In winter Heilongjiang is transformed into a fairy world of ice and snow. Photos by Wang Cheng. [Photo: China Daily]

Heilongjiang province welcomed 31.4 million visitors in the first quarter of the year that generated 17.2 billion yuan in tourism revenues, a rise of more than 25 percent over the 2009, illustrating the increasing attractiveness of China's most popular winter destination.

Tourism is now one of the pillar industries in Heilongjiang, which not only brings visitors, but is also increasingly attracting investors seeking business opportunities in the industry.

Heilongjiang offers novel experiences in all seasons - snowy winter suitable for skiing and skating, springtime when the woods and grasses turn green and flowers blossom, a cool summer providing an escape from the heat and autumn with its rich colors of yellow and red leaves.

Heilongjiang has the largest forests, wetlands and farmlands in the country, the longest river and the biggest lake on a border between China and a foreign country.

Once called the "vast land of wildness", the province at the northeastern tip of China is also the cradle of several cultures, even two thousand years ago, that left behind relics of brilliant civilizations awaiting tourist expeditions.