This is a miracle belonging to a bridge, and also a miracle belonging to a city.
On December 29, 2012, the Xiangshan Harbor Bridge was officially opened, changing Xiangshan’s awkward status as a “transportation dead-end.” Since then, the distance between Xiangshan and Ningbo has been shortened to 47 kilometers, and the drive takes just over 30 minutes. The change in transportation infrastructure has allowed the full utilization of Xiangshan County’s resources, and the impact on tourism has been immediate. After the bridge opened, visitor numbers to Xiangshan’s scenic spots saw an explosive year-on-year increase. According to statistics, during the first New Year’s holiday after the bridge’s opening, self-driving and independent travelers accounted for 90% of total visitors, marking an increase of over 500% year-on-year, mainly from regions such as Ningbo, Taizhou, Hangzhou, Shanghai, and southern Jiangsu. Xiangshan has quickly become a new tourist and vacation destination in the Yangtze River Delta region.
So what exactly is keeping Xiangshan tourism continuously hot? Who’s fanning this winter’s blaze? Through conversations with numerous visitors, we found that after years of development, Xiangshan has cultivated strong market demand for tourism by leveraging its abundant coastal tourism resources and premium tourism projects. With the opening of the Xiangshan Harbor Bridge as the catalyst, this pent-up demand has been fully released, giving rise to the miracle of Xiangshan tourism’s sustained popularity.
Xiangshan has now developed a range of tourism products including coastal leisure and vacation, fishing culture series, ancient fishing port heritage, and film and television culture. These have given rise to a number of marine tourism-themed premium projects such as “Xiangshan Film and Television Tours,” “Ancient Fishing Village Town Tours,” “Shipu Seafood Gastronomy Tours,” and “Songlan Mountain Leisure Vacation Tours.” Among them, Songlan Mountain Resort, China Fishing Village, Shipu Fishing Port Ancient Town, and Xiangshan Film and Television City have all become national 4A-level scenic spots, gradually showcasing their brand influence.
While accelerating the planning and construction of scenic areas, Xiangshan is also committed to the “living” inheritance of fishing culture. Xiangshan boasts a long and profound history of fishing culture, where indigenous cultural forms abound—fishing gear, fishing boats, fishing grounds, fishing ports, fishing seasons, fishing lanterns, fishing songs, fishing tunes, fishing drums, and more. These are the roots and soul of Xiangshan. Hong Xianxing, Minister of the Publicity Department of the Xiangshan County Committee, once said: “In the past, we always talked about ‘using culture and art to set the stage, and economic trade to perform the play,’ where culture always played a supporting role. But now, we are vigorously promoting the protection, research, and development of fishing culture, allowing culture to truly take center stage.” Events such as the “China Fishing Season Opening Festival,” “March 3rd Beach Strolling Festival,” International Sea Fishing Festival, and Xiangshan Seafood Festival are prime examples of these living fishing culture traditions. Visitors to Xiangshan can not only enjoy seasonal seafood but also experience the life of fishermen firsthand and immerse themselves in the charm brought by fishing culture.
All of the above is more than enough to attract visitors’ attention—everything is in place, all that’s needed is the final push. That push is the opening of the Xiangshan Harbor Bridge. The bridge allows visitors to reach Xiangshan in the shortest time possible and spend the longest time deeply experiencing it. This combination of short travel time and extended stay has fully unleashed the travel demands of visitors, directly heating up the Xiangshan tourism market. In 2013, the national tourism theme was designated as the “Year of Chinese Marine Tourism.” It can be said that at this moment, Xiangshan tourism, which enjoys perfect timing, location, and public support, will continue to fan the flames of this winter’s boom.