One of China's Most Popular Holiday Destinations Shuts Down Tourist Sites Amid Spread of Coronavirus

Following the outbreak of the deadly coronavirus in China, a number of the country's cities have been put on lockdown, while other towns are closing popular tourist destinations to prevent the spread of the virus.

Sanya in China's southern island province of Hainan, a favourite tourist destination, shut down all tourist sites this Saturday amid the outbreak of the deadly coronavirus, the city's administrations said in a statement.

The decision comes two days after China's capital Beijing announced that it would cancel all mass celebrations, including traditional temple festivals, in the wake of the new coronavirus outbreak. Additionally, the city's famous Forbidden City - a complex that houses the Palace Museum in central Beijing, also closed its doors to visitors starting on the same day.

In late December, an outbreak of a previously unknown strain of pneumonia, later identified as a new form of coronavirus, was registered in the Chinese city of Wuhan, which is currently on lockdown due to fears of the virus turning into an epidemic.

Besides Mainland China, the coronavirus has spread to Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, Thailand, South Korea, Japan, Nepal, the United States, France, and Australia.

So far, the outbreak of the virus has resulted in more than 1,300 being infected globally, with 41 succumbing to the disease.