District's heritage boosting tourism development

A batch of major cultural tourism projects were announced at the recent Ming Dynasty Culture Forum 2024 held at the Ming Tombs Scenic Area in Beijing's Changping district, injecting new vigor into the city's cultural tourism landscape.

One of the initiatives is from the Ming Tombs Scenic Area, which plans to gradually open more tombs to visitors, and all of the 13 tombs in the scenic area are scheduled to open their doors to the public by 2030.

Currently, only some of the scenic areas are open to the public, which constitute about 30 percent of the total area of the Ming Tombs Scenic Area. Visitors can only see individual scenic spots and cannot get a complete picture of the entire Ming Tombs, which are scattered across the 80-square-kilometer expanse of the Ming Tombs Scenic Area, said Yuan Jiangyu, deputy chief of the Ming Tombs administration center.

With the announcement of this plan, the previously closed tombs of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) will gradually become accessible, providing the public with more space to tour and enabling them to experience the overall historical layout of the Ming Tombs.

The plan will be completed in three phases.

The first phase, running from 2024 to 2025, will see the openings of Siling, the tomb of the dynasty's last emperor Chongzhen, and Yongling, the tomb of Emperor Jiajing.

In the second phase from 2026 to 2028, Maoling, Tailing and Deling, which are the tombs of the three emperors of Chenghua, Hongzhi and Tianqi, and the site of the New Imperial Residence, will open to the public.

The third phase, from 2029 to 2030, will open Xianling, Yuling and Qingling, which are the tombs of the emperors Hongxi, Tianshun and Taichang.

To facilitate the project's progress, the Ming Tombs administration center is focusing on the restoration of the 7.3-kilometer-long main road linking the various imperial tombs.

Additional efforts are underway to protect and restore the perimeter walls, and to construct scenic walkways and viewpoints. This will present the historical spatial layout more comprehensively, offering a broader perspective for visitors to fully appreciate and understand this precious UNESCO World Heritage Site, according to Yuan.

As the scenic area is expanding its opening-up, the Ming Tombs will gradually move toward becoming a national archaeological site park.

By leveraging its invaluable cultural heritage resources, the scenic area aims to foster close ties between itself and surrounding villages, thus driving regional socioeconomic development and improving the quality of life for local residents.

In addition, tailored cultural tourism projects will be designed based on the unique characteristics and historical features of each tomb, making visits more engaging and vivid. This approach not only allows tourists to experience Ming Dynasty culture but also helps heritage preservation contribute to cultural development, local officials said.

Global call

At the same time, Changping issued a call for designs from around the world for a culture-museum-tourism complex project centering on Ming Dynasty culture.

With its surrounding area rich in cultural and tourism resources, commercial services, and research facilities, the project, in Changping district where the Ming Tombs Scenic Area is situated, aims to become the world's most renowned base for Ming culture exchanges, China's most influential Ming culture-themed exhibition zone, and a cultural, tourism, and commercial hub building on world heritage in the capital.

The complex is designed to incorporate catering, accommodation, travel, shopping, entertainment and other recreational activities to expand the reach of Ming Dynasty culture and invigorate local cultural, museum and tourism industries, its planners said.

The project is open to entries from design firms, individuals and teams from across the world. A local official said he expected the designs to create a garden city that has its own characteristics while harmonizing with the world cultural heritage site's landscape. Once completed, the project will become another cultural landmark in Changping, burnish Beijing's cultural tourism image and provide further support for the city's development as a national cultural center, the official said.

On top of that, two study tour routes featuring the heritage sites from the Ming Dynasty were released.

One is from the Baifuquan Park, the northernmost water source of the ancient Grand Canal, to the emperors' tombs in the scenic area: Changling and Dingling, and then the Visitor Center of the Ming Tombs Scenic Area. The other route is planned to start from the Juyongguan Great Wall to Yongling or Siling and other mausoleums not yet open to the public.

It will take two days to complete both routes, and visitors can spend the night in hotels nearby or a camping site at Juyongguan to enjoy the starry night and immerse themselves in the splendor of Ming Dynasty culture.

To learn about the requirements and credentials for entering the international design competition for the culture-museum-tourism complex project centering on the Ming Dynasty, please consult the announcement for the prequalification of the competition. It will be published on the China Tendering and Bidding Public Service Platform (www.cebpubservice.com), an information platform for Chinese government procurement services (www.ccgp.gov.cn), and the official website of Beijing Science Park Auction & Bidding (www.bkpmzb.com).