Home sharing platform Airbnb has ditched a contest offering a sleepover on the Great Wall of China after an online backlash in China.
It was criticised for being disrespectful to the ancient site after news of the contest was widely shared on Chinese social media.
"No matter how they dress it up, this doesn’t hide the fact that this contest is by a private company that will undeniably cause damage to an ancient artefact," one Weibo user wrote.
"We have made the decision to not move forward with this event and instead we are working on a range of other experiences and initiatives that showcase China as a destination," Airbnb said.
The ‘Night At The Great Wall’ contest had offered winners an overnight stay in a specially built room built inside an ancient watchtower of the wall.
"This unprecedented level of access will showcase the Great Wall to the world and promote sustainable tourism to China by spotlighting wide ranging efforts to preserve the Wall’s deep heritage and bring Chinese culture to life," Airbnb said in the contest ad.
Airbnb said it consulted with conservation experts so that ‘not a single nail’ of the Wall would be moved.
