Ice and Snow Nadam Festival set to open next month

By Liao Wei (chinadaily.com.cn)

Updated: 2014-11-25

This year’s Inner Mongolia Ice and Snow Nadam Festival will open on Hulun Buir Prairie on Dec 23, according to the autonomous region’s tourism bureau.

The Nadam Fair, a traditional Mongolian pageant featuring entertainment and games, will bring loads of fun for both residents and tourists with various activities, such as a grand opening ceremony, marathon on a snowfield and skiing festival.

Children dressed in traditional ethnic costumes at last year's Ice and Snow Nadam Festival in North China's?Inner Mongilia autonomous region on Dec 23.[Photo by Jin Yu/Xinhua]

The horse race, one of the many traditional sports at the region’s Nadam winter fair, will return to provide festival-goers with the local ethnic group’s unique horse skills and racing speed.

In addition, bonfire parties, ethnic vocal arts and dance performances, and a wrestling competition will add more ethnic flavor to the traditional exuberant celebration of Mongolian culture and sports.

"Many people outside Inner Mongolia hold that there is a slack season for the region’s tourism every October. In fact, this is a misunderstanding," a representative from the bureau said. "Now the Nadam Fair will liven up the entire region with all kinds of entertainment and sports and will attract more visitors from all over the country to experience the nomadic lifestyle on the prairie."

Every winter, Hulun Buir Prairie becomes a snow-covered fairyland, which is a paradise for fun in winter. The region has launched a group of tourism festivals to welcome people to know more about its culture and natural wonders, such as heavy snow and rime.