The city of Datong, Shanxi province will open five of its scenic spots to visitors free of charge for World Tourism Day, on Sept 27 – the Yungang Grottoes, Hengshan Mountain, Datong Coal Mine, and Huayan and Shanhua temples – as part of the province's recently opened tourism promotion.

Because Datong is a key tourist city, many of its hot spots were added to the program, with many special offers. The program calls for 49 A-level scenic spots to provide a 20-percent discount for tickets for everyone during peak tourism periods, from March 1 to Nov 30.

There are also 40-percent discounts for the slow season, from Dec 1 to the end of February. Anyone above the age of 60, and those with a physical disability can get in for free at all participating spots all year round.

There are also spots that are open for free, on May 19, Chinese Tourism Day, and Sept 27, since the program got a great response last year, with Datong seeing a surge in the number of tourists on the two tourism days.