Xinjiang tourist arrivals surge 28 pct in H1

Tourist arrivals surged 28 percent to reach 22.25 million in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region in the first half of the year, regional authorities said Wednesday.

Tourism revenues grew 23 percent year on year to hit 23.8 billion yuan (about 3.86 billion U.S. dollars) during the period, said the Xinjiang Tourism Bureau.

Domestic tourists reached 21.62 million in Xinjiang, and more than half of them drove their own vehicles there, said Yang Limin, an analyst with the bureau.

Tourists from Kazakhstan accounted for more than 70 percent of overseas tourist arrivals in the region, the bureau added.

In 2012, tourist arrivals in Xinjiang reached 48.6 million and the sector's revenues totalled 57.6 billion yuan.