The Tuscany region of Italy, birthplace of the Renaissance, first-class wine and art masters, is embracing Chinese tourists with a China Project to deal with the expected surge in visitors.

Launched on June 16 in Beijing, the project is a package of services customized for Chinese-speaking tourists, including a Chinese-Italian bilingual Tuscany Travel Passport, a free iPhone application in Chinese, and a photo exhibition in four Chinese cities.

The passport is an illustrated brochure of practical information on the highlights of Tuscany. Tourists can get it free at the Italian Embassy, travel agencies and hotels.

James Bradburne, general director of the Strozzi Palace Foundation that started the project, says he hopes the passport will give independence to tourists so they can further explore the region.

Bradburne says the foundation aims to encourage tourists to "stay longer".

"A language service is the basic convenience we provide," he says, recalling the handy subway tour he had in Beijing, with English signs on all the routes.

The bilingual design will enable tourists to ask the Tuscan people about directions, he adds.

Tourists are also encouraged to collect five stamps from places the passport lists, to gain free entrance to exhibitions in Strozzi Palace, one of the most beautiful Florentine palaces.

Bradburne says there has been a boom in the number of Chinese tourists in the past five years.

Florence has seen a 50 percent increase in 2010, compared to 2009, he says.

The Italian Ambassador to China, Attilio Massimo Iannucci, says: "Our government understands well the significance of attracting Chinese tourists. And we're simplifying the procedures of issuing visas."

Iannucci says he has noticed a tide of tourists seeking visas in the past five months.

"So far we have issued 81,000 visas to Chinese tourists, a 30 percent increase over the same period in 2010," he says. "The visas for group tours from Beijing have tripled."

Bradburne says he anticipates the Tuscany project will become a template for visits by Chinese to other regions in Italy.

Zhang Huan, president of a travel agency that deals solely with Italian tours for Chinese, says, "The passport will greatly help our tour arrangements."

The photo exhibition, A Taste of Tuscany, is on at Beijing Italian Culture Institute until July 10, and then will tour other cities.

Canadian artist James O'Mara took the pictures, showing a mixture of both old and new Tuscany.

China Daily