In the wake of the 7.8 Richter Scale earthquake which hit Wenchuan, southwest China’s Sichuan Province on May 12, domestic tours to Chengdu, Jiuzhaigou and Huanglong, all famous tourist resorts in the province, are currently suspended.

On the day of the earthquake, the China National Tourism Administration issued an emergency notice asking tourists not to visit or pass through the quake-hit areas in the near future for their own safety.

Travel agencies are required to halt all their business to or through quake-hit areas. They should immediately stop already organized tour groups from passing through these areas.

Travel websites have also suspended online booking services for quake-hit areas. One of these websites, Ctrip.com, has already temporarily closed tour reservations for Sichuan and will only reopen when given official notice from the National Tourism Administration. For vacationers with reservations within seven days after the quake struck and for those who planned to visit Chengdu or who had reservations to depart from or transit through Sichuan, the website will help them cancel their reservations.

Jin Chunhui, manager of the air ticket department of another travel website called Mangocity.com, said that air tickets to Chongqing are still on sale and travelers may go to Sichuan Province via Chongqing.

Sichuan Airlines also announced that passengers who have already booked air tickets from Beijing to Chengdu could return their tickets or make a ticket change for free from May 14 until May 18.

Comfort Travel Agency has suspended all its tours to Chengdu and neighboring tourist resorts for the moment. The agency has also halted reservations for Sichuan tours for the near future. For those who have made prior reservations, the travel agency will assist in cancellations.

The earthquake has greatly affected the Jiuzhaigou-Huanglong tour package, a representative travel agency Beijing Spring Tour said. Tourists are urged to suspend their travel plans to this destination and/or make other domestic tours. As of yesterday evening, hotel reservations for the following tour destinations have been affected by the earthquake: Chengdu, Mianyang, Emei Mountain, Guang’an, Dujiangyan, Chuxiong, Hailuogou, Suining, Deyang, Yibin, Guangyuan, Nanchong, Xichang, Panzhihua, Neijiang, Leshan, Ya’an, Jiangyou, Aba Prefecture, Songpan and Meishan.

(China.org.cn by Yuan Fang, May 14, 2008)