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Severe air pollution in China causes smog that has propelled the travel agencies into quick action. They have advised the tour operators to distribute bottled water and face mask to the holiday makers from Singapore who would be travelling to the city. Others are making tweaks in their itinerary and including hotline numbers that the people can use in case of an emergency. According to the United States Embassy in Beijing, the Air Quality Index measured a harmful PM2.5 particles and was in the dangerous range of more than 300 most of Wednesday. On Thursday, it fell to moderate levels before rising to unhealthy levels again last evening, reports Asia One.

Chinese officials took stern action as the city's pollution has caused a "red alert" in Beijing. As a result, officials rolled out preventive steps such as halting construction work, shutting down the industries that cause pollution and restricting the number of cars plying on the road. Many itineraries have been changed, said marketing manager Kelly Toh. She said, "Most of our Singaporean travellers stay in Beijing for four or five nights. This gives us the flexibility to move outdoor activities back or conduct them on clear days." CTC said that they have more than 700 bookings for Chinese group tours starting from now till the end of year. So far, there have been no cancellations but some customers have expressed apprehensions about the growing smog, according to Asia One.

Spokesman Alicia Seah said: "We are worried. We've instructed our ground operators to stock up on masks and we will replace outdoor activities with indoor shopping trips or acrobatic shows, if need be." She added that more than 35% travelers to China are aged above 60 years of age. "Masks and water are being provided to those on tour. Based on photographs from our tour leaders, the situation on the ground appears manageable," said its head of marketing communications Jane Chang, as reported by Straits Times