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Download The city of Harbin in Northeast China, famous for its winter ice festival, is taking steps to boost its tourist numbers over the summer, a senior local official has said. Zhang Lixin, director of the publicity department of Harbin, said on Wednesday that the city government is aiming to attract more tourists from both China and abroad in the summer, when the number of tourists is lower than in the winter. The city is already a top travel destination in the winter, with its famous Ice Lantern Festival and the Ice World Wedding Ceremony. "The Ice Lantern Festival has been held every two years since the 1960s. As a result, the ice carnival has become a calling card for the city," Zhang said at a news conference, with media representatives from around the world gathering in the city to help spread the word of the tourism push. "But it has been only three years since we started to develop the potential of summer tourism in 2009." Journalists from 14 media outlets from countries such as the Republic of Korea, Thailand and Australia are in Harbin on a five-day tour called "Charming Harbin in summer - Harbin in the eyes of the global media." The tour, organized by the city government and China Daily, has included visits to a nature reserve park, two historic churches, and the city's Russian-influenced areas. The city government hopes the media tour will help promote the city's image and attract more tourists from abroad, Zhang said. | 
