A sea of people bustle their way into Mount Wutai on Sept 27. The scenic area was open to the public for free on Sept 27 in honor of World Tourism Day, and received 44,000 visitors in one day. [Photo/sxgov.cn]

Crowds admire the scenery and Buddhist culture at Mount Wutai on Sept 27. [Photo/sxgov.cn]

When places in China get extremely crowded, locals will often say “people mountain, people sea”, and there certainly was a sea of people at Wutai mountain in Shanxi province on Sept 27.

The famous Buddhist sacred site was offering free admission in honor of World Tourism Day, and more than 44,000 visitors arrived to take advantage of the offer.

However, Mount Wutai’s administration committee dealt admirably with the flood of tourists, and drew high praise from visitors, according to report from sxgov.cn.

The administration committee released online announcements about the entrance free policy and vehicle reservation issues in advance, and provided contact numbers for inquiries.

The scenic spot also helped motorists by collaborating with local TV stations to provide real-time traffic updates on TV and through its website.

Members of staff from the center were posted on roads and highways around the mountain to direct traffic, and more than 220 police officers were on hand from 4 am to 10 pm to guide vehicles and manage the crowds.

The park’s administration managed to coordinate the efforts of the public security, fire control, highways, travel, food and sanitation authorities to ensure the center could accommodate the extra visitors smoothly and safely.