Tickets go on sale for popular China Open in Beijing

Tickets for the 2012 China Open, the most prestigious tennis tournament in the country, went on sale on Wednesday, after organizers held a launch ceremony on Tuesday night.

Tennis fans can purchase the tickets on line at t.chinaopen.com.cn or go to the box office outside the venue - the National Tennis Center. They can also download the mobile phone APP from app.chinaopen.com.cn to select tickets. The online purchasing system allows people to choose their seats and offers virtual angles of the inside of the venue to help with their choices.

There are nine kinds of tickets for people to choose from, including grand pass, grandstand, outdoor ground pass, family package, VIP seats, VIP mini package and VIP box.

Ground passes, which provide access to the affiliated ITF and youth tennis competitions, cost 30 yuan ($4.70) to encourage broader interest.

A special discount is offered to people who buy grandstand tickets for the Diamond court before Aug 31. They will get two tickets for the price of one plus 100 yuan.

The China Open combines the WTA's top-level event with an ATP 500 tournament.

This year's tennis gala will run from Sept 28 to Oct 7. Qualification will be held on Sept 28 and the main draw will begin the next day.

The world's top 50 ranked women players are requested to take part in the event. On the men's side, some big names have confirmed their participation, including world No 2 Novak Djokovic of Serbia, world No 5 David Ferrer of Spain and No 6 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga from France.

The tourism industry has included the Open into its program this year for the Mid-Autumn and National Day holiday (Sept 30-Oct 7).

According to Zhang Lingjie, general manager of China International Travel Service' domestic tour department, the number of tourists who come to Beijing for the China Open increases year by year.

"The China Open is a name card of Beijing right now, so we will offer touring programs during the National Day holiday this year," Zhang said.