A host of measures to support the growth of Internet Plus Tourism were announced at the State Council's executive meeting in Beijing on Nov 18.

Development of smart facilities in tourist attractions will be pushed forward and services such as electronic maps and audio guides will be promoted.

Tourist sites will be encouraged to increase online marketing and facilitate new business models such as cloud tours.

Tourism safety monitoring and the handling of online complaints will be stepped up.

Zhejiang has been deepening reform on Internet Plus Tourism in recent years.

Following the coronavirus outbreak this year, Zhejiang authorities established an online public service system which handles ticket and room bookings for a total of 669 scenic spots (202 of which are 4A class and above), 576 homestays, 237 hotels, and 234 museums across the province. During the eight-day Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day holidays, all scenic spots in the city of Quzhou used the system, and around 20 percent of tourists at the city's major attractions booked online in advance.

The online booking system not only reduces person-to-person contact amid the pandemic, but also alleviates the workload for tourism authorities in collecting statistics. "We have always focused on the number of tourists who spend at least one night in the scenic spots. Previously, we had to conduct an inaccurate and cumbersome sampling survey by ringing hotels and scenic spots. Now the data is just one click away on our computers and cellphones," said a staff member at the Quzhou culture, radio, television, and tourism administration.

Currently, the online booking system is available to individual users on personal computers as well as mobile apps and mini-programs, offering updated tourism information on its front page. It has so far amassed more than 25 million users.

Moreover, Zhejiang has adopted a tourism monitoring system which has so far connected 238 tourist attractions at 4A class or above, 978 hotels at 3A class or above, and 2423 travel agencies, providing real-time big data analysis of the province's tourism sector.