Sheqi witnesses tourist boom during Spring Festival holiday

Yuediao, a form of Chinese opera which originated in Henan province, is performed in Sheqi during the Spring Festival holiday. [Photo/people.cn]

The tourism industry of Nanyang's Sheqi country got off to a flying start for 2018 by welcoming 263,000 tourists and making 90 million yuan ($14.2 million) in revenue, an increase of 32 percent and 23 percent respectively compared with last year's Spring Festival holiday.

Around 60 percent of visitors were Nanyang natives. This was still a better number than usual, as tourists from other areas increased by 15 percent this year. The non-Nanyang tourists were mainly from other Henan cities such as Luoyang, Zhengzhou, Zhumadian, and Hubei cities like Xiangyang and Wuhan.

Before the holiday, Sheqi promoted itself heavily in Nanyang as well as nearby counties and cities, distributing 10,000 brochures and 3,000 free admission tickets to online and offline travel agencies.

Favorable ticket prices for tourist attractions have helped the boom as places like Shanshan Guild Hall offered half-priced tickets to adults, and free entrance to children below 1.4 meters, seniors aged over 60, soldiers in active service, the disabled and local impoverished households.

Kungfu and tea art performances were also on show during the holiday and were well received by tourists. Meanwhile, rural scenic spots launched characteristic delicacies and activities such as strawberry picking to entertain visitors.

The Shedian ancient town attracted a number of scholars, photography enthusiasts, painters, literature lovers and ancient architecture, history and culture researchers.

Local folk art performance attracts hundreds of visitors. [Photo/people.cn]