Current location:Global Gaze news portal > travel
Across China: A Glimpse into Thriving Ice and Snow Industry in Xinjiang
Global Gaze news portal2024-05-17 20:34:25【travel】1People have gathered around
IntroductionContact Us HomeNewsHighlightACWF NewsSocietyWom
- Home
- News
- People
- In-depth
- ACWF
Across China: A Glimpse into Thriving Ice and Snow Industry in Xinjiang
January 31, 2024URUMQI, Jan. 29 (Xinhua) — On her first trip to northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, Li Peiling, a tourist hailing from the south, chose to experience the delights of a ski resort nestled in the Tianshan Mountains.
"I discovered through social media that this is the warmest ski resort in Xinjiang, and it's conveniently located near the renowned Tianchi Lake," said Li, brimming with excitement.
Though it starts operations relatively late in the winter season, the Tianshan Tianchi international ski resort has garnered popularity among ski enthusiasts due to its mild winter temperatures and proximity to various other scenic spots. "Thanks to livestreaming, our popularity has surged, attracting over 2,000 visitors daily at peak times," said Liu Yang, the marketing director of the ski resort.
With winter sports gaining momentum across China, Xinjiang is leveraging its prolonged snow seasons, high-quality snow and diverse terrains to establish top-notch skiing resorts. Two major ice and snow tourism belts have emerged along the Tianshan and Altay mountain ranges.
Jia Rui, an official with the Culture and Tourism Department of Xinjiang, noted that the region now boasts 188 ice and snow venues. During the 2022-2023 snow season, the region's S-level ski resorts hosted over 2 million visitors.
At the Jiangjun Mountain International Ski Resort in Altay Prefecture, even with temperatures plummeting to around minus 20 degrees Celsius, well-equipped skiers queue up in front of chairlifts and cable cars, eager to hit the snowy trails.
Altay has been revered as the birthplace of skiing since ancient cave paintings depicting the Stone Age skiers were discovered in the prefecture in 2005. The area has seen the busiest time of the year since the snow season began, with the Jiangjun Mountain ski resort alone welcoming an average of more than 5,000 visitors every day.
In 2023, the construction of two resort clusters with a total investment of 2.5 billion yuan (about 351.63 million U.S. dollars) kicked off in Altay. According to the local tourism authority, 71 new hotels, guesthouses and homestays have recently commenced operations, providing a total of 52,000 bed spaces for winter vacationers.
"Coming to Altay to ski on fresh powder is one of the best experiences in the skiing community," said skiing enthusiast Wang Hanyu, who has frequented Altay for several years. This year, she plans to embark on a self-driving tour of the surrounding areas before indulging in skiing.
"After numerous visits, I want to delve deeper into understanding the local ethnic customs and culture," she added.
To cater to the increasingly diverse tourist demands, Xinjiang is pioneering new ice and snow consumption trends by integrating with cultural and folk elements to stimulate the development of various industries.
In the Narati scenic area in Ili Kazak Autonomous Prefecture, traditional ethnic activities such as snow horse racing take center stage. The area also offers tourism experiences like visits to the herders' yurts.
At an intangible cultural heritage exhibition base in Altay, several craftsmen are busy making horsehide snowboards. "We've also designed mini snowboards as tourist souvenirs, which are highly popular among visitors and bring in an annual sales revenue of 60,000 yuan," said Huaneshbek Silanbek, an inheritor of horsehide snowboard crafting skills.
The expansion of the ice and snow industry has also translated into substantial incomes for farmers and herders. Tarat Village in the county of Fuyun, once dependent on agriculture and animal husbandry, experienced a transformation with the opening of the Koktokay international ski resort in 2020.
Hayratbek Musay is in charge of snowmaking in the ski resort, and together with his wife, who is also employed here, they earn a monthly income exceeding 10,000 yuan. Likewise, the guesthouse run by Kulparan Habelhazi's family generates an annual net income of about 100,000 yuan. Their financial situations have significantly improved compared to their previous livelihoods as farmers.
New growth opportunities have emerged in Xinjiang's ice and snow sports equipment manufacturing industry. Liao Yuan is the manager of an Urumqi-based ski equipment company that specializes in the production of skiing cable cars, magic carpets, snowmaking equipment, snowboards, and more.
"Our skiing equipment sales have been increasing every year, and we are currently preparing to export our magic carpets overseas," Liao said.
(Source: Xinhua)
32.3KPlease understand that womenofchina.cn,a non-profit, information-communication website, cannot reach every writer before using articles and images. For copyright issues, please contact us by emailing: [email protected]. The articles published and opinions expressed on this website represent the opinions of writers and are not necessarily shared by womenofchina.cn.
Comments
Magazines
Projects
- 2023 Women Science and Technology Innovation Pioneer...
Photos
- People Enjoy Blooming Tulips in Jinan, East...
- Flowers Bloom Across China in Spring
Special Coverage
Address of this article:http://paracelislands.barryexit.org/html-29a499886.html
Very good!(1755)
Related articles
- Rylan Clark gets playful as he details intimate hotel moment with Rob Rinder during cosy interview
- Young giant panda Qing Ci dies from rare intestinal disorder
- Full Text of President Xi Jinping's 2024 New Year Message
- U.S. bears a lot of responsibility for deglobalization trend: former Secretary of Commerce
- Innocent woman in her 30s suffers 'non life
- Nation hailed for brokering Saudi
- Global trade to rebound by 2.6 pct in 2024: WTO report
- With secret contract, U.S. uses spyware to supervise world: NYT
- Evil parents who hated their three
- Japan hosts G7 foreign ministers' meeting amid protests
Popular articles
Recommended
Mosque attack in northern Nigeria leaves 8 people dead. Police say the motive was a family dispute
Quakes leave 1.5 mln people homeless in Türkiye: UN
China's home
European stocks drop as ECB hikes rates
Wembanyama headlines France's preliminary roster for Paris Olympics basketball tournament
Xi Focus: Xi's 2024 New Year Message Highlights Confidence, People, Global Vision
UN: Sudan conflict claims thousands of civilian lives, displaces millions in one year
270 killed as deadly military conflict in Sudan rages into 4th day
Links
- China Ready to Coordinate with New Zealand for Peace, Stability in Pacific Islands Region, Says Xi
- Xi Sends Congratulatory Letter to 6th China
- NEV makers encouraged to speed up overseas development
- Full Text of Xi Jinping's Speech at Memorial Meeting for Comrade Jiang Zemin
- Xinhua Headlines: Pooling Asian Wisdom for Better Global Governance
- Xi Receives Honorary Doctorate from King Saud University
- Xi Sends Condolences to Indonesian President over Deadly Earthquake
- Guidelines aim to reduce rate of childhood myopia
- Vice Premier Stresses Gathering Positive Momentum in Fighting COVID
- Pakistan investigating the shooting death of a suspect in the 2013 killing of an accused Indian spy