Liaoning to open tourist train during Spring Festival

Children play inside the winter tourist train of Shenyang Bureau Group Co of China Railway. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

"We are trying to turn ice and snow resources into economic advantages and aim to build one of the most important ice and snow tourism destinations in China," said Wang Xiaojiang, deputy director of the Liaoning provincial department of culture and tourism.

According to a survey by China Tourism Academy, the past year saw significant growth in winter tourism and Liaoning ranked in the top three with an increase of 139 percent. Shenyang, Dalian and Dandong have become hot destination cities for tourists from Guangdong, Shanghai and Hunan.

Industry experts suggest that the winter tourist train will help Liaoning transform "cold resources" into a "hot industry". Local authorities should do well in differential competition and find a niche market compared with their counterparts from home and abroad.

"Access to both snow and ice activities makes Liaoning province a suitable destination for family trips and winter tourism. Liaoning can make full use of its location and service advantage, and tourism products should pay attention to participation and interaction," suggested Liu Wenjun, an expert in the tourism industry.

Liu Wei contributed to the story.