Bishkek, Dec. 14, 2023. / Kabar/. Tourism in China is a highly developed sector of the country's economy and has been growing rapidly in recent decades. According to statistics from the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), China ranks 4th in the world on international tourist flows in terms of the number of tourists visiting the country.
The ski industry in China is also developing rapidly: existing world-class resorts are growing and improving and new ones are being built. There are already more than 700 open for public and closed ski parks in China.
Xinjiang Uigur Autonomous Region in the North-West of China is fast emerging as one of the country’s best ski destinations. However, it’s not quite fair to say that skiing is new to the region. In fact, Xinjiang is considered by some to be the birthplace of human skiing, though several other countries claim this title.
In 2005, cave paintings depicting ski-bound hunters were discovered in Xinjiang’s Altay Prefecture. Chinese researchers have estimated these to be 12,000 years old, which, if correct, might suggest that skiing originated in the Altay Mountains before spreading through Russia, Finland and Scandinavia.
Altay, named the land of ice and snow is one of the top tourist regions in Xinjiang.
Skiing is the symbol and pride of Altay, which is the Snow Capital in China. Altay receives abundant snow for more than 179 days each year, giving skiers the best quality snow experience.
Currently, Altay has many big ski resorts. The natural ski resorts provide skiers and travelers with amazing snow fields and winter scenery. One of such resorts is Jiangjun Hill Ski Field on the North of Xinjiang - the biggest and the most popular.
Jiangjun Hill Ski Resort in Altay city was built in 2009. It has convenient transport links and is the only ski resort in the country connected to the city. Jiangjun Ski Resort won the title of China's Best Sports Tourism Scenic Spot.
Various sports and entertainment events are held here.
Jiangjun Ski Resort has abundant natural snowfall, with an average annual snowfall depth of 1-1.5 meters. The effective snow period is from late October to early April. Currently, 72 ski slopes with a total length of 70 kilometers have been built. The resort has built a ski jump facility that meets Olympic standards for ski slalom.
The resort works round a year. During summer season it offers other kinds of sports and entertainment.
In recent years, Jiangjun Ski Resort has made important contributions in promoting China’s skiing and the development of Altay’s ice and snow tourism industry.
The second resort in Altay Prefecture is Koktakai International Ski Resort. It is the only tourist area of the highest classification 5A in the northwestern part; the total area of the ski resort is 28 square kilometers; construction of the resort began in 2018 and the resort began accepting tourists in 2020.
In total, the construction of 80 ski slopes is planned, of which 27 have already been completed and are open to tourists.
In addition to the ski slope, there are various jumps with different slopes and a natural park.
The ski resort itself operates on the concept of tourism, skiing, recreation.
Koktakai International Ski Resort is the only ski resort in China that receives tourists from November to June 1, that is, the largest number of days - more than 200 days of active rest.
The highest point above sea level is 3100 meters.
In addition to the sporting destination, the ski resort attracts nature lovers because there are a large number of different types of trees.
The resort is a multifunctional complex that meets international standards and can receive both tourists and act as a platform for various events.
The resort has become a high-quality training venue for domestic alpine skiing due to its unique terrain and climate conditions.
Since the opening of the resort, it served more than 1 million tourists.
Commissioning of the complex made it possible to employ 200 thousand people.
A group of journalists from Central Asia and Russia visited two ski resorts in Altay Prefecture - Jiangjun Hill Ski Field and Koktokay International Ski Resort to get acquainted with tourism opportunities of the region within the press tour devoted to the 10th anniversary of the Belt and Road Initiative.
After visiting the ski resorts, one of the journalists from Russia Alexei Dneprovoi, the editor-in-chief of Pitert-T site, sharing his impressions about the ski resorts praised the efforts made by the leadership of China. He said that the policy of China in relation to the tourism industry is correct. Alexei said that a huge revolution has actually been made in the region, where there were no roads, no infrastructure.
“A ski cluster has been created, a base has been created for the massive tourist flow. China and the Communist Party, led by Xi Jinping, they began to build tourism not from the roof but from the foundation. That is, they created, first of all, roads, which are very important for normal tourist flow. They built airports; serious money was invested with the involvement of experts from the world's best experts. A ski resort in Altay, it was built by Swiss specialists. When you get there, the clear thought is that you are in Switzerland,” he said adding that everything needed for tourists has been built here.
China is the birthplace of silk, tea, paper, porcelain, gunpowder... And Altay is the land of ice and snow, the birthplace of skiing.
In the north of Xinjiang Uigur Autonomous Region of the country, with its cool climate and hilly landscape, winter sports have been developing rapidly, contributing to the growth of the local economy.
The reporters from Central Asian countries and Russia once more became evidence of how China is developing rapidly, how the level of local ski resorts began to grow, and the increasing demand for ski tours to China.
During the 7-day press tour the journalists also see the hospitality of local people, who were very friendly and helpful.
The hospitality, kindness and openness is one of the characteristic features of the multinational people of Altay, 51 percent of which are ethnic Kazakh.
Nurzhan Kasmalieva
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