Ningbo earns $382m tourism revenue on May Day holiday

Tourists set up tents in Dongqianhu Lake Scenic Area in Yinzhou district, Ningbo, East China's Zhejiang province. The area received 410,000 tourists between May 1 and 4, gaining revenue of nearly 25 million yuan. [Photo/zj.zjol.com] 

Ningbo, the second largest city in East China's Zhejiang province, proved its popularity by earning 2.59 billion yuan ($382 million) from tourism on May Day holiday, from May 1 to 4.

During the holiday period, major scenic areas, such as the Xikou scenic area which boasts magnificent mountain scenery, Buddhist temples and former residence of the famous Chinese figure Chiang Kai-shek, received visitors totaling 3.241 million. 

The Xikou scenic area received around 468,400 tourists, up 71 percent year on year. 

Another hot destination, Xiangshan Movie & TV Town, a local outdoor film studio, saw a growth spurt in the number of tourists, at 195,000, a year-on-year increase of 95 percent. On May 1, in particular, visitors increased by 200 percent to 60,000, and the ticket proceeds increased by 380 percent.

Tourists take photos of the performers dressed in costumes in Xiangshan Movie & TV Town. [Photo/zj.zjol.com]

Tianyige Museum & Moon Lake also received the maximum daily visitors during May 1 and 3, with the total visitors in the three days reaching 55,000.

"The surge of tourists can be attributed to the fact that the scenic area was selected as a national 5A-level one (the highest level of recognition for domestic scenic spots) last year. In addition, we also organized a series of fun activities to attract visitors," said a person in charge of the scenic area.

The activities included a Hanfu Parade where nearly 200 young people dressed in hanfu (a form of traditional Chinese clothing dating back thousands of years) walked about in the scenic area, and several performances of opera, dancing, painting and martial arts were also given.