To celebrate Golden Week, a national holiday, Beijing's Palace Museum has begun selling online tickets for a limited time.

Beginning on Tuesday, the Forbidden City's official Web site, gugong.228.com.cn will accommodate 40,000 ticket reservations or half of a day's limit.

This ticket includes a visit to the Palace Museum, the home of the last Chinese emperor.

"The service is an attempt to provide visitors with a safe and orderly environment, as well as to protect the heritage architecture and artworks," China Daily quoted a museum's spokesman as saying.

"To reduce pressure on the ticket office, the museum will also employ three mobile ticket stations during the vacation period," the spokesman said.

Individuals and licensed travel agencies with verified IDs can purchase a maximum of five tickets each day, but the spokesman for the museum warned the tickets are not refundable or replaceable.

Visitors to the museum recorded an increase by 4.5 percent on a year-on-year basis as the number of tourists reached 7.5 million. During last year's national holiday, the Palace Museum welcomed 90,000 visitors each day.

Authorities say the government has made efforts to ensure an enjoyable and orderly holiday experience. Construction projects in Beijing Capital International Airport's terminals will take a break for the week.