Sanya /China/, February 8. /TASS/. More than 384,200 tourists visited the key tourist attractions of the southern Chinese province of Hainan during the first five days of vacations on the occasion of the Lunar New Year (this year it lasted from January 31 to February 6). This was reported by the Hainan Daily newspaper.

According to the newspaper, this is an 11.73% increase over the same period in the previous year. The story also indicates that accommodation facilities in tourism from January 31 to February 4, took 477,800 tourists overnight, an increase of 17.28% year-on-year.

According to the newspaper, the cultural life of Hainan during the New Year holidays was very eventful. For example, the city of Haikou (the administrative center of the province) launched a series of sports events under the slogan "Welcome to Haikou to celebrate the New Year". In particular, the city's Baishamen Park hosted competitions in basketball, running, tug-of-war, dribbling and many others.

Tourists in the resort town of Sanya rested at campsites and spent time on the beach. Boat rentals, catamarans and jet skis were in great demand. In addition, Sanya hosted painting and calligraphy exhibitions over the New Year holidays. The article also pointed out that Hainan shopping malls were crowded during the period, which led to a consumption boom and had a positive impact on the island's economy.

The Lunar New Year fell on the night of February 1. It is one of the major holidays in China. During the New Year vacations, the Chinese tend to go to their home towns and cities to celebrate the New Year with their families and friends. Some prefer to travel around the country.

This year the island of Hainan took in a total of more than 5.4 million vacationers over the week, with revenues of the local tourism industry exceeding 7.53 billion yuan ($1.18 bln).