Crucial industry

According to the local government, tourism accounted for 13.3 percent of Shaanxi's total GDP in 2013, an increase of 1.45 percent compared with the previous year.

The development of the tourism industry has had a positive influence on province's economic upgrading, Yang said.

Time travelers

Gesang flowers in bloom in Liuba,Shaanxi province

For instance, the Shaanxi tourism bureau has implemented the Qinling Mountains tourism program in recent years, which aims to build the region into a tourism hotspot that features a great ecological environment, unique cultural experiences and a leisure lifestyle.

Six cities and one district around the Qinling Mountains have participated in the program.

The total investment of the program is 12 billion yuan, with 110 projects related to tourist product development and infrastructure construction, Yang said.

In addition to the Qinling Mountains, many new tourism spots have opened to public in 2014, including the Zhouzhi Shahe Wetland Park and the Taibai Mountain Yijing Hot Spring Resort.

Three newly built five-star hotels have also been approved in the first half of this year, which symbolizes the local tourism has entered a new era, according to Yang.

Shaanxi's tourism industry is becoming more diverse, which consists of sightseeing and leisure vacations, Yang said.