Cherries dangle from branches, glistening like ruby jewels. [Photo/WeChat account: fsxcbfzs]

Yantai, a coastal city in East China's Shandong province and renowned for abundant juicy fruits, kicked off its 18th Yantai Cherry Festival in Fushan district recently, heralding the onset of a delightful cherry harvest season.

The festival features a diverse range of activities, including cherry contests, intangible cultural heritage exhibitions, photography and short video competitions, and a cherry promotion event on e-commerce platforms. To bolster its brand image, the local government distributed 15,000 cherry picking vouchers, inviting both residents and tourists to pick tasty cherries for free. 

A highlight of the festival is a thrilling half marathon race with over 900 participants from across the nation. Starting and ending at the festival grounds, the 20-kilometer race course saw runners treated to no shortage of cherries.

An expat tourist pays a visit to the intangible culture heritage zone set up at the 18th Yantai Cherry Festival. [Photo/WeChat account: fsxcbfzfs]

Fushan district, known as the "Hometown of Chinese Cherries", has successfully hosted 17 Yantai Cherry Festivals since 2007. Its local cherry cultivation area spans 110,000 mu (7,333 hectares), with an annual output of 90,000 tons and a production value exceeding 1.8 billion yuan ($248 million). The flavorful Fushan cherries have been selected as a national geographical indication agricultural product.

In recent years, Fushan has focused on accelerating the establishment of demonstration bases, introducing superior varieties and promoting advanced technologies to drive continuous improvements in cherry cultivation area, output, and quality. The district has developed into the largest county-level cherry cultivation area in China, boasting the highest total output, widest variety, and highest quality.

A girl smiles as she picks cherries. [Photo/WeChat account: fsxcbfzfs]