Starting in January, you'll be able to buy three and seven-day tickets for the 2010 Shanghai World Expo that will allow you to visit the Expo several times at a cheaper price.

Organizers said on December 8 that the multi-day tickets will be good for any three or seven days during the Expo, which runs from May 1 to October 31, apart from holidays and other peak periods.

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A single multi-day ticket will also enable different people to visit the Expo site on different days.

A three-day ticket will cost 400 yuan (US$58) and a seven-day ticket 900 yuan.

Regular tickets will cost 160 yuan. On holidays and other peak periods, they'll be 200 yuan.

Discounted tickets will be available for seniors, physically challenged people, students, children and military personnel. Discounted regular tickets will cost 90 yuan, while those for holidays and other peak periods will be 110 yuan. They'll go on sale in January.

A total of 11.8 million tickets for the 2010 World Expo have been sold, the organizers announced.

People can buy tickets at more than 5,300 outlets of four major ticket agents: China Mobile, China Telecom, China Post and the Bank of Communications. People outside China can buy the tickets at 15 foreign agents across 18 countries.

People can dial 962010, the Expo Shanghai hotline, for details.

China Mobile users can also buy mobile tickets. Users will be able to swipe their mobile phones at the entrance and avoid queues.

May and October will be the most heavily visited months of the Expo, according to a survey from the organizer, said Chen Xueyu, deputy director of the ticket center of the Bureau of Shanghai World Expo Coordination.

About 40 percent of the 70 million expected Expo visitors will go the site in October, which includes a seven-day national holiday of China, Chen said.

More than 28 percent people will visit the site in May, while only six percent will go to the site in June, he added.

Chen suggests people avoid visiting the Expo site during the peak periods.

The organizer expects 17 days - including the Labor Day and National Day holidays and the last week of Expo (October 25 to 31) - to attract the most visitors.