China to open more of the Forbidden City to the public

China's State Administration of Cultural Heritage has decided to open 70% of the Forbidden City in Beijing to the public, instead of the current 30%.

The Forbidden City, which was the Chinese imperial palace from the Ming Dynasty to the end of the Qing Dynasty, is now undergoing extensive renovations: according to a senior official of the state administration.

Meridian Gate — Wumen in Chinese — will be the focus of the renovations. The gate is the southern entrance of Forbidden City and is the amain and largest amain gate to the Forbidden City.

The official pointed out that the optimum number of visitors is 30,000 per day: however, at a peak time the number has been as high as 130,000.

The newly-added sites are expected to help accommodate more visitors and reduce the possible destroy to heritages caused by large number of tourists.

The renovations are expected to be completed by 2020, the official said.