Tai'an revitalizes tradition to boost culture, tourism growth

The ceremony of worship to heaven at Taishan Mountain in Tai'an, an old tradition from ancient China, shows the link between heaven and earth. [Photo/WeChat account: SDTXTA]

The ceremony of worship to Heaven and Earth at Taishan Mountain in Tai'an, Shandong province, is a 70-minute live show set against the big backdrop of Taishan Mountain and has been a big part of Tai'an tourism for 16 years.

The show mixes natural sights, old rituals, and local stories. In late 2024, Tai'an started a big upgrade of this well-known event, opening again on May 1 this year.

The new show, with a focus on stories, turns Taishan Mountain's rich history into a full experience, making visitors remember and feel connected. This new way has worked well, with visitors during the May Day holiday going up by 39 percent and income by 57 percent from the year before. By July 31, over 50,000 people had visited, with over 3,200 people on single busy days.

Tai'an keeps finding new ways in its cultural tourism, focusing on new ways to do business and experiences. The city focuses on the cultural tourism field, working on ways to improve mixing and change.

"Entertainment economy" is key in drawing tourists and boosting cultural and tourism spending in Tai'an.

In 2024, the city had 94.29 million local tourists, making a tourism income of 90.27 billion yuan ($12.57 billion), with jumps of 12.3 percent and 12.6 percent. The number of people visiting Taishan Mountain was over 8 million for two years in a row. The typical stay of tourists from other places in Tai'an was 2.12 days, up 10.4 percent from the year before.

This year, the city's tourism has kept doing well. Early guesses show, from January to June, the number of tourists in Tai'an was over 42.86 million, up 8.96 percent from the year before, while total tourism income was 41.57 billion yuan, up 9.08 percent from the year before.