The city of Ningbo, Zhejiang province, received a total of 2.98 million tourists during the Spring Festival holiday, a 5.4 percent increase over the same period in 2014, according to statistics released by Ningbo Municipal Tourist Administration on Feb 25.

The total tourism revenues during the Festival period reached 2.17 billion yuan ($346.8 million), 5 percent year-on-year increase.

During the seven-day holiday, travel agencies in Ningbo received a total of 67,984 tourists. The average occupancy rate in the city hotels reached 50 percent.

Various scenic spots in Ningbo organized New Year praying activities, which were well-received by all the visitors during the festival. The Xikou National Forest Park, Asoka Temple and Tiantong Temple were among the most visited sites

Folk activities were also popular in many towns on the outskirts of Ningbo. Cicheng town held rice cake-making activities to attract large number of local residents. Shipu town was an ideal destination for tourists due to its various celebration activities, such as temple fair, riddle guessing game and food festival.

Since Spring Festival appears to be no longer a time solely for family reunion in China, more and more Chinese people tend to choose traveling overseas for shopping. Large number of Ningbo locals also took charter flights to popular travel destinations, including Thailand, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Vietnam.