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Chinese tourists in NYC enjoy sights
By Zhao Yanrong in Beijing and Kelly Chung Dawson in New York (China Daily)
Updated: 2010-02-19 06:58
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Peng Keyu, the Chinese consul general in New York, signs autographs for tourists after delivering a welcome speech and briefing on the consulate-general's open day on Tuesday. [China Daily] |
'We are very proud... We are happy to represent China here'
New York City's famous Empire State Building, for the first time in its history, was open only to Chinese tourists Tuesday night for their celebration of the Chinese New Year.
The "Thousand Gather in New York" travel party arrived in more than 20 smaller groups from all over China this week. Nearly 1,000 Chinese tourists have been in the United States since Feb 10, and gathered in New York to celebrate the Year of the Tiger on Tuesday.
Empire State Building officials lit the city's landmark tower red and yellow in honor of the Chinese Lunar New Year at 7 pm local time on Tuesday, and held a two-hour visitation open only to the Chinese group from 8 pm to 10 pm.
"The Spring Festival lighting on the Empire State Building is regarded as not only a recognition of the Chinese community's contribution to the country and society, but also a light illuminating intercultural understanding and respect," Chinese Consul General Peng Keyu said at a Lunar New Year ceremony held at the Empire State Building.
He went on to express his hope that American tourists might visit Shanghai for the World Expo this summer.
Jean-Yves Ghazi, director of the observatory at the Empire State Building, told China Daily: "We are lighting the Empire State Building red and yellow to spread our wishes for happiness and good fortune to everyone this year."
"It was daytime here, but in our country it was midnight," said Liao Zhongkai, a tourist from Shanghai. "We are very proud. We feel that Chinese people are strong, and we are happy to represent China here."
The tourists were eager to see more of the city, with many listing various landmarks from popular movies and TV shows as must-see priorities. Like most of the group, Liao took advantage of holiday vacation time to visit new places, take in well-known sights, and of course, do some serious shopping.
"A lot of Chinese people now have more money than before, so we like to spend that money," he said. "New York is a gathering place for famous brands."
Macy's, one of the US' premier retailers, sponsored a showing of the lion dance, a traditional Chinese festival event, to greet their Chinese customers on Monday night. The group also planned to take a day trip to visit Woodbury outlet mall outside the city this week.
The tourist group is expected to spend as much as $6 million during their US trip. Others said they did not have enough time to accomplish everything they wanted to, and were already planning a return trip.
"This is the largest group we have ever arranged, and it has been very successful so far," Zhu Jun, a representative of the New York Travel Bureau in China, told China Daily yesterday.
"There will be more celebration events in New York until the Lantern Festival, which is the last day of the Chinese New Year. The number of Chinese tourists in New York will surpass 1,200 by then," he added.
The bureau is planning to bring another large Chinese group to New York during the summer holiday this year, in light of the Chinese New Year's group's success, Zhu said.
Last year more than 1 million people traveled from the US to China. Despite H1N1 fears, the number of travelers from China to the US grew to more than 600,000, said Bruce Bommarito, chief operating officer of the US Travel Industry Association.
"Travel to each other's countries is a great way to make friends," he said to the crowd.
Domestic travel boom
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Although some long-distance tourists began to return home yesterday, short- and medium-distance travel is still on the rise, according to the latest Spring Festival travel information report released by the National Tourism Administration yesterday.
Many cities in the eastern and southern regions saw more tourist arrivals as the weather there turned better, the report said.
For example, in Shanghai, the local animal park received 7,000 tourists, double the number for the same day last year. The Oriental Pearl TV Tower also had 17,000 visitors, up 5 percent over the same period last year.
Meanwhile, the number of visitors to Yulong Snow Mountain in Lijiang of Southwest China's Yunnan province yesterday reached 13,500, up 26.7 percent over the same day last year. About 87 percent of hotel beds were taken, according to the report.
