The Zhangjiajie Observatory, located in Hunan Province, is part of a network of observatories assisting policy makers to ensure sustainable tourism growth. It will gather and report data on the environmental, social and economic impacts of tourism in the area based on UNWTO sustainable tourism indictors.

The Observatory is located at the entrance to the Zhangjiajie National Park, China's first national park and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Park was also the inspiration for the Hollywood blockbuster 'Avatar'. Thanks in large part to this natural attraction, tourism has boomed in the region, generating economic wealth, jobs and development opportunities for local residents. Zhangjiajie receives up to 40,000 tourists a day during its high season.

"Tourism authorities in Zhangjiajie are well aware of the importance of tourism to the local economy, but more importantly, of the need to manage this growth sustainably," said UNWTO Secretary-General, Taleb Rifai. "The Observatory represents a vital tool for doing so, providing tourism organizations with the information they need to move forward sustainably".

The Zhangjiajie Observatory is part of the Global Observatory on Sustainable Tourism (GOST) initiative, established by UNWTO to support sustainable tourism policies.

The two other observatories currently in operation are located in Yangshuo and Huangshan, and are, alongside Zhangjiajie Observatory, managed by the Monitoring Centre based in Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China.

More photos of the Zhangjiajie Observatory

About UN Tourism

The World Tourism Organization (UN Tourism) is the United Nations agency responsible for the promotion of responsible, sustainable and universally accessible tourism.

As the leading international organization in the field of tourism, UN Tourism promotes tourism as a driver of economic growth, inclusive development and environmental sustainability and offers leadership and support to the sector in advancing knowledge and tourism policies worldwide.

Our Priorities

Mainstreaming tourism in the global agenda: Advocating the value of tourism as a driver of socio-economic growth and development, its inclusion as a priority in national and international policies and the need to create a level playing field for the sector to develop and prosper.

Promoting sustainable tourism development: Supporting sustainable tourism policies and practices: policies which make optimal use of environmental resources, respect the socio-cultural authenticity of host communities and provide socio-economic benefits for all.

Fostering knowledge, education and capacity building: Supporting countries to assess and address their needs in education and training, as well as providing networks for knowledge creation and exchange.

Improving tourism competitiveness: Improving UN Tourism Members' competitiveness through knowledge creation and exchange, human resources development and the promotion of excellence in areas such as policy planning, statistics and market trends, sustainable tourism development, marketing and promotion, product development and risk and crisis management.

Advancing tourism's contribution to poverty reduction and development: Maximizing the contribution of tourism to poverty reduction and achieving the SDGs by making tourism work as a tool for development and promoting the inclusion of tourism in the development agenda.

Building partnerships: Engaging with the private sector, regional and local tourism organizations, academia and research institutions, civil society and the UN system to build a more sustainable, responsible and competitive tourism sector.

Our Structure

Members: An intergovernmental organization, UN Tourism has 160 Member States, 6 Associate Members, 2 Observers and over 500 Affiliate Members.

Organs: The General Assembly is the supreme organ of the Organization. The Executive Council take all measures, in consultation with the Secretary-General, for the implementation of the decisions and recommendations of the General Assembly and reports to the Assembly.

Secretariat: UN Tourism headquarters are based in Madrid, Spain. The Secretariat is led by the Secretary-General and organized into departments covering issues such as sustainability, education, tourism trends and marketing, sustainable development, statistics and the Tourism Satellite Account (TSA), destination management, ethics and risk and crisis management. The Technical Cooperation and Silk Road Department carries out development projects in over 100 countries worldwide, while the Regional Departments for Africa, the Americas, Asia and the Pacific, Europe and the Middle East serve as the link between UN Tourism and its 160 Member States. The Affiliate Members Department represents UN Tourism's 500 plus Affiliate members.

Rut Gómez Sobrino
Principal Media Officer
(+34) 91 567 81 60
UN Tourism