Renovation of the Forbidden City in Beijing has been going on for 8 years. As a result, its open area has increased to almost 330-thousand square meters, nearly half of the Forbidden City's total area.
According to administrators there, the open area will continue to expand to an incredible 76 percent of the total area.
As the number of visitors to the Forbidden City surged to 12 million last year, compared with 7 million in 2002, officials at the Forbidden City were busy searching for solutions to handle the pressure.
One of their strategies is to expand the area accessible to tourists. The newly opened area in the Forbidden City reached over 30-thousand square meters this year, or around 4 percent of the total area. Now, the total open area is nearly 330-thousand square meters, nearly 46 percent of the entire Forbidden City.
Meanwhile, the administrative offices that were previously located in the Forbidden City have been moved out. Currently, these offices occupy less than 5 percent of the total area, down from the original 9, freeing up the other 4 percent to be renovated and open to visitors.
After final renovations are complete, the open area in the Forbidden City will increase to 76 percent of the total area.