Wuhan Donghu Ecological Park Tops 6th in China's 5A Tourist Attractions

International

Nov 22, Donghu Ecological Park, located in capital city Wuhan of central China's Hubei Province, has received 21.39 million tourists, ranking the country's 6th 5A level scenic attractions during the October holiday season, with income of 5.7 billion yuan RMB (about 800 million US dollars), according to the park management committee.

Known as the "City of wetlands", Wuhan is home to 165 rivers, 166 lakes and about 162,000 hectares of wetlands, accounting for 18.9% of the city's total land coverage. Donghu ("East Lake") showcased the city's efforts in ecological civilization construction over the past decades.

Donghu, with 33 square kilometres of water area, 133.7 kilometers of shoreline, and 34 peaks standing alongside. As one of the largest city lakes in the world, Donghu's delightful ecological environment attracts numerous migratory birds to inhabit and reproduce every year.

"The diverse wetland plants and ideal wetland habitats have provided avian rich food sources and pleasant conditions for nesting and averting predators," said Xu Dong, Deputy Director and Senior Engineer of Wuhan Eco-environmental Science and Technology Center.

The worth of Donghu lies in nature. Over the years, the city planted "Aquatic forests" and "Aquatic wetlands" in Donghu, stabilizing its ecological system while enhancing its capacity to resist external risks. Hard work paid off, and Donghu has transformed into an "open ecological museum" in Wuhan.

Xu said that Wuhan will gradually increase the species diversity of the "Aquatic Forest" and increase the area to about 33 percent of the lake area. The coverage of aquatic plants will reach 3.2 million square meters in plan.

Enjoying sunrise at the Ling Bo Gate of Wuhan University, sunset at the edge of Moshan Mountain, taking the Ferris wheel of "Eye of Donghu" to experience the romance in the beautiful scenery, and riding a sightseeing helium balloon to "fly" the landscape of Donghu ... the lake provides various selection for tourists with varying preferences.

Tingtao, Moshan, Wild Goose and Flute Playing, Hubei Provincial Museum, Wuhan Botanical Garden, Wuhan Happy Valley and Donghu Ocean Park. The 102-kilometre-long Donghu Greenway beads these attractions into a thread.

Su Xue, a tour guide from Wuhan East Lake Culture and Tourism, said over 60 large-scale cultural and sports festivals were held in Donghu periodically annually, and visitors can see "flowers in the season, festivals in the month and wonderful scenary all year round" in Donghu.

Liu Futang, Director of Donghu Management Committee, said that in recent years, Donghu has actively implemented the development concept of "lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets", achieved fruitful results in ecological protection, continuously improving livelihood and well-being of its residents.

At present, Wuhan is actively and profoundly practicing the idea of ecological civilization, adhering to environmental priority and green development, persisting in innovation and doing practical work. Building Donghu into "a world-famous lake and people's paradise", and striving to make Wuhan into a heroic city in the new era. End