Shanghai Issues City Travel Card Nationwide

Shanghai has begun to issue its City Travel Card to individual domestic and foreign tourists.

Cardholders can enjoy discounts at 60 local stores, tourist attractions, restaurants and hotels from July 1, and more venues are expected to sign up to the scheme. The card can also be used to pay for public transport on subways, buses, taxis and ferries from now on, the Shanghai Tourism Administration said.

The first batch of 100,000 cards have two different face values, CNY500 and CNY1,000, and are sold by Shanghai City Travel Card Development Company, the 81 outlets of Shanghai Pudong Development Bank, and 30 outlets of Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Shanghai Branch.

The card is expected to avoid disputes caused by payment problems; it can also integrate Shanghai's tourism resources and boost the sustainable development of tourism economy.

According to Shanghai City Travel Card Development Company, it is now seeking cooperation with Ctrip.com and tourism businesses in Jiangsu and Zhejiang.