Ice and Snow World Heats up Harbin's Economy

A total of 240,000 people visited the Ice and Snow World in Harbin, capital of Heilongjiang province, during the recent Spring Festival holiday (Jan 27-Feb 2), up 20 percent on the same time last year, according to local government data.

The boost in visitors wasn't just good news for the northeastern city's tourism sector, it also gave other industries such as hospitality, retail and transportation services a shot in the arm.

Sales of 15 major retailers and restaurants in the city amounted to 187 million yuan ($27 million), growing 10.6 percent on a year-on-year basis. The sales volume of local products was 25 percent higher than usual.

During the entire Spring Festival period, Harbin attracted up to 911,000 visitors, up 13.8 percent year-on-year, with a total of 2.16 billion yuan in earnings, 16.1 percent higher than the previous year.

"The 2017 CCTV Spring Festival Gala was a good advertisement for the Ice and Snow World as well as other ice tourism packages of Harbin, greatly adding to the value of intangible assets," said Dai Bin, dean of the China Tourism Academy.

"The performance of the 2017 CCTV Spring Festival Gala in the park contributed to not only improving the ice-themed tourism image of Harbin, but also enhanced the city's soft power."

Meanwhile, the ice industry in Jilin, the neighboring province of Heilongjiang, including ice springs, also attracted millions of visitors during the 2017 Spring Festival.

According to the government statistics, the tourist income of Jilin has maintained 25 percent growth for six consecutive years.

During the Spring Festival, Jilin earned almost 10 billion yuan in revenue from tourism businesses, 28 percent higher than the same period last year.

Visitor numbers amounted to 10.68 million, growing over 20 percent year-on-year.

"As the 2022 Winter Olympic in Beijing and Zhangjiakou is approaching, Jilin is going to take advantage of the ice industry as a new business growth engine, promoting the transformation and upgrading of the old industrial bases in China's northeastern region," said Yang Andi, director of the Jilin Tourism Development Commission.