The 18th North China Travel Fair (NCTF) will be held in Shijiazhuang, the capital of Hebei province, Aug 30 – Sept 1, the provincial tourism administration has announced, with 30 provinces, cities and regions taking part to promote their tourism at the largest gathering of its kind in North China.

In addition, 17 foreign countries have decided to take part, which is expected to bring thousands of groups and investors, along with 18,000 visitors, worth 38 million yuan ($6.2 million) in direct benefits and 300 million in indirect benefits.

The NCTF will have two exhibition areas – an indoor one at the Shijiazhuang International Expo Center, on a 9,310-square-meter space, and an outdoor one at Hebei Culture Square, on 13,470 square meters of ground. The 168 booths, 47 of them special ones, are separated according to the regions.

The city of Shijiazhuang, as the host, will have its own special tourism products on display, including the palace lantern, Xiao Ying-500 aircraft, yachts, touring cars, and wooden houses and will hold three tourism exchange activities with guests from the US state of Iowa, and Russia and Taiwan.

By Liu Xiang