The Shaolin Temple, the birthplace of Chinese kungfu and Zen Buddhism, has become a cash cow for the local government in recent years, fetching millions of yuan every year from tourism and commercial activity, including film production rights and an online store.

The temple, covering 30,000 sq m, drew 1.6 million tourists last year, generating 150 million yuan from the sale of entry tickets.

It also opened an online merchandise store - offering goods such as shoes, clothing, tea and kungfu manuals - on Taobao.com, China's biggest online retailer.

Industry experts said the likely share sale might boost the country's tourism sector as the government was encouraging the development of a consumption-driven economy.

Huangshan Tourism Development Co Ltd, a tourism company that runs businesses in the Huangshan Mountain area and Emei Shan Tourism Co Ltd, a Sichuan-based company that operates tourism resources on the Emei Mountain, are two travel companies that are currently listed in Shanghai and Shenzhen respectively.