Ticket prices are likely to double for Mount Huangshan, one of the country's most famous scenic wonders, in east China's Anhui Province.

The park's management committee has applied for the price hike to raise more money for the protection of the mountain.

Hu Liming is the director of the Mount Huangshan Management Committee:

"We plan to raise the price to better protect the environment of Mount Huangshan since it's a world-renowned natural and cultural heritage site," said Hu,"In addition, we can use the higher ticket incomes for further development and construction at the site."

They plan to increase the entrance fee from the current 139 yuan to 248 yuan in the busy season, and from 85 to 198 yuan in the slack season. That's a jump of up to US$13.

During a public hearing, the price appraisal center suggested a 69 percent price increase in the busy season to 220 yuan, and a 52 percent increase in the slack season to 135 yuan.

But most of the other attendees were for a lower hike of between 30 to 50 percent.

They think this new sky-high ticket price will cut down the number of visitors and impact on the overall tourist income for the province.

The hearing lasted for four hours, but no decision was made.

Listed by the UN as a world natural and cultural heritage site, Mount Huangshan is famous for its spectacular rocky peaks, twisted pines, crystal-clear mountain springs, and magnificent cloud scopes.

(Xinhua News Agency March 28, 2005)