Bagong Mountain Tourism Festival gives Huainan a boost

By Miao Jie (China Daily Shanghai Bureau)
Updated: 2009-10-10 16:40

The opening ceremony of the Bagong Mountain Tourism Festival was held in Huainan, east China's Anhui province,September 12,2009.

Folk arts shows, bean curd and of course Bagong itself were the highlights of the 9th Bagong Mountain Tourism Festival, which wrapped up last week in Huainan, Anhui Province.

Local officials have been organizing the festival for almost a decade to promote the area’s natural landscapes, unique geological sites, culture and food.

Whereas the previous eight editions of the festival played a major role in promoting Huainan’s bean curd culture, however, this year the focus was more on the mountain and the people who inhabit it.

As such, the addition of folk arts shows, Buddhist ceremonies at Baita Temple and photographic exhibitions devoted to the mountain’s plush scenery drew large crowds.

Organizers said they hoped that creating greater awareness of the area’s natural assets would see tourists flock in.

"I hope that Huainan, with the help of the prestigious branding of Bagong Mountain and its bean curd culture, will take advantage of this festival to develop and comprehensively strengthen our local tourism industry," said Hu Xuefan, chief of Anhui’s provincial tourism administration, during his keynote speech.

"This tourism festival, as a shining pearl in northern Anhui province, will contribute to the economic and social development of Huainan as well as contributing to the growth of tourism in Anhui as a whole," he added.

Although bean curd, or tofu, already has one festival devoted to it in the municipality, it was never far from the minds of organizers last week, testament to the food’s position as a major money-spinner in the region.

Now they hope the mountain can cast an equally impressive shadow over the neighboring region as its favorite foodstuff. Organizer Hu went on to describe Bagong’s storied history and the myriad tourism resources available to visitors to the area, which is branding itself as a new sightseeing destination with the help of assets such as its National Geological Park.

Last week, visitors were also able to enjoy a new one-ticket policy that sees entrance tickets for nearby scenic spots bundled together with the Mt Bagong pass.

The festival, co-hosted by the Anhui Provincial Tourism Administration and Huainan Municipal Government, took place at Bagong Forest Park from Sep 12 to Oct 8.