(Yicai) Jan. 4 -- Harbin, a traditional industrial city in northernmost China, has become a popular destination for tourists thanks to its ice and snow tourism and warm welcome for visitors.

Harbin, also known as China’s ‘Ice City,’ received 3.1 million tourists over the three-day New Year holiday and bagged CNY5.9 billion (USD826.5 million) of related income, both record highs, according to the city’s culture and tourism bureau.

About 75 percent of those visitors came from Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Beijing, a 158 percent surge on a year earlier, data from travel agency Ctrip showed.

The recent boom in Harbin's popularity stems from an unexpected event. After 40,000 tourists poured into Harbin Ice and Snow World on Dec. 18, the theme park’s first day, its operator had to refund many dissatisfied tourists, resulting in the local cultural and tourism authorities strengthening supervision of businesses in the sector, forcing them to improve how they receive tourists, according to a local professional with many years in cultural tourism.

Harbin’s authorities strictly control accommodation, scenic spots, restaurants, and shopping areas, not allowing them to increase prices and giving the city a big price advantage as a New Year destination, according to a local hotelier.

The cost of three days of standard accommodation, meals, bathing, and entertainment during the holiday was about CNY2,000 (USD280), which was very reasonable during the peak season and the New Year break, hoteliers said.

Harbin is taking full advantage of its ice and snow attractions to plan live performances and other activities on Chinese New Year's Eve in February and extend the operating hours of key scenic spots, metro lines, and buses. Locals even make room for out-of-town visitors, whom they nickname “little potatoes,” to make it easier for them to soak up the local culture.

Nevertheless, Harbin has a sustainability problem with outdoor ice and snow projects, and while the local government controls prices and services, players in the cultural tourism field also need to maintain a certain level of profit, analysts pointed out.

Editor: Martin Kadiev