A stone Buddhist statue sits in front of Mengshan Mountain in Jinyuan district, Taiyuan. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Jinyuan district in Taiyuan, capital of North China's Shanxi province, plans to build itself into an internationally famous ecological cultural tourism and leisure destination in the current year. 

The district will improve the quality, reputation and attractiveness of local scenic areas such as Jinci Temple, Tianlong Mountain, Mengshan Mountain, Taiyuan Botanic Garden and Taiyuan Ancient County and integrate them into the cultural tourism development of the Taiyuan-Xinzhou Integrated Economic Zone, compile a list of Jinyuan-Xinzhou tourism routes, and promote the interconnection and mutual marketing of regional tourism.

It will also promote folk performances, intangible cultural heritage displays, and cultural performances at local tourist attractions, and organize special cultural and art festivals and fairs for viewing flowers and red leaves, food tasting, and ice and snow sports, giving people more interactive experiences. 

The Taiyuan Botanic Garden in Jinyuan district, Taiyuan [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Ecological tourism revolving around health care will be boosted the district as well, with health care and leisure projects targeting high-end talent to be introduced and the construction of health care projects to be accelerated.

The villages of Chiqiao, Sidi, Chengjiayu, and Diantou will be encouraged to speed up the development of the homestay economy. Huata, Zhaojiashan and other villages will be encouraged to take advantage of abundant agricultural resources and landscapes in developing vacation resorts. 

Beigun – a popular and unique folk dance with strong local characteristics that involves balancing a child on a rod attached to one's back – is staged in Jinyuan district, Taiyuan. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Jinyuan district plans to introduce more restaurants and hotels to increase the quality of food blocks and overnight tour services and further develop tourism products to improve the quality of shopping during travel.

In addition, the district will focus on upgrading comprehensive services such as ticket booking, information consultation, itinerary guides, smart tour guides, passenger evacuation, announcement releases, and emergency rescue to offer tourists a safe and convenient travel experience.