Two tourists take a photo of a lotus at a scenic spot of West Lake in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, in this undated photo. Li Zhong / For China Daily

Television commercials promoting the sights and sounds of Hangzhou, one of China's most picturesque cities, will start running on the British Broadcasting Corporation's (BBC) world service from Monday.

The advertising spots are a major part of the city's efforts to boost its image throughout Europe and the United States and attract more visitors.

"Despite being selected by the New York Times as one the 41 hottest destinations in the world, Hangzhou still lacks a global reputation," said Wang Xinzhang, deputy director of the city's tourism commission. According to official data, 61 percent of inbound tourists to the Zhejiang provincial capital are from East Asia.

The commercials, which were produced by a BBC team and will appear on BBC World, show a modern side of the ancient city, including luxury hotels, spas and golf courses, as well as the traditional attractions like West Lake and Lingyin Temple. By the end of June, they will have been broadcast more than 400 times.

Viewers can also watch the spots on Youtube and Lufthansa Airlines services, said Pan Dan, who is heading up the promotion program in the European market. "We're aiming to attract tourists from Britain, Germany and the Netherlands by giving a new image to the city as an ideal leisure destination," he said.

Introductions about the city will also be printed in major tourist magazines and on websites, such as National Geographic Traveler, Lonely Planet and Trip Advisor.

During President Hu Jintao's state visit to the United States in January, commercials for Hangzhou made by a domestic agency were shown on 10 major US channels, including Fox News, CNN, ESPN and Discovery Channel. The advertisements are scheduled to be aired more than 6,000 times this year, said Chen Li, director of the city's US promotion team.

Package holidays to Hangzhou are also now sold in Costco, the largest chain of membership warehouse stores in the US, making it the first mainland city to do so. "We're putting great emphasis on the US market, as it has been the third largest tourist source for Hangzhou for six years," said Chen, who added that the combined cost of the US and European promotions is 20 million yuan ($3 million).

"I have been to Hangzhou twice and really like the city," said Melanie Joh, an executive who is a South Korean national and has lived in the US for more than 10 years. "My friends in the US don't know much about the city, however. I often recommend Hangzhou to them, as it's really nice to go there on weekends."

Hangzhou is the third city in China, after Beijing and Shanghai, to air commercials on overseas television channels.