Integrated tourism spreads benefits to all levels

By Yuan Hui (China Daily)

Updated: 2017-07-19

The Inner Mongolia autonomous region is using a new, cross-industry model to promote the development of local tourism.

According to officials from the autonomous region's tourism administration, cross-industry tourism means an integration of resources in various sectors, such as agriculture, industry, culture and events, aiming to offer more experiences to tourists and bring in more revenues for local people.

In Inner Mongolia, home to the Mongolian ethnic group among others, the integration with culture has led to a big boom in the tourism industry.

Nadam, an entertainment event originating in the 13th century, is a traditional Mongolian festival.

Activities including wrestling, horse racing, archery and other competitions are held during the festival, attracting many locals and tourists.

In Erdos, in southern Inner Mongolia, three sessions of the Nadam fairs have been held in recent years.

During last year's session in August, an international cultural creativity conference and other trade shows were held concurrently, making the event a combination of entertainment, culture and business.

The city is a world-renowned producer of cashmere and coal, so local tourism companies have arranged tours of cashmere production sites and explorations of underground mines.

In Alxa League, in western Inner Mongolia, a campaign against desertification is being staged by the local government and people from all over China.

The region's tourism operators offer a range of ecotourism options to tourists, allowing them to see the achievements of the campaign and take part in efforts for planting in the deserts.

In Darhan Muminggan Joint Banner, local tourism businesses are using the latest internet technologies to attract tourists.

Throughout the autonomous region, the most popular practice is integration of tours with the local animal husbandry industry, allowing tourists to experience the life and work of local herdsmen.

Inner Mongolia has various landforms, which offer destinations for people interested in research and educational tours.

It has three world geoparks in Alxa, Hexigten and Arxan, offering research tours for studying deserts, grasslands, glaciers, canyons, rivers, wetlands and volcanoes.

The Arxan Geopark was the latest addition to the World Geoparks network. Its membership was just announced by UNESCO on July 7. The site features one of the best volcano landforms in China.

Tourism is a rising industry in Inner Mongolia, with an increasing number of tourists and growing revenues in recent years.

In 2016, the autonomous region received more than 98 million tourists and netted 271 billion yuan ($40 billion) in revenue, according the tourist administration.

The administration said tourism accounted for 12.6 percent of the region's gross regional product last year.

yuanhui@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 07/19/2017 page12)