Beijing sees record festival tourists

Beijing received a record number of tourists who spent more than ever during the weeklong Spring Festival holiday.

The municipal tourism authority said yesterday it handled 3.24 million domestic tourists from Jan 25-31, up 20 percent on last year, and gained 2.155 billion yuan ($314 million) of income, up 32 percent.

"It is a very good start for us in the Year of Ox," Yu Debin, deputy director of the tourism administration, said.