British companies and officials launched Tuesday in Shanghai a campaign to boost the number of Chinese travelers to Britain, local sources said.

The campaign, "Britain welcomes China," is co-sponsored by British Consulate-General in Shanghai, Britain's Virgin Atlantic airlines and British Tourist Authority (BTA).

A number of activities will be organized during the campaign, such as opening a Chinese website by the BTA in the later this year, organizing the first Chinese tourist group to Britain and teaching international travel agencies in China about tours to Britain.

"About 70,000 Chinese visitors go to Britain each year, which creates 100 million pounds of revenue for Britain. In the next 10 to 15 years, the number of Chinese visitors may reach 500,000," Qian Gang, chief deputy of the BTA in Shanghai.

Qian said Chinese citizens will be able to get approved destination status (ADS) for travel in Britain as early as this summer.

The first ADS application center of Britain opened Wednesday in Beijing and other centers will be opened in Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen before April 5, Qian said.