Tourist arrivals in the Tibet Autonomous Region rose 4.8 percent year-on-year in the first two month of this year, the local tourism administration said on Wednesday.

Tourist arrivals hit 121,418, generating revenue of 99.24 million yuan (about US$11.5 million), which was up 0.6 percent, the regional tourism administration said.

There were 116,258 domestic tourists, up 5.6 percent, whose spending rose 5.6 percent to 80.06 million yuan.

Foreign visitor arrivals fell 10 percent to 5,160, with revenue of US$2.8 million, down 11.4 percent.

The administration said growth in total arrivals indicated the industry had begun to recover from the impact of the Lhasa riots last year. Annual tourism revenues fell 53.4 percent to 2.26 billion yuan last year.

Most tourist attractions, airlines, hotels and travel agencies in Tibet have offered discounts to attract visitors. Tourist destinations in the regional capital Lhasa, and in Nyingchi and Xigaze, cut prices by half to attract more off-season travelers.

(Xinhua News Agency March 11, 2009)