Leveraging its Olympic legacy, the mountain town in northern China has become Beijing’s premier ski destination.

Four years after co-hosting the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics with China, Chongli, located 200 kilometers northwest of the Chinese capital, has also benefited from the rapid growth of China’s booming ice and snow economy.

Ski slopes have been carved into the mountains of Chongli in northern China’s Hebei Province, equipped with modern cable cars reaching the highest peaks. During winter, the area is crowded with skiers and tourists from across China and around the world.

“After visiting Beijing, we took the high-speed railway to Chongli to experience the joy of skiing,” said Hongxin Xia, a tourist from Fujian Province in eastern China. He chose Chongli to experience Olympic-level ski venues. He noted that transportation is extremely convenient, with the trip taking only one hour by high-speed train from Beijing North Railway Station in downtown Beijing.

As the main competition venue for snow events during the 2022 Winter Olympics, Chongli’s ski slopes feature an impressive maximum vertical drop of approximately 500 meters. Its ski season lasts from November through late March of the following year.

Since the start of the 2025–2026 snow season, Genting Snow Park in Chongli has hosted several major professional sporting events, including the 2025–2026 FIS Snowboard and Freestyle Ski Big Air World Cup, the FIS Freestyle Ski Halfpipe events, the FIS Freestyle Ski World Cup Aerials competitions, and the National Snowboard Halfpipe Championships.

“During the competitions, nearly all 3,600 hotel rooms and apartments in the park were fully booked,” said Kang Chen, Vice President of Genting Snow Park. Driven by these sporting events, the former Olympic host city has become a popular destination for ice and snow tourism.

Twenty-six-year-old Mi Jiaxuan, a local resident of Chongli, now operates a ski equipment shop near the ski resort. He said that ten years ago, most young people of working age in Chongli would leave to find jobs in the cities, but hosting the Olympics injected new vitality into the mountain town.

“In the past, snowfall brought little benefit other than inconvenience. But now in Chongli, snow and ice have become gifts from nature, bringing tangible benefits to local residents,” he said, adding that winter has now become the peak season for his business.

Mi founded his company in 2015, when the shop covered only about 40 square meters. Today, it has expanded to nearly 200 square meters and employs more than a dozen staff members. In addition to sales revenue, he also earns profits by renting and delivering ski equipment to ski resorts and hotels.

“When we first opened, the shop could only display around 30 sets of ski equipment, most of which were imported. Now we have around 300 sets covering all levels from beginners to advanced skiers, and more than half are made in China,” Mi said.

According to official statistics, nearly 30,000 of Chongli’s 130,000 residents are directly or indirectly engaged in the winter sports and tourism industries. This means that one in every four local residents makes a living from snow-related industries.

Han Xiaoyu, Deputy Director of Chongli District’s Bureau of Culture, Tourism, Radio, Television and Sports, said that thanks to the unique legacy of the Beijing Winter Olympics, the district has accelerated the development of its sports event economy while enriching it through cultural tourism.

Han stated that since last year, Chongli has hosted more than 800 sports events, competitions, and related activities. According to official data, by 2025, the total number of tourist visits to Chongli is expected to exceed 10 million, with the local tourism industry shifting from a “seasonal boom” model to a “year-round prosperity” model.

Looking ahead, Han said Chongli will continue leveraging its Olympic legacy to promote the deep integration of winter sports with wellness tourism, educational tourism, cultural exhibitions, and the convention and exhibition industry. The goal, he said, is to build Chongli into a world-class tourism destination that serves global visitors and earns international recognition.


Source: Xinhua News Agency