As tourism in the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) was disrupted by the March 14 Riots in Lhasa, capital of the region, the local government allocated 46 million yuan to revitalize the tourism industry in 2008.

According to statistics from TAR Tourism Bureau, in December 2008, Nyingchi Prefecture had 24,000 tourists, 4.8 percent more than that in 2007 and Nyingchi Prefecture was the first one that realized tourism income increase compared to that of the previous year. Lhasa had 105,000 tourists, 4.62 percent less than that of 2007.

To resume the local tourism, departments concerned in TAR have taken measures such as lowering prices and sales promotions to boost the industry.

In 2009, 50 million yuan is expected to be allocated for encouraging tourism in TAR.

(eng.tibet.cn January 15, 2009)