Beijing to host world camping expo

The 80th Federation Internationale de Camping et de Caravanning (FICC) rally will be held next year in northwest Beijing, a press conference was told on Monday.

Dubbed "the Olympics" of camping and caravanning, the ten-day event will take place from May 30 at a purpose built campsite by the side of Jinniu Lake in Yanqing, close to the tourist attractions of Badaling Great Wall and Longqing Gorge.

As China's economy grows, more households own cars and the pattern of tourism is changing. The potential for camping and caravanning is great.

"We hope this event will meet growing tourist demand," says Gao Feb, vice president of Beijing Tourism Group, sponsor of the event, at the press conference.

The FICC set up in 1933 in Britain with headquarters in Brussels, Belgium. Its annual rally is one of the most important gatherings of campers and caravan fans in the world. In 2010 China bid successfully to host the event for the first time.

The Yanqing Longwan International Motor-caravanning Campsite, as the venue is known, is under construction. Work is scheduled for completion in March next year and trial operations will kick off in early May.