Xinjiang’s landscape and culture attract record number of tourists
RICH in beautiful scenery, exotic appeal and mouth-watering delicacies, the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region has been a popular tourist destination during the Spring Festival holiday that ended on Sunday.
Xinjiang received more than 3 million tourists during the weeklong holiday, up more than 71 percent year on year, according to the regional department of culture and tourism.
The rising number of tourists brought in more than 3.62 billion yuan (US$530 million) of tourism revenue to the region, a yearly increase of 74.42 percent.
Traveling has become a new custom around the Spring Festival holiday which started on February 4 this year. It is traditionally a time of family reunions.
To attract tourists, Xinjiang launched a raft of activities.
In Luopo County in southern Xinjiang, local residents celebrated the festival through a series of traditional events including dragon dances, lion dances as well as performing yangko and stilt-walking.
“The sound of drums signifies our happiness, and I hope to express my delight through my drum,” said Ahmet Memetmin, a drummer in the county.
In Urumqi, the regional capital, the cultural temple fair attracted a lot of tourists during the holiday with activities such as a Chinese zodiac art exhibition, Peking Opera and traditional dances.
“The temple fair was much more exciting than I had thought,” said Tian Yuchuan, from central China’s Henan Province.
The abundant resource of ice and snow also played a significant role in the tourism boom during the holiday.
A ski resort in the city of Altay received about 7,200 tourists on a daily basis during the holiday, hitting record highs since the resort was established.
The Silk Road Resort in Urumqi has received more than 80,000 tourists between February 4 and 9, up 100 percent year on year.
A carnival featuring ice-andsnow sculptures, winter sports events and hot springs was held in the tourist attraction of Lake Tianchi, which saw nearly 30,000 tourists visit.
“I can be totally relaxed seeing the beautiful scenery,” said Wang Zhibin, from northwest China’s Shaanxi Province.
The number of tourists to Xinjiang exceeded 150 million last year, up more than 40 percent.
It aims to achieve 40 percent growth for both tourist numbers and income in 2019, making tourism a major industry and good source of income for local people.
The regional government has vowed to build Xinjiang into a key area for tourism and a popular destination worldwide.
(Xinhua)