Visitors enjoy a slide built ice blocks during the opening ceremony of the Ice and Snow World in Harbin, Heilongjiang Province, China, January 5, 2025. /CFP
The St. Sophia Cathedral in Harbin, Heilongjiang Province, China, December 31, 2024. /CFP
The iconic giant snowman near the Qunli music park in Harbin, Heilongjiang Province, China, January 3, 2025. /CFP
An aerial view of Ice and Snow World in Harbin, Heilongjiang Province, China, December 21, 2024. /CFP
People enjoy delicious local food at a morning market in Harbin, Heilongjiang Province, China, January 5, 2025. /CFP
A tourist poses for photos on the frozen surface of the Songhua River in Harbin, Heilongjiang Province, China, January 4, 2025. /CFP
In the 2023-2024 snow season, Harbin, located in northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, saw an extraordinary tourism boom, attracting over 87 million visitors – a remarkable 300 percent increase compared to previous years. This surge in tourism propelled the city's revenue to an impressive 124.8 billion yuan, marking a staggering 500 percent rise from the previous year.
This growth has had a ripple effect, spurring winter tourism development in other northern cities across China. Set to host the 2025 Asian Winter Games, Harbin is poised to further solidify its status as a premier global winter tourism destination.