Visitors shun popular areas on first day of holiday

Many popular tourist spots saw sharp falls in the number of visitors on the first day of the seven-day National Day holiday.

Visitors decided to steer clear of the sites after they were inundated by huge crowds on previous holidays.

Jiuzhaigou Valley in Sichuan province, known for its picturesque and colorful pools and snow-capped mountains, saw 8,579 tourists on Wednesday, the first day of the holiday, down by 40 percent from last year.