Nyingchi's winter tourism stimulates tour guide training

Nyingchi Prefecture in southeastern Tibet has opened the first training course for professional tour guides as a result of its increasingly warmer winter tourism.

Tibet Agricultural and Animal Husbandry College based in Nyingchi Prefecture launched in May a co-education program with the local tourism bureau to train high-level tour guides.

Wang Haishan, an official of the college, said that many of Tibet's existing tour guides know little about flower and tree resources of southeastern Tibet. But with more and more high-end tourists going to Tibet, the requirements for professional tour guides have become higher.

Tibet is well-known for its natural scenery and cultural heritages, such as Mt. Qomolangma and the Potala Palace in Lhasa.

Statistics show that Nyingchi received 942,100 domestic and foreign tourists in the first three quarters of 2009, earning 697 million yuan RMB (102 million U.S. dollars).

The prefecture is expected to receive 1.1 million tourist for the whole of 2009, generating a total revenue of 800 million yuan RMB (117 million dollars), 10 percent and 33 percent more than the targets set for 2009.

All the 34 students attending the first tour guide training course are forest recourses protection majors from Tibet Agricultural and Animal Husbandry.

They will also learn laws and regulations related to the tour guide services, as well as knowledge of transportation and accommodation safety and emergency treatment.

After the theoretical study, the trainees will practice their skills in various scenic spots.

The Nyingchi Prefectural Tourism Bureau and Tibet Agricultural and Animal Husbandry College plan to establish a long-term cooperative relationship with local travel agencies, tourism development companies, hotels and restaurants, and open high-class management courses for enterprises engaged in the tourism industry.

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