Tourism picked up more recently, with more Chinese going on extended tours to places like Xinjiang. But that was before the riots broke out.

Zhang Lingjie, general manager of domestic travel, China International Travel Service, said: "We had tour groups in Xinjiang on July 5, although they were not in Urumqi. Many had asked to cut short their trips and return to Beijing."

The travel service agency has since cancelled all trips to Xinjiang for the month of July. Some travellers have also changed their plans to other destinations.

China's domestic travel industry has taken one hit after another. In March last year, there was rioting in Tibet and two months later was the Sichuan earthquake. That was followed by the onset of global financial crisis.

This year, the industry has been affected by the H1N1 flu pandemic and the Urumqi riots. But it is the expected, rather than the unexpected, that the industry is bracing itself for.

Zhang said: "The impact of the 2003 SARS epidemic on the travel industry lasted about a month, so did the impact of the Sichuan earthquake. But I don't think the effects of the financial crisis will go away in a year."

According to travel agents, tours to Tibet are now immensely popular with domestic travellers.

As for visits to Xinjiang, they are also likely to pick up - but perhaps only in the next month.

Source: CNA