovering a wild, authentic
South Africa is not just about the
animals but also about discovering
yourself and bringing out the wild in
you,” Mansoor Mohamed, who’s in
charge of the agency’s Asia-Pacific
operations, said at the Beijing event.
“Connecting with the wild gives
you a sense of inner expansion, per-
spective and life meaning, allowing
you to challenge your preconcep-
tions and reinvent yourself through
a wild, authentic lifestyle.”
Tourist arrivals from China to
South Africa exceeded 97,000 last
year. The number of arrivals this
January was 22 percent higher than
in January 2018.
Tourism revenue generated by Chi-
nese visitors increased nearly 70 per-
cent last year compared with 2017.
That’s largely because their average
stays increased to 10 days, and more
are seeking premium experiences.
Mohamed says that South Africa
is also a leader among responsible-
tourism destinations.
“We’ve won many awards for con-
servation and responsible tourism,”
he says.
“Our aim is that our children,
grandchildren and their offspring
will be able to enjoy the beauty of
South Africa in the future, as well.”
He says many Chinese visitors are
concerned about environmental pro-
tection and community development.
“South Africa is doing well in its
environmental protection efforts for
tourism. That’s why we are able to
see such a wide variety of wildlife
there,” says Zhou Wei. The 33-year-
old office worker from Beijing trav-
eled to South Africa with his wife
and 5-year-old daughter for two
weeks in February during this year’s
Spring Festival.
“The country’s natural scenery
and wildlife are perfect for parents
and children to explore and spend
some quality time together,” he says.
They saw an elephant fall prey to
lions and learned about “the law of
the jungle”. They also enjoyed beach-
es, oceans and city views of Cape
Town, and visited a local vineyard.
The family of three joined a small,
high-end safari trip and stayed over-
night in a national park to have an
encounter with nature. A local tour
guide sought out the wild animals
that they wanted to see and taught
them how to identify different types
of plants.
At Boulders Beach near Cape
Town, Zhou was moved to see tens
of thousands of penguins hatch
their eggs under the heat of the sun.
“It’s just like parenthood for
humans — we’ll happily do any-
thing for our children,” he says.
Since a colony of African pen-
guins settled there in 1982, increas-
ing numbers of penguins haveflocked to the location where they’re
placed under the protection of the
authorities.
“It’s easier for Chinese people to
travel to South Africa than before, as
the visa policy and air connectivity
have improved over the years,”
Mohamed says.
South Africa has visa centers in 11
cities across China, such as Zhejiang
province’s capital, Hangzhou, Hubei
province’s capital, Wuhan, and Sich-
uan province’s capital, Chengdu.
Authorities are working to reduce
processing times. They are planning
to increase the centers’ human
resources this year.
Chinese travelers can also choose
from 33 routes to South Africa oper-
ated by 12 airlines.
Air China launched nonstop
flights between Beijing and Johan-
nesburg three times a week in 2015.
In January, it extended this route by
adding Guangdong province’s
Shenzhen as a stopover.
In September, South African Air-
ways will launch a new route between
Guangdong’s capital, Guangzhou,
and Johannesburg to make the coun-
try more accessible for visitors
departing from southern China.
South African Tourism is striving
to strengthen partnerships with tour-
ism-industry players, better publicize
travel products and attend more tour-
ism-related events, such as seminars,
workshops and road shows.It’s also working to enhance coop-
eration with various brands, engage
travelers through more online and
offline activities and platforms, and
boost integrated-marketing collabo-
ration.
This year, South African Tourism
has expanded its marketing part-
nerships from China’s online travel
agencies and agents to brands not
directly associated with travel, such
as the question-and-answer web-
site, Zhihu. It’s placing special focus
on drawing young travelers.
Chinese actor Huang Bo, who won
a Golden Horse Award for best actor,
became South Africa’s tourism-im-
age ambassador in China in March.
South Africa is also continuing its
China Ready Workshop for its tour-
ism operators. It provides instruc-
tion in such areas as Chinese
language and cuisine.
Mohamed says tourism business-
es can join other trainings online
and offline in a growing number of
provinces.
“We’re also pushing (Chinese)
toward tailored itineraries and
experiences,” he says.
“Chinese travelers are moving
away from the traditional group-
tour products toward small-group
and family tours. And they prefer
the personalized travel experiences.”Contact the writer at
[email protected]On the right track
By YANG FEIYUE
[email protected]A tourism train, which will show-
case Beijing’s northeastern Huair-
ou and Miyun districts, began
running in mid-July.
The train uses the S5 rail line that
connects various scenic spots,
including Yanqi Lake, Hongluo
Temple, Yunmeng Mountain,
Wtown and the Jinshanling section
of the Great Wall.
The train is the brainchild of the
Beijing Rail Travel Service, which
comes under the Beijing railway
bureau.
It runs twice a day and intends to
cater to travelers in the summer
vacation.
A single trip ticket costs 12 yuan
($1.74).
The train can accommodate
more than 400 passengers.
The Beijing authority has invited
artists from across the capital to
give performances to entertain
travelers on the train during the
roughly two-hour trip starting at
Huangtudian station in the large
residential area of Huilongguan.The compartments are all deco-
rated with various elements, such
as new urban scenes, views of the
night sky and the Great Wall, and
the windows are bigger than those
on regular trains to enable travelers
to enjoy the scenic views.
“It will be great for parent-chil-
dren outings,” says Wang Yuanyuan,
an employee with the Beijing rail
travel agency.
Currently, a one-day package
tour of Wtown scenic resort is
priced at 199 yuan, while that for
the Jinshanling section of the Great
Wall is at 168 yuan.The Beijing railway bureau has
also launched a smart travel plat-
form for mobile phone users.
There, travelers can place orders
online and buy packages that cover
transportation, scenic spot tickets
and other customized services.
“Once travelers make an order, a
QR code will be sent to them, and
they can use it to access all the pla-
ces and services involved,” says
Wang Feng, who was in charge of
developing the platform.
In addition, one can look up allrail information across the country
on the platform, as well as real-time
visitor numbers at major scenic
spots across the capital.
“So they can plan their schedule
accordingly,” Wang adds.
More resources besides the tour-
ism train will be integrated in the
travel platform in the near future.
“For example, we will work with
tourism authorities in Huairou and
Miyun districts, and they will put out
more of what the two districts have
to offer on the platform,” says Wang.Yanqi Lake
A national AAAA scenic spot, the
lake sits in the north of Huairou dis-
trict. It is surrounded by mountains
on three sides, with the Mutianyu
Great Wall in the north and the
Hongluo Temple in the west. The lake
became the center of the world’s
attention in May 2017 when the Belt
and Road Forum for International
Cooperation was held there. It now
offers sightseeing, leisure, entertain-
ment and fitness experiences. Visitors
can enjoy up to 50 water and land
recreational programs at the lake, as
well as trout and mutton barbecues.Hongluo Temple
The Hongluo Temple was built in
AD 338 and was renovated during the
Tang Dynasty (618-907). It covers an
area of 8 square kilometers and is
one of the original sites for the prac-
tice of Buddhism in northern China.
The temple sits in a mass of land
containing ancient pinewoods with a
mountain and river in the back-
ground. Visitors can visit a forest of
bamboos, gingkoes and pine trees at
the temple complex.Yunmeng Mountain
Yunmeng Mountain lies in the west
of Miyun district and features lofty
mountain peaks, deep valleys, unusu-
al shaped rocks, luxuriant trees and
flowers, as well as waterfalls andwinding streams. The main peak is
more than 1,400 meters high and
makes for a popular destination for
hikers and climbers. Besides, the mild
summer temperature makes the
mountain a great resort for those
seeking to escape the heat.Wtown
Beijing WTown is in Gubeikou town,
Miyun district, and is right next to the
beautiful and precipitous Simatai
Great Wall. The scenic resort was
built on the site of three villages and
features 430,000 square meters of
mountainous courtyard dwellings. In
WTown, tourists can visit the Simatai
Great Wall and experience local folk
customs. Barbeques and other typi-
cal cuisine and snacks in northern
China are also available there.Jinshanling Great Wall
The Jinshanling Great Wall lies in
the mountainous area of Luanping
county, Hebei province, and has a
total length of 10.5 kilometers. Jin-
shanling was first built in the 6th cen-
tury during the Southern and
Northern Dynasties (420-581). There
are 67 watchtowers in different styles
along the section. Viewed from a dis-
tance, the Jinshanling Great Wall
resembles a giant dragon, carving a
path over the mountain peaks whose
line it follows.
YANG FEIYUELiaoning villagers Scenic spots along the rail
celebrate Manchu heritage
By YANG FEIYUE and WU YONG
A village continues to draw Man-
chu descendants from across the
country, keen to reconnect to their
imperial roots.
On the 13th day of the fifth month
in the Chinese lunar calendar (June
13 this year), many Manchu people
will gather at Puhe village in north-
eastern Liaoning province’s capital
Shenyang.
The day marks the founding of
the local ancestral temple and the
birthday of Guangong, or Guan Yu,
a famous general from Chinese his-
tory.
The temple honors Aisin Gioro,
the clan of Manchu emperors, and
has two tablets displaying the mer-
its of village’s ancestors.
The tablets are centuries-old and
have been designated antiques by
the local government.
People come to attend a ceremony
and worship Guan Yu and their
ancestors.
“People were everywhere, and we
had to leave our car far away and
walk in,” says Shao Fengli, an associ-
ate professor from Liaoning Univer-
sity’s College of Liberal Arts.
Shao was there for the celebration
last year, which fell on June 26.
About 90 percent of the local vil-
lagers are descendants of imperial
families of the Qing Dynasty (1644-
1911).
Locals mostly live on fishing and
farming.
“Manchu people value their
ancestral culture a lot and are influ-
enced by Confucian ethics,” Shao
says.
“Therefore, they uphold loyalty,
valiance and filial piety.”
At the event, people dress in typi-
cal Manchu attires and wear red
flowers on their chest as they wait
for the ceremony to begin.
They then kneel when a village
elder delivers a ritual speech, which
introduces the history of the Man-
chu and their families.
After the ceremony, villagers light
firecrackers and burn incense to
pray, followed by folk dancing and
distinctive Manchu food.
Visitors can enjoy the colorful
ethnic costumes and accessories, as
well as exquisite music, getting a full
measure of Manchu hospitality dur-
ing the ceremony.
These activities are carried on
by local villagers, and the local
government is now planning to
help spread the spirit of the cere-
mony.
Efforts will be put into developing
local intangible cultural heritage
and tourism next year, according to
Shao.Contact the writers at
[email protected]The train connects various scenic
spots in Beijing’s northeastern
Huairou and Miyun districts.
YANG FEIYUE / CHINA DAILYVisitors encounter wild animals during their safari trips in South
Africa’s national park and some stay overnight inside the
park.PHOTOS PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILYSouth Africa’s natural appeal
The country’s
tourism
authorities are
working to
enhance its allure
among Chinese
travelers,
Xu Lin reports.
People gather at Puhe village in
Shenyang to mark a festival that
worships their Manchu ances-
tors. PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY
The WTown scenic resort is among the destinations along the
newly launched tourism train. LIN NINGSHENG / FOR CHINA DAILY