Tai'an, East China's Shandong province saw a strong rebound in its tourism during the weeklong Spring Festival holiday from Feb 11-17.

Accordingly, 18 scenic spots and rural tourism spots monitored by the local government welcomed a total of 776,917 tourists during the holiday period, generating 3.11 million yuan ($481,464.88) in tourism revenue.

This year, local authorities rolled out a string of preferential policies, including free admission to several scenic attractions to encourage non-local workers to stay in the city for the holiday.

A total of 27 cultural activities were held during the holiday, including art exhibitions, intangible cultural heritage exhibitions, and poetry recitation activities. Fifteen book stores were encouraged to stay open to the public. Lantern shows and traditional cultural performances were also staged at Dongping Shuihu Film Studio.

In addition, tourist attractions strengthened their COVID-19 epidemic control and prevention measures during the holiday. The number of visitors to scenic areas was capped at under 75 percent of the maximum capacity. Visitors had to scan their health QR codes, wear masks, and have their temperatures taken before entering. After entering, visitors had to maintain a distance of more than one meter from other people.

Dongping Shuihu Film Studio holds a grand lantern show during the Spring Festival holiday. [Photo/WeChat account: SDTXTA]

A folk performance is staged at Dongping Shuihu Film Studio. [Photo/WeChat account: SDTXTA]

Visitors are attracted by Taishan sugar painting artworks at Mount Tai Scenic Area. Taishan sugar painting is a traditional folk handicraft which paints with sugar. [Photo/WeChat account: china-taishan]