The Shenzhen municipal tourism bureau yesterday announced the best tour itinerary for foreign visitors wishing to see Shenzhen in a period of two or three days.

It was among 12 routes of different kinds unveiled by the bureau yesterday, after a selection process lasting five months.

The route for foreigners includes the Lotus Hill park, the Shenzhen Museum, the Fairy Lake Botanical Garden, Dawan Dwelling, Dafen Oil Painting Village and Splendid China · China Folk Culture Villages.

Standing atop Lotus Hill, foreign visitors can feel the modernity and openness of Shenzhen as they face the statue of the late Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping, the architect of China’s reform and opening-up drive.

The Shenzhen Museum can give foreign tourists a better understanding of the city’ past, present and future.

At Dawan Dwelling in Pingshan, Longgang District, which has well-preserved Hakka houses built in 1791, visitors can learn about the lives of the original inhabitants of Shenzhen.

And at Splendid China · China Folk Culture Villages, the visitors can experience China’s folk customs and traditions by watching performances by different minority groups at night.

The bureau initiated the travel route design competition in March, inviting public contributions for the best travel routes of different kinds such as day tours, cultural routes, culinary routes, coastal routes and best routes for backpackers. In May, the bureau shortlisted 36 routes designed by tourists and residents, and asked the public to vote on them.

In the past three months, the bureau received 1.62 million votes from the mainland and overseas.

The campaign had greatly enriched the choices of travelers in Shenzhen and will further improve Shenzhen’s image as a tourist destination, the bureau said.

Editor: Donald