Suzhou welcomes visitors to the 16th International Tourism Festival

The 16th “Oriental Water City” China Suzhou International Tourism Festival runs from April to mid-May, in Suzhou, a lovely waterside city in Jiangsu province.

This year’s festival has a theme is "Love in Suzhou's romantic water world" and it offers a number of spring tourist activities and products, intended to show the city's charm as an “Oriental water city” and give tourists a taste of the Suzhou way of life, which is full of happiness and energy. The activities include various themed events and 59 programs based on a "Love in the Suzhou spring" theme.

The festival's opening ceremony will be held, on April 12, at 8:00 pm, on Hubin Square, by Jinji Lake, in the city's industrial park. A ferryboat performance is the major event, as always, along with a large song and dance show, fireworks, and other activities.

The opening session of the "Fashion Suzhou" micro-film contest will also take place during the ceremony. There will also be videos of 3-8 minutes each, centering on Suzhou tourism, for the audience to give visitors the details of the Suzhou way of life.

Main Activities during the 16th “Oriental Water City” China Suzhou International Tourism Festival

Activity	Time	Place
Riding bicycles in Suzhou for a“Low-carbon life, happy travel”	April 29, 2013	Kunshan, Jiangsu province
Happy competition for everyone at the 6th “Suzhou Fairyland Cup”	Final competition: April 6	Suzhou Fairyland
Suzhou Tourist Resort Investment Fair	April 12-14, 2013	Shizun Hotel, Dushu Lake
Foreign Publicity Conference for Chinese Tourism Cities in 2013	April 11-14, 2013	Shizun Hotel, Dushu Lake
4th Suzhou Jinji Lake Ring International Bicycle Half-marathon for 2013	April 14, 2013	Moonlight Wharf, Suzhou Industrial Zone

Festival organizers and sponsors:

China National Tourism Administration

Jiangsu provincial government

Jiangsu provincial tourism bureau

Suzhou municipal government