Forbidden City adopts online-only ticket model

故宫开启网上售票模式，你准备好了吗?

The Palace Museum in Beijing-China’s former imperial palace, or Forbidden City-announced on Tuesday that it has begun to sell entry tickets solely through its online booking system, with few exceptions.

周二，北京故宫-中国前皇室宫殿，又名紫禁城宣布除少数特例外，开始只通过线上订票系统售卖门票。

The move is designed "to avoid crowds at the box office, reduce waiting time and provide a more comfortable visiting experience", said Shan Jixiang, director of the museum.

博物馆馆长山吉祥表示：“此举设计旨在避免售票口人潮，减少等候时间，提供更舒适的访问体验。”

Online ticket booking is available on the official website, www.dpm.org.cn.

线上订票系统在官网www.dpm.org.cn上可以进入。

To relieve the heavy pressure and safety concerns brought by huge crowds, a daily visitor quota of 80,000 was set in June 2015, and an online ticketing system was launched. On launch day, about 7,500 of the day’s 50,000 visitors-about 15 percent-bought tickets online. By 2016, the number had expanded dramatically to 40 percent. As of August, it has mushroomed to 77 percent.

为了减缓重压和大量人流带来的安全隐患，2015年6月设置了日八千客次的限额，启动了线上订票系统。启动日当天，五万游客中约有七千五百人在线上买票，占比约为15%。2016年，这一数字将大幅扩大到40%。八月迅速增加到77%。

"Because of our promotion, more people are buying tickets online," Shan said. "The online platform also facilitates analysis of big data, which can lead to better service in the future."

山说：“由于我们的推动，越来越多的人正在线上买票。线上平台也有利于大数据分析，可以为未来带来更好的服务。”

Shan said web-only ticket sales worked so well during the recent National Day holiday that a decision was made to make it permanent.

山说，国庆节期间，仅网络售票进展地很好，决定将这种形式固定下来。

On Oct 2, for example, all 80,000 entry tickets were sold in advance online.

以10月2日为例，共计八万张门票提前在网上售出。

"We thought it was time to formally adopt web-only ticket sales after a long trial," he said, adding that follow-up measures will be taken to solve some remaining problems.

他说：“我们认为，经过长时间的实验，现在是正式接受仅线上售票的时间。”他补充道，将采取后续措施解决一些仍然存在的问题。

"For example, a huge crowd came to the museum in the morning, but the entrance was virtually deserted in the afternoon," he said.

他说：“比如，大量人群早上来故宫，但是下午入口实际上几乎没有用处。”

On average, more than 7,000 people entered the museum between 10 and 10:30 am during the eight-day holiday. The number dropped below 3,000 between 1:30 and 2 pm.

八天长假期间，早上10点到10点半间故宫平均有七千人进入。下午一点半到两点之间这一数字下降到三千以下。

The booking system will provide tickets at different visiting hours to balance the number of visitors throughout the day.

订票系统将在不同的参观时间提供门票，以平衡全天游客数量。

Tuesday marked the 92nd anniversary of the Forbidden City’s opening as a public museum. It welcomed 16 million visitors in 2016, topping all museums in the world.

周二是故宫成为公共博物馆92周年纪念日。2016年它迎接了一千六百万游客，名列全球博物馆前茅。

It rolled out its web-only ticketing plan for public comment in May. Some people thought it might be an inconvenience for anybody unfamiliar with internet. But Shan said museum employees carrying a QR code for the ticket-booking system walk around the square near the entrance to help people in need.

故宫于五月推出了仅线上订票计划。一些人认为，对于不熟悉网络的人来说，这不方便。但是山说，博物馆工作人员将拿着订票系统的二维码，在入口附近的广场走来走去，帮助有需要的人。

One box office window remains-reserved for visitors with special needs, like overseas visitors who do not have Chinese online payment channels.

一个售票窗口仍为拥有特殊需求的游客保留着，比如没有中国线上支付渠道的海外游客。

"We cannot shut our doors to someone merely because they don’t know how to buy a ticket online," Shan said.

山说：“我们不能仅仅因为游客不知道怎么线上买票，就对他们关上大门。”