It was the biggest Asian Winter Video games but with a document 1,275 athletes from 34 international locations and areas collaborating.
For the host metropolis Harbin, China, it meant a greater than 30% enhance within the variety of inbound tourism orders in comparison with the identical interval final yr, in response to Tongcheng Journey, a preferred Chinese language on-line journey company.
However Harbin’s recognition was properly beneath approach earlier than the Video games even started.
It skilled a home tourism increase in 2023, pushed by elevated visibility on social media platforms, in response to Xinhua Information Company, the official state information outlet. Posts throughout Chinese language social platforms and Instagram featured town’s ice castles and four-hour queues for ice slides on the Ice and Snow World. The theme park alone generated over 1 billion views and tens of 1000’s of posts on Chinese language microblogging website Weibo.
Different journey vloggers and guests shared snowboarding guides and livestreams from Harbin’s Yabuli Ski Resort, China’s largest and hottest ski vacation spot, as winter sports activities turned extra mainstream following the Winter Olympics in 2022.
Whereas the Asian Winter Video games are additional boosting Harbin’s visibility, there’s a query of whether or not it may well keep scorching.
“I believe this pattern can proceed, perhaps for 3 to 4 years,” mentioned Vivian Cheng, a spokesperson for the Ritz-Carlton Harbin. “But when there’s nothing extra or one thing refreshing that occurs, I do not suppose it may well at all times proceed.”
A Booming Winter Tourism Season
This Lunar New 12 months vacation, from January 28 to February 4, town recorded over 12 million guests, a 20.4% year-on-year enhance, in response to the Harbin Tradition, Radio, Tv, and Tourism Bureau.
Inbound vacationers surged by 145% and tourism spending additionally hit a brand new excessive, reaching 19.15 billion yuan ($2.6 billion), up almost 17% from the earlier yr.
Within the earlier winter season, Harbin surpassed Beijing with 87 million guests. The latter ranked second, receiving 4 million guests, in response to a report on China’s 2024 high 10 winter tourism cities launched by China Tourism Academy.
The Harbin Ice and Snow World stays town’s hottest attraction, being the world’s largest ice and snow pageant and that includes life-sized ice sculptures, bridges, and castles as much as 43 meters excessive. The park usually opens in late December annually and closes mid-to-late February, because the climate warms up.
As of February 11, the park reported a document of greater than 3 million guests this season.
Steps to Winter Fame: The Olympics, Social Media, and Authorities Efforts
The 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics performed a key function in popularizing winter sports activities throughout China and driving development in winter tourism, in response to China’s State Council Data Workplace.
Following the Olympics, China launched initiatives to develop an “ice and snow financial system,” specializing in increasing winter sports activities and infrastructure, boosting tourism, and supporting different winter-related industries.
The Ritz-Carlton Harbin says the rise of influencers was key in selling town’s sights.
“When a spot turns into standard, it naturally attracts many KOLs [key opinion leaders] and influencers who share their experiences on private social platforms,” Cheng mentioned. “Their posts shortly unfold, producing curiosity and galvanizing others to go to.”
Nevertheless it’s not simply concerning the visuals — native and provincial authorities companies have taken a number of measures to advertise town’s tourism improvement, together with rising high-speed transportation choices connecting Harbin to different main cities.
Trying Forward: The 2025 Asian Winter Video games and a Query of Sustainability
Harbin’s peak winter journey season will prolong by way of mid-February, till the closure of Ice and Snow World.
For the reason that metropolis’s fundamental tourism season is intently tied to the opening and shutting dates of the ice theme park, some categorical considerations concerning the long-term sustainability of Harbin’s tourism.
“It’s nonetheless chilly, however there aren’t any different sightseeing areas or another fascinating issues that may appeal to the company,” mentioned Adam Yuan, the Ritz-Carlton Harbin director of gross sales and advertising and marketing.
The Heilongjiang provincial authorities is engaged on the event of a “four-season prosperity” plan, which might spend money on additional cultural festivals and summer time outside occasions to draw guests throughout hotter months.
Terry Zhu, advertising and marketing director at JW Marriott Harbin, says he believes the Video games will heighten town’s visibility, each domestically and internationally.
“Many could know of China, Beijing, or Shanghai, however they don’t essentially know Harbin,” Zhu mentioned. “The success of the Video games signifies that extra areas will go present Harbin, serving to extra folks to know town. I believe it’s useful to Harbin, an ideal assist.”
