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China closed Tibet’s Potala Palace, former home of the exiled Dalai Lama, on Tuesday after 22 Covid-19 cases were reported in the Himalayan region.
China is the only major economy still sticking to a zero-Covid strategy that uses snap lockdowns, mass testing and long quarantine periods to contain outbreaks.
Tibet’s economy is dependent on tourism and the Potala Palace is a key attraction, with hundreds of thousands of visitors each year.
“In order to effectively prevent and control the epidemic and ensure the health and safety of the general public, the Potala Palace will be closed from August 9,” a notice on the palace’s official WeChat account said.
A reopening date has not been announced.
China reported 828 domestic Covid cases on Tuesday, of which 22 were in Tibet. All cases except one in the Himalayan region were asymptomatic, health data showed.
In southern China, tens of thousands of tourists trapped in a Covid-hit resort city due to travel curbs can begin leaving in batches, authorities said Tuesday, but many remain stranded.
More than 80,000 holidaymakers in Sanya on the island of Hainan — often called “China’s Hawaii” — saw their vacations become a nightmare when officials declared a Covid emergency and cancelled flights and train ticket sales over the weekend.
