Travel agencies in Tibet prepare for National Day holiday

　　BEIJING, Sept. 10 -- Since the beginning of September, travel agencies in Tibet have seen fewer tourists and some are preparing for the week-long National Day holiday which begins on Oct. 1.

　　"Compared with August, the number of tourists to Tibet this month is decreasing," said a staff of the Nyingchi Shambhala International Travel Agency.

　　Tourists visit the Jokhang Temple in Lhasa, capital of southwest China‘s Tibet Autonomous Region, in this picture taken on Aug. 22, 2009.(Xinhua/Gesang Dawa)

　　As usual, Tibet‘s tourism will meet an "off-season" in early September. With a decreasing number of tourists, the rates for hotels and air tickets also fell sharply.

　　"The rates for three-star hotels have posted the sharpest drop," said the staff. "In August, a three-star hotel room cost more than 300 yuan (43.9 U.S. dollars) per day and now the price has dropped to 120 yuan (17.7 dollars) per day."

　　In the peak-season of August, many airlines did not offer ticket discounts. But now, passengers can still get tickets with a 15-percent discount three or four days before their departure. In addition, train tickets are also easier to buy.

　　Since fewer tourists went to Tibet at the beginning of the month, some local travel agencies are preparing to organize local residents to travel to the inland cities.

　　"This year marks the 60th anniversary of the founding of the People‘s Republic of China, so we are planning to promote ‘trips to inland China‘," said Zhang Zhenhua, general manager of the Nyingchi Holiday Travel Agency based in east China‘s Zhejiang Province.

　　Tibetans are eager to visit other parts of the country, but know little about those places, Zhang added. Travel agencies can offer them travel information.