OREANDA-NEWS. Hebei province's Tourism Administration reports that the Golden Week during the National Day proved rewarding big winner for Hebei when it received 16.8 million tourists, a rise of 13.1 percent from the same period last year and took in 10.14 billion yuan (USD 1.66 billion), up 27.5 percent. This year's tourism in Hebei had the following distinctions:

Variety of culture

Thanks to some unusual activities, such as "Try the micro-blog, show my life" and "Treasure Hunt Surprises”, Shanhaiguan Pass near the city of Qinhuangdao, had 120,000 visitors, with tickets bringing in 4.27 million yuan. The city of Chengde came up with eight autumn tourist products, such as Mountain Resort and Outlying Temples, which attracted 302,300 people and were worth 36.28 million yuan in ticket sales.

Good reception for do-it-yourself tours

The holiday saw expressways around the city of Chengde carrying 457,500 passenger cars per hour, up 21.7 percent from the same last year period, 70 percent of them being tourists driving themselves. Meanwhile, the Qinhuangdao Expressway Management Office said the number of visiting cars topped 200,000.

Focus on rural tourism and eco-tourism

The city of Qinhuangdao's Beidaihe Jifa Agricultural Sightseeing Garden and the Changli valley's pick-it-yourself fruits, or Lulong Baozi Valley received 86,000 tourists in the seven–day holiday, while Yongqing county's "10th Golden Autumn Picking Festival" attracted 92,600, and brought in 9.3 million yuan.