Beijing has 6.52 million visitors for the Olympics
Beijing recorded 6.52 million visitors for the 2008 Olympics, with 382,000 of those coming from overseas. Authorities long estimated that 500,000 foreigners would visit the city, but tougher visa controls reduced that number.
The Xinhua news agency reported that tourist spots in the city reported total revenues of 162 million yuan (US$23 million), according to figures from the Beijing Statistics Bureau, the National Bureau of Statistics’ Beijing survey team and the Beijing Tourism Bureau.
The results showed key attractions such as the Forbidden City, the Summer Palace and the Great Wall each received more than 230,000 tourists from Aug 8 to 24. Star-level hotels accepted around 80,000 guests each day. The five-star hotels had an occupancy rate of 81% with an average price of 3,604 yuan (US$525) per room per day.
Something is very wrong with those figures. Previous estimates for foreigners were around 500,000 to 550,000, so that’s OK. But domestic visitors were estimated at max. 2 million something. 6 million is impossible, maybe it was rather 650,000 - the city was just empty and so were all cheaper hotels where those 6 million would have stayed.
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