Number of visitors to Shanghai Expo exceeds 8 mln

More than 8 million tourists have visited the Shanghai World Expo as of 9 p.m., May 31, exactly one month since the event opened, according to organizers.

The average daily visitor volume was around 260,000. The Expo Site attracted 327,500 visitors on May 31 and more than 500,000 on May 29.

The number of visitors has been growing steadily since the Expo Site opened, and records have been broken again and again. The Expo attracted more than 300,000 visitors every day from May 21 to 28.

Attendance at the Expo tends to show the following pattern: First, group tourists constitute generally more than 30 percent of the total. Second, there are small increases in the number of tourists in the first half of the week and large increases in the second half.

The number rises slowly but steadily from Monday to Thursday, soars from Friday to Saturday, reaches its peak on Saturday and drops a little on Sunday to basically the same level as on Friday. Third, the number of visitors is significantly influenced by weather conditions. Continuous rain, especially rain in the morning, causes a decline in the number. Fourth, the number of visitors to the Puxi section of the Expo Site has been on the rise.

Over the past month, the Expo has operated in a harmonious and orderly way, and all aspects such as activities, reception, security, and sanitation have been in good condition. Moreover, there have not been any major food safety accidents or any other types of accidents.

All service measures have been improved constantly throughout May to increase efficiency and provide better service, which has made the Expo Site more and more convenient and comfortable. The organizers have done much work over the past week to improve service.

For example, more checkrooms were built near the gates. Lost-and-found offices were set up outside the enclosed area. Complaint offices were also established to respond to concerns and complaints from tourists. The entrances and exits and queuing facilities for pavilions were improved for the convenience of tourists.

Services for exhibitors have also been improved gradually, and a rapid response mechanism has been established to solve the problems facing exhibitors as soon as possible. Activities such as national pavilion days and honor days for international organizations have been held successfully, and various special weeks for Chinese provinces and cities have also been organized in a smooth and orderly way.

It is worth noting that the Expo Site now has a much larger capacity for visitors through steady improvements in actual operations over the past month. The Expo Site has a capacity for receiving 400,000 to 500,000 visitors per day, as can be seen from the number of visitors on May 29.

The Expo is now well prepared to receive numerous tourists in June.