The Night of Hangzhou, a theme event of the World Tourism Alliance (WTA), was held in the Dragon Hotel in Hangzhou on November 15. Featuring Song Dynasty culture of burning incense, hanging paintings, arranging flowers and making tea, as well as Song-style dance, gourmet, porcelain and music, the event showcased rich and unique Song culture as tourism resources to tourism authorities at home and abroad, international organizations, tourist destinations, leading tourism businesses and OTA platform. It also presented the perfect blending of culture and nature, history and modern times in Hangzhou in a post-Asian Games era. 

From things as small as an osmanthus-scented Chinese sachet, a lantern, a dish of fried crab meat steamed inside an orange, to captivating Chinese guqin playing, Song-style dance and performances, the Night of Hangzhou connected the past with present, opening an amiable door for attendees to Song Dynasty culture. The melodious music and appealing stories carry culture that can be traced back to thousands of years ago, presenting a romantic and legendary Hangzhou to the world. 

The elegance of Hangzhou is not only reflected in implements, but also in people’s ethos. Ancient culture took roots in modern days and holds great appeal among the people. 

It is a red wall. The one-hundred-meter red wall in Deshou Palace garnered popularity among online influencers as a tourist destination. It carries the temperature and ambience unique to the southern Yangtze River region. It is a festivity. The integration of Song Dynasty culture and Asian Games elements formed a one-of-its-kind Night of Hangzhou, exhibiting a more dynamic Song lifestyle depicted in writings. It is a golden travel route on water. More than 1,000 poets left 3,000 poems along the Xin’an, Fuchun and Qiantang rivers. The poems conveyed messages resonating with the elastic cultural forms and lifestyle in modern Hangzhou. It is also a boutique tour line. Theme city tours during the Asian Games and Asian Para Games connected the city’s new landmarks with traditional scenic spots. 

Today, the Oriental temperature, aesthetics, cultural profundity, intelligent services, world cultural heritage and Song Dynasty culture, which have all become part of Hangzhou’s DNA, are spreading across the city, and gradually emerging in river-bank interactions, integration of culture and tourism and common prosperity of rural and urban areas. They will shine in the post-Asian Games era and high-quality development of cultural tourism. 

The WTA Night of Hangzhou theme event was hosted by Hangzhou municipal people’s government and organized by Hangzhou Municipal Bureau of Culture, Radio, Television and Tourism. By means of the unique appeal of Song Dynasty culture, it opened a window of friendship and hospitality to learn about Hangzhou for guests at home and abroad. It targeted at tourism consumers at home and abroad at a post-Asian Games era, and was launched to build a platform for showcasing and promoting Hangzhou and attracting tourists to Hangzhou, amplify the effect of Hangzhou Asian Games, improve the international image of Hangzhou, and translate Hangzhou’s popularity into real tourist spending.