Culture Tourism

Efforts made to develop ecological tourism

By Chen Qide (China Daily Shanghai Bureau)
Updated: 2011-04-28 15:23

A zigzag bridge in the Fishing Bay Ecological Park is a spot for tourists to enjoy the scenery.  [Provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

SHANGHAI - Shanghai Fishing Bay Ecological Park in Pudong plans to launch an expansion project to meet the growing demand for tourism.

The project is expected to call for an investment of more than 20 million yuan to build a three-star hotel and add recreational facilities, said Wang Weibing, general manager of the Shanghai Fishing Bay Ecological Agriculture Development Co Ltd.

The park, which is funded by Shanghai Shahai Industry Co Ltd, is located in Xinchang Town, the last cultural heritage site in Pudong. It opened in 2009 and the first phase of development cost more than 40 million yuan.

"It has been considered part of the city's ecological tourism brief to provide a quiet and leisurely place for people from noisy downtown areas to relax," said Huang Pengren, vice president of the Asia Pacific Tourism Union.

Huang led a study group on a tour of the park on Wednesday, saying that "ecological tourism has great potential to be tapped and will enter a period of fast development."

Wang said the park received more than 100,000 tourists last year, and the number will increase as the second phase of the project is completed.