Almost 225,000 tourists visited Pingtan during the weeklong National Day holiday, according to the local tourism authorities.

The city welcomed a little over 22 percent more tourists compared to the same period last year, statistics show.

Tourism revenue grew 41.27 percent compared to last year, with more than 85 million yuan ($12.8 million) being generated.

Among the numerous tourism attractions around Pingtan, Tannanwan scenic area, Haiyu Square and the Aoqian Taiwan-style town were the most popular.

Pingtan attracted more visitors from outside Fujian province in comparison to last year. Local tourism department worker Mr. Wang said that self-driving tourism had “become the mainstream” this year.

Guestrooms in local homestays were sold out, as the preferred choice of accommodation among the visitors to Pingtan. Meanwhile, well preserved historical stone houses in villages such as Beigang and Guocai proved to be alluring as new tourism attractions.

The Aoqian Taiwan-style town reeled in more than four million yuan during the holiday, with the largest number of daily tourists during the week reaching 6,800.

The Bluesand Music Festival was hosted at the Pingtan Sand Sculpture Park. It kicked off on the evening of Oct 1, with musical bands from Fuzhou and Xiamen presenting spectacular performances.