Olympics effect sees heritage fees climb
Entrance prices for six main attractions in Beijing will soar to pay for upgrades
Ticket prices at six of Beijing's world heritage sites will soar next year as park managers scramble for funds to upgrade the attractions ahead of the 2008 Olympic Games.
Entry fees for the Imperial Palace Museum, the Summer Palace, the Badaling Great Wall and the Temple of Heaven will rise to up to three times the present price, while visitors will have to pay up to 25 per cent more to see the Ding Ling and Chang Ling Ming tombs.
The price rises were revealed by park managers on Tuesday at a public hearing organised by the Beijing Municipal Commission of Development and Reform.
Commission deputy director Chai Xiaozhong said more than 3 billion yuan would be spent on heritage restoration projects and upgraded facilities at the six sites in the lead-up to the 2008 Games.
'It's hard for our government to invest so much from our budget. Increased ticket revenues can fund the investment,' Mr Chai said. 'World heritage is also a tourism resource and it can be used to earn money.'
Park delegates said existing prices were too low compared with equivalent historical and cultural sites in other provinces.
In Anhui , park administrators raised entry fees to Mount Huangshan from 2 yuan to 132 yuan after the area became a world heritage site in 1990.
Nie Youyi , who works at the Ming tombs, said heritage listing had dealt a blow to the attraction's finances.
'Since the site's inclusion on the World Cultural Heritage list in July 2002, our annual revenue has decreased by 46 million yuan because commercial outlets have been removed from the park,' Mr Nie said.
'Currently, ticket sales only meet our daily operational costs and not any preservation measures.'
But most of the 21 community representatives at the hearing said the price increases were too high.
'It's shocking. How can the prices double?' Beijing Forestry University professor Meng Zhao-zhen asked.
'Ticket prices can be raised to enhance cultural protection, but affordability for disadvantaged groups should be considered.'
Some park officials said annual and monthly tickets for elderly and retired people would remain unchanged, but monthly passes sold to other members of the community could be up to double the price of a single visit.
Aviation engineer Gao Yang said entrance fees to the parks should not be too expensive, adding that the investment burden was a problem for the government.
'The parks are a social responsibility. [The government] should ensure no low-income earners are deprived of the right to visit the parks, especially when the income gap is widening,' Mr Gao said.
Other representatives suggested that audit procedures should be put in place and widely publicised to inform the public about how the money was spent.
The commission did not say when a decision on the price rises would be made.
