Spring Festival boosts tourism in Yangzhou with 78% surge in visitors

Yangzhou in Jiangsu province witnessed a thriving tourism industry during the 2024 Spring Festival holiday, welcoming approximately 8.5 million visitors, a 78 percent increase from the previous year.

A majority of the visitors came from outside the city, constituting over 70 percent of the total. The increased number of tourists led to a total tourism revenue for the city of 6.77 billion yuan ($941.88 million) during the holiday.

Throughout the holiday, Yangzhou's cultural and tourism departments organized over 1,000 cultural and tourism activities, including dragon and lion dances, traditional parades, and cultural performances.

The Slender West Lake scenic area hosted a Year of the Dragon themed carnival, featuring events such as opera performance, intangible cultural heritage markets, and traditional-style parades. The Beihu Wetland Park showcased a folk culture festival with activities including dragon and lion dances and fireworks display.

In addition, Yangzhou's artistic performances during the Spring Festival captivated audiences. Special performances held at various attractions, including Yangzhou opera, traditional storytelling, and puppet shows, attracted an average of 15,000 spectators daily. The city's 11 small theaters hosted nearly 30 performances per day during the holiday.

Traditional operas performed during the holiday. [Photo/WeChat account: yzs_lyj]

A lion and dragon dance performance enthralls a large group of tourists. [Photo/WeChat account: yzs_lyj]