Kaiyang promotes construction of sports tourism demonstration zone

Kaiyang holds a promotion meeting for the construction of Guizhou province's sports tourism demonstration zone. [Photo/Kaiyang county convergence media center]

A promotion meeting for the construction of Guizhou province's sports tourism demonstration zone was held in Kaiyang county of Guiyang, the capital city of Southwest China's Guizhou province, on April 26-27.

More than 160 people participated in the event, including directors and representatives from the sports departments of cities (prefectures), counties and districts in the province, as well as directors of the demonstration zone project.

The meeting encouraged departments to create sports tourism products with local characteristics and introduce branded events. It also pushed establishing various sports industry incubation platforms and guiding local State-owned companies to invest in or develop sports tourism projects.

It encouraged scenic spots, travel agencies, tourism and sports associations and sports clubs to actively participate in the development and operation of sports tourism projects. According to information from the meeting, officials can integrate historical culture, natural scenery and folk customs into sports tourism development.

In recent years, Kaiyang has positioned the tourism sector as one of the county's leading industries and has been actively enriching its tourism market. In 2020, it received 15.08 million visits and achieved tourism revenue of 9.27 billion yuan ($1.43 billion), despite the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

With construction of the national sports tourism demonstration zone, Kaiyang county will further explore innovative development paths integrating sports and tourism.