Central China's World Heritage Site reopens as COVID-19 risk clears

CHANGSHA, Aug. 27 (Xinhua) -- Zhangjiajie, a renowned tourist city in central China's Hunan Province, reopened its first batch of tourist sites, including the core part of Wulingyuan scenic area on the World Natural Heritage List of UNESCO, on Friday morning after a suspension of nearly one month.

Starting at 8 a.m. Friday, the city reopened the core part of Wulingyuan scenic area and scenic areas of Tianmen Mountain and Zhangjiajie Grand Canyon, after the whole city of Zhangjiajie was classified as a low-risk area for COVID-19 on Wednesday.

From Aug. 27 to Sept. 30, all tourists can enjoy half-price discounts on tickets for Zhangjiajie's major scenic spots and transportation in scenic areas, like shuttle buses and cable cars.

Zhangjiajie is expected to open all scenic spots before early September 2021.

Zhangjiajie, known for scenic mountains, closed all its tourist sites and upgraded risk levels for COVID-19 on July 30 after the city reported one confirmed locally transmitted case.