Beijing tourism authorities plan to issue a package of projects for overseas investors who may want a piece of the Olympic pie.

　　One of the eye-catching prospects is a project to upgrade the facilities and services of the city's 4,000-plus non-star hotels to meet the inflow of tourists during the 2008 Olympic Games, said Wen Ziji, vice-director of the Beijing Tourism Bureau.

　　The city estimates 4.4 million foreign tourists and 100 million Chinese travelers will visit Beijing that year.

　　Particularly, in August when the Games is to be staged, 600,000 foreigners and 1.1 million Chinese from other cities are expected to pour into Beijing.

　　To accommodate the huge upsurge in visitors, Beijing needs at least 200 more star hotels or 30,000 more rooms in addition to the current 600 star hotels with 100,000 rooms, said Wen.

　　"We welcome foreign hotel groups to take part in the reconstruction of the city's non-star hotels and improve their services.

　　"It's a huge potential market as the number of foreign tourists to Beijing is expected to go up by 7 per cent annually," said Wen during a two-day International Forum on the Hotel Industry that opened yesterday in Beijing.

　　The World Tourism Organization forecast China will surpass France to become the world's leading tourist destination by 2020, when inbound tourists may reach 210 million, bringing in more than 2,500 billion yuan (US$302 billion).

　　Another attractive project is the plans to open the management of its 300-plus scenic spots as well as some cultural heritage sites to foreign investors.

　　"Foreign institutions are encouraged to participate in the design, reconstruction and management of the commercial scenic spots, such as the Longqing Gorge in Yanqing County and the Hongluo Resort in Huairou District," said Wen.

　　"As to the heritage sites, the opening-up is somewhat complicated due to the Law on Cultural Relics Protection, which stipulates that heritage sites cannot be operated as enterprises," said Wen. "But the facilities and the management there also need improvement. My bureau is considering selecting a batch of heritage sites to introduce foreign companies on a trial basis."

　　He said the list of the pilot heritage sites will be made public at an Olympic Economy Promotion Conference in April next year.

　　At the promotion conference, a series of breakthrough policies are expected to debut.