Taizhou in East China's Zhejiang province on Feb 14 issued 11 measures to boost the cultural and tourism market, both of which have been severely disrupted by the novel coronavirus outbreak.

Local authorities will allocate 20 million yuan ($2.98 million) from a special fund approved by the municipal finance for cultural tourism development in 2020 to prop up the cultural and tourism market after the crisis is resolved.

The city will also give certain financial rewards to A-level scenic attractions that offer free entry  to medical workers throughout the year, in addition to cash rewards promised last year.

The city will also temporarily refund 80 percent of the deposit for tourism service quality to local travel agencies.

According to official data, 27.58-million-yuan worth of deposits for tourism service quality will be refunded to 167 travel agencies in Taizhou.

In addition to the financial support, the local government will implement a series of measures to stimulate tourism consumption after the epidemic.

More efforts will be made to encourage governments at the municipal and county levels to launch promotional activities and attract tourists from across the country. Enterprises will receive subsidies to develop a public service platform for smart tourism so as to boost online promotion and sales, while a Taizhou tour card will also be issued.

In addition, the city will provide enterprises in the tourism and culture sectors with free year-round courses taught by domestic experts and scholars to boost the level of tourism service and management and help mobile enterprises improve employment with grants.

The measures are provisionally valid until Dec 31.