Tight visa rules hit hotel occupancy in China

GAMES AND GUNS: China has identified terrorism as the main threat to the Games.

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Beijing: During the Olympic Games thousands of visitors will come to Beijing seeking to soak up the atmosphere. But China is grappling with a unique problem. It has put in place strict visa norms and that has hit hotel occupancy.

The Forbidden City in Beijing, the capital of the Ming dynasty in the 14th century, is the most favoured tourist destination in the Chinese capital.

Organisers expect majority of the visitors to the Olympic Games to visit the historic palace.

However the Chinese government has tightened visa regulations saying such procedures are normal for Olympic host cities.

But Beijing's hotel industry is feeling the pinch, as 50 per cent of the rooms are still not booked.

"What I am talking about here is the rate of the hotel bookings. It's not the actual occupancy rate of August. According to our survey, the proportion of tourists from other provinces in China who have Olympic tickets but haven't booked many hotels is relatively high," says Xiong Yumei, Deputy Director of Beijing tourism office.

The government says the visa regulations are due to security considerations.

Security checkpoints have been put in place all over Beijing and police are checking each and every vehicle that enters the city.

China has identified terrorism as the main threat to the Games and round the clock security checks are in place.

"The pressure is significantly big. In fact, the pressure does not only refer to the environment as it is very hot in summer, but more importantly, the challenge comes from the task of ensuring a safe Olympics," says Wang Jun, police chief of Beijing security checkpoints.

Olympic security costs have spiraled since the 2001 attacks on the United States, but China is hoping to secure the Beijing Games for less than the $1.8 billion spent in Athens four years ago.

But critics and human rights groups say security is an excuse to crackdown on dissident groups.