EMEI, China, Dec. 21, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The 23rd Mount Emei Ice, Snow and Hot Spring Festival ushered in its grand opening at Mount Emei of China, a World Natural Heritage and World Cultural Heritage, on December 18th.

Other than traditional winter sports such as skiing, snowboarding and bobsledding through the forest, this year's Ice, Snow and Hot Spring Festival has unveiled a unique alpine snow and ice theme park, where activities such as trekking, zip line for children, engineering school, castle playground and winter bazaar cater to the needs for every member of the family, according to the Organizing Committee of the 23rd Mount Emei Ice, Snow and Hot Spring Festival.

At the same time, this year's Festival includes a series of events like the "Little Cute Monkey in Ice and Snow" Photography Competition, "Happy Swim in Lingxiu Hot Spring" Cultural and Creative Swimming Suit Design Competition, "Hundred Shops, Hundred Flavors, Tasty Emei" 1st Mount Emei Tourism Culture and Gourmet Festival, among others, allowing visitors to experience a marvellous journey of "Frozen Fantasy" on Mount Emei. Furthermore, starting from December 18th, the Mount Emei scenic area will also waive admission fees for a selected number of scenic spots in the lower alpine zone.

Mount Emei is located around the 30th parallel north, and the world-famous Golden Summit reaches an elevation of 3,079m above sea level. The enormous altitude difference means that the drastically different snow scenery and verdant greenery of Mount Emei are distributed vertically, renowned for "different sceneries in ten miles" and "different snow and ice at different altitudes" on various parts of the mountain from the foot to the peak. The snow here isn't just a bland swath of whiteness, but rather complements the elegance of the mountain in an organic and graceful manner.

The Golden Summit is yet another embodiment of the unique snowy scenery, with the pristine snow reflecting the golden aura of the Samantabhadra bodhisattva and the temple, creating a special view that merges a land of snow with the Buddhist realm.

As early as 1998, Sichuan Province's first alpine ski area was built at Leidongping on Mount Emei, and after more than two decades of development and innovation, Mount Emei has achieved the transformation from a "single-activity" area to a diversified snowy wonderland. The Mount Emei Hot Spring Base was constructed in 2003, thereby realizing the immaculate fusion of winter sports with water sports; Mount Emei martial arts were incorporated in 2006 and soon arose as a highlight; "Snow and Ice Power" was created in 2015 and a thousand "Snow and Ice Warriors" gathered on the Golden Summit showing fitness and determination; the "Frozen Fantasy" theme park opened in 2018, further upgrading the family experience; and eight trendsetting cultural tourism projects debuted in 2020.

Mount Emei of today has risen as a popular destination for winter travelers in China thanks to its combination of unique snow and ice sceneries, and innovative winter recreation. Mount Emei is gaining increasing fame as a "high-altitude, low-latitude winter entertainment mecca of China" and gradually positioning itself as an "important travel destination of the world".