Friday, December 14, 2018

HANGZHOU XIAOSHAN: CONSTRUCTING THE ECOLOGICAL CIRCLE FOR EXHIBITION ECONOMY AND DEVELOPING THE INTERNATIONALIZATION OF URBAN AREAS AND RURAL REVITALIZATION

HANGZHOU, China, Dec. 13, 2018 /Xinhua-AsiaNet/--

The G20 Summit opened in Buenos Aires, the Capital of Argentina, on Nov. 30, drawing the attention of the whole world. Just two years ago, the G20 Hangzhou Summit was held successfully by an eastern Chinese city, Hangzhou, which also attracted worldwide attention. Xiaoshan District of Hangzhou City, where the main venue of the G20 Hangzhou Summit was located, has been developing high-end convention and exhibition industry in recent years, speeding up the construction of the ecological circle for exhibition economy, and boosting the integration and development for the internationalization of urban areas and rural revitalization.

Xiaoshan is located in the south wing of the Yangtze River Delta, which enjoys the most active county economy in China. With its developed economy, it ranks the tenth place out of China's top 100 districts in 2018. As the influence of Hangzhou Xiaoshan International Airport grows in the area and Hangzhou integrated railway hub was constructed, Xiaoshan's status as a regional hub has been established.

It's half an hour's drive from Hangzhou Xiaoshan International Airport to Hanghzou International Expo Center, the main venue of the G20 Hangzhou Summit. Since the G20 Hangzhou Summit was held in September, 2016, with several international certifications acquired in succession from organizations, such as the Union of International Associations, Xiaoshan is not only the location for the main venue of the G20 Hangzhou Summit, but also the area, where the most venues are laid out for the Hangzhou 2022 Asian Games.

With perfect hardware facilities, rich experience in exhibition reception and unique exhibition tourism experience, the convention and exhibition industry in Xiaoshan has achieved leapfrog development both in quantity and quality. Within the first ten months of the current year, Xiaoshan has held 56 exhibitions of various scales and 7,415 conferences of all kinds, 70% of which were international conferences.

"The convention and exhibition industry in Xiaoshan aims at internationalization, industrialization and branding," said the director of the Tourism Bureau of Xiaoshan, Hangzhou. "In future, we will build Xiaoshan into the most dynamic and strong convention and exhibition area in China, raising the popularity of its brand as 'East China reception room' and 'the International Living Room'."

As an important function area for tourism in Hangzhou, which is an internationally renowned tourism city, Xiaoshan gives full play to its advantages of tourism resources, starting from the point of view of "big convention and exhibition", focusing on the tourism and leisure industry, facilitating the integration of tourism and convention and exhibition industry, and thus a mutually beneficial pattern of the coordinated development of tourism and convention and exhibition industry has been formed.

Last December, after a fierce competition, Xiaoshan successfully introduced the first international tourism organization, the World Tourism Alliance, and settled its headquarters in the Xianghu Scenic Area. In September this year, Xiaoshan organized a series of events together with the World Tourism Alliance, with which the international convention brand named as "Xianghu" debuted on an international platform.

"The development of high-end convention and exhibition industry has put forward higher requirements for the ecological environment of Xiaoshan," said the director of the Tourism Bureau of Xiaoshan. To him, Xianghu was able to stand out in the competition to attract the World Tourism Alliance to settle there, mainly thanks to its ecological advantages. Related authorities in Xiaoshan and Hangzhou have been protecting and developing Xianghu for 13 years with the total investment adding up to more than 30 billion yuan.

With the example of the protection and development of Xianghu, Xiaoshan is speeding up the construction of the ecological circle for exhibition economy.  Meanwhile, the rapid development of convention and exhibition industry and tourism has led to the rise of the homestay industry. The homestay economy in a variety of business modes has become a new pillar for the beautiful rural construction in Xiaoshan.

In Heshang Town of southern Xiaoshan, a homestay inn named "Hai niao tian di" (meaning "a world of sea birds") enjoys great popularity among domestic and foreign tourists and has been named "the Most Popular Homestay Inn" by the China Hotel Association. It was remodeled from a century-old Chinese-styled house. The exterior of it retains the traditional classical Huizhou architectural style, while the interior is equipped with all kinds of modern devices. Tourists fall asleep listening to the sound of bamboo leaves at night and wake up to the chirping of birds in the morning. They can open the window to enjoy the graceful scenery of the traditional Chinese countryside.

Relying on natural landscapes, folk culture, ancient towns and villages and other resources, a number of villages and towns in Xiaoshan District have turned the countryside into scenic spots, farmhouses into guest houses, agricultural products into tourism commodities, which helps enrich the local residents and vitalize the countryside. Nowadays in Xiaoshan, a group of beautiful villages with different styles and full of charm are rising rapidly.

"Most of the villages here have both the local rustic charm and the fashionable urban life functions," said Sarunas, a Lithuanian, who has lived in Hangzhou for a long time.

Early this year, the government of Xiaoshan District launched the Five-Year Plan of Action for the Rural Revitalization Strategy, proposing that by June, 2022, all established villages in the whole District should be fully covered with an upgraded version of beautiful countryside with "beautiful villages, wealthy residents, prosperous industries and harmonious communities".

"The tide on August 18 is a spectacle that can been so nowhere else." For thousands of years, Qiantang River has mesmerized countless visitors with its unique and extraordinary tide. Today, Xiaoshan, which lies on the southern bank of Qiantang River, is seizing the historic opportunity period of "post-summit and pre-Asian Games" and standing on the front of building a modern international city with world-famous city features.

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