Chongqing city is one of the country's biggest manufacturing bases. It's the fourth municipality to be under the direct control of the central government, after Beijing, Shanghai and Tianjin. And it's ramping up efforts to boost its local tourism industry. With help from the internet, Chongqing seems to be on the right track. Xu Xinchen has more.

A beer with a distinctive ingredient reflecting local cuisine — Sichuan pepper. The creator? A US national who has been living in Chongqing for over a decade.

BEN BROWN, CO-OWNER AND FOUNDER BEN'S CRAFT BEER "Sichuan pepper is an interesting ingredient, the way you put it in changes its flavor. The type of malt and yeast changes the flavor. So I became really fascinated with it."

Ben Brown opened his own bar two years ago. That's also when short-video platform, Douyin – the Chinese version of TikTok – started to gain popularity fast. Brown took his beer and experience living in Chongqing to Douyin. Speaking fluent Chinese, sometimes using the Chongqing dialect, he gained some half a million followers. But he's not the only one using the internet to build a brand. Other businesses, and the city of Chongqing itself, are now using online media to promote tourism.

BEN BROWN, CO-OWNER AND FOUNDER BEN'S CRAFT BEER "One of the things I noticed is that it all works together, like when Chongqing started becoming a big destination site on Douyin, the city started responding by building more or developing further the tourist sites."

Professional photographer, Zhang Kunkun, has garnered millions of views and likes online — his works primarily showcase things in Chongqing that people from other regions have never seen before.

ZHANG KUNKUN PHOTOGRAPHER "As a mountain city, Chongqing is multilevelled and magical. It has things such as railways passing through buildings, the Yellow River Cableway, and cars driving on the eighth floor of buildings. These are all Chongqing's unique features."

Zhang believes connectivity created by the internet allows people to share more and see more.

ZHANG KUNKUN PHOTOGRAPHER "The internet brings people around the world closer, and it helps let more people know about different cities quickly. For us, all the works posted online can be considered our own intellectual properties. Previously, there were limited channels for our works to be seen by many people."

Like Zhang said, every individual can create and post online. These posts can then motivate others to visit and take similar pictures. This opportunity has led Chongqing to develop attractions to boost local tourism, and it's been paying off.

XU XINCHEN CHONGQING "In the first half of this year, the city's tourism expanded over 30% — a good sign of growth as the city transitions from an industrial one to a more versatile economy. Xu Xinchen, CGTN, Chongqing."