Recently, the "2019 Colorful Liangshan Tourism Promotion Conference," hosted by the Liangshan Prefecture Bureau of Culture, Radio, Television and Tourism and organized by Guangzhou Lvmama Technology Co., Ltd., was held at the Hilton Guangzhou Tianhe. Themed "Magnificent Seventy Years · Striving in a New Era," the event showcased Liangshan’s folk culture through temple fair interactions and traditional performing arts.
The promotion conference also featured four exhibition zones: the Humanistic Sentiment Zone, the 70th Anniversary of the Founding of New China Zone, the Colorful Liangshan Zone, and the Targeted Poverty Alleviation Zone, presenting to the public Liangshan’s rich ethnic customs, beautiful natural scenery, and the tremendous development and changes achieved over the past 70 years since the founding of New China.
All-for-one tourism: the “first sharp tool” in poverty alleviation
Located in the “Golden Triangle” of Shangri-La, Liangshan boasts picturesque natural landscapes such as Lushan Mountain, Qionghai Lake, Luoji Mountain, Lugu Lake, and Lingshan Temple. It is also home to distinctive ethnic cultural traditions and festivals of the Yi, Tibetan, and Mosuo peoples. In Sichuan Province’s strategy of building a “Western Economic Development Highland,” Liangshan is positioned as the “Back Garden of Sichuan Tourism” and the “Western Tourism Distribution Hub.”
However, due to objective constraints such as geography and transportation, Liangshan Prefecture is also one of the country’s “three regions and three prefectures” that are deeply impoverished. In response, the state has successively issued documents such as the “Several Opinions on Supporting the Accelerated Building of a Moderately Prosperous Society in the Three Prefectures” and the “Implementation Opinions on Supporting Poverty Alleviation in Deeply Impoverished Areas.” Sichuan Province has placed Liangshan in a key position within its “Four-Way Expansion, All-for-One Opening” strategic layout, customizing 34 supportive policy measures and 16 specific work measures for Liangshan. These policies have created significant opportunities for Liangshan to achieve poverty alleviation and prosperity.
By the end of 2018, the prefecture had lifted 500 villages out of poverty, reducing the impoverished population by 199,400, and bringing the poverty incidence rate down to 7.1%. In 2019, Liangshan aims to ensure the poverty alleviation of 141,000 people and the withdrawal of 318 poor villages, achieving poverty-free status for four counties: Leibo, Ganluo, Yan Yuan, and Muli. And across this poverty alleviation front, the tourism industry in Liangshan has demonstrated strong economic driving power.
Public data shows that in 2016, Liangshan positioned the tourism industry as its leading industry, thoroughly implementing the “All-for-One Tourism” development strategy under the concept of green development. In recent years, the effect of “tourism enriching the people” has been immediate, making tourism the “first sharp tool” in Liangshan’s poverty alleviation efforts. In 2018, the prefecture received 45.9599 million tourists, a year-on-year increase of 4%, and achieved total tourism revenue of 43.667 billion yuan, up 20.93% year-on-year. In the first half of this year, the total tourism revenue reached 27.19 billion yuan, a 20% increase year-on-year.
The “2019 Colorful Liangshan Promotion Conference” vividly showcased Liangshan’s unique ethnic characteristics and humanistic charm through temple fair interactions and traditional performing arts. Tangible items such as Yi ethnic costumes, traditional musical instruments from Liangshan, photo collections of Liangshan’s development, local postcards, and specialty products allowed guests to deeply sense the strong economic development potential hidden within Liangshan.
Endless business opportunities: over 100 scenic spots in Liangshan await development
According to statistics, Liangshan currently has 36 A-level tourist attractions. Among them, there are 11 4A-level scenic spots, 4 provincial eco-tourism demonstration zones, and 4 provincial-level tourism resorts. However, there are as many as 106 undeveloped scenic areas and spots in Liangshan. Properly attracting investment to develop these untapped resources will undoubtedly push the achievements of Liangshan’s tourism economy to new heights.
In fact, the achievements in cultural and tourism projects in Liangshan in recent years have also generated great anticipation. In 2018, Liangshan secured the signing of a number of key projects including the Xichang Qionghai Future City Project, the Dechang Luoji Mountain West Section and Luchanggou Corridor Tourism Development Project, the China Xide Hongmo International Medicinal Health and Hot Spring Tourism Characteristic Town, the Yan Yuan Ancient Town Project in Yan Yuan County, the Huili Ancient Memory Cultural Tourism and Health Project, and the Ludongshan Wind Power Park in Huidong County. A total of 19 investment projects were completed, with an agreed investment amount of 113.498 billion yuan.
Additionally, the construction and development of projects such as the Jiaopingdu Scenic Area, the Heli Tegang Village Red Tourism Characteristic Village, the Yuexi Nanqing Township Yi Ethnic Red Army Hometown Theme Park, the Mianning County “Space Town,” the Phase II Project of the Red Army Grassland Park, the East Street Red Culture Street, and the Jiuhai Township Alliance New Village Premium Scenic Area have also been advanced.
In July this year, the 2019 Liangshan (Anning River Valley) Cultural Tourism and Health Investment Promotion Conference in Lanzhou unveiled 45 cultural tourism investment projects with a total investment of approximately 98 billion yuan. In the same month, the 2019 Liangshan Yi Traditional Torch Festival Investment Promotion Conference signed 33 projects with a total contracted amount of 42.9193 billion yuan. Among them, there were 8 third-sector investment projects, with a contracted amount of 40.9593 billion yuan.
It is reported that by 2020, Liangshan aims to establish itself as a demonstration zone for tourism transformation and upgrading in Sichuan Province, a national all-for-one tourism demonstration zone, a national pioneer zone for tourism reform and innovation, a national tourism poverty alleviation demonstration zone, and an international sunshine health and leisure resort destination in the Greater Liangshan Region, basically realizing the goal of becoming a strong tourism economy prefecture.
(On-site photos of the promotion conference exhibition area)
Continuous empowerment: expanding the cultural, tourism, and health industry
Located upstream of the Yangtze River Economic Belt along the Belt and Road, Liangshan’s tourism industry is gradually expanding into a cultural, tourism, and health industry in both content and form under this grand strategy. Take the Kailidila Hot Springs, the largest fluorine spring in Southwest China, as an example. Leveraging Ningnan’s superior ecology, geothermal water, and tourism resources, along with distinctive sericulture culture, silk culture, and meditation culture, the area is known for being “ideal for travel, living, and wellness,” and has been included in the “National Preferred Tourism Destinations List.”
According to the plan, during the “13th Five-Year Plan” period, Liangshan will build a number of world-influential premium tourist attractions and strive to create world-class tourism brands. At the “2019 Colorful Liangshan Tourism Promotion Conference,” Peng Lian, Deputy Director of the Liangshan Prefecture Bureau of Culture, Radio, Television and Tourism, introduced Liangshan’s cultural and tourism resources from seven dimensions: the Journey of Fire, the Journey of Water, the Journey of Colors, the Journey of Drama, the Journey of Food, the Journey of Shopping, and the Journey of Sports.
(Peng Lian, Deputy Director of the Liangshan Prefecture Bureau of Culture, Radio, Television and Tourism, delivering a speech)
Peng Lian introduced that Liangshan has already launched multiple premium tourism routes for visitors to choose from in the east, south, west, north, and central areas. The eastern route is the Warm Journey to the Hometown of the Yi People; the western route is the Journey to Explore Shangri-La; the southern route is the High-Mountain Hot Spring Wellness Journey; the northern route is the Journey to Seek Dreams Along the Ancient Tea Horse Road; the central route is the Carefree Journey Through Secret Flower Seas.
In terms of transportation infrastructure, Liangshan currently has 27,000 kilometers of roadways. During the “13th Five-Year Plan” period, the Chengdu-Kunming Railway double-track line will be completed, and the Yipan Expressway, Xizhao Expressway, Xixiang Expressway, Lezhao Expressway, and Xiqiao Expressway will commence construction successively. Meanwhile, the planning and construction of the Yixi High-Speed Railway, the commencement of civil airports in Huili and Ganluo, and the planning and construction of five general aviation airports will largely resolve the transportation constraints hindering Liangshan’s tourism development, enabling more convenient access for tourists.
Over the forty years of reform and opening up, Liangshan’s tourism industry has organically integrated its unique natural scenery, rich ethnic customs, and modern elements to form multi-layered, diversified cultural tourism resources. In the future, Liangshan will continue to use tourism as a vehicle and poverty alleviation and prosperity as goals, fully leveraging its unique natural resource advantages to continuously enhance the “blood-making function” of the rural economy.
(Group photo of the organizers of the Colorful Liangshan Tourism Promotion Conference)