The county also registered a travel boom last year with about 9.4 million tourists having visited and 13.3 billion yuan ($2 billion) of tourism-related revenue created, according to the county-level government.

Zigui was ready for the Duan Wu Festival that fell on June 7 this year with a culture-themed event.

Wan Dan, the county's deputy head, has introduced a competition on wrapping zongzi, a traditional food made of glutinous-rice and other ingredients. It was held in addition to a dragon boat race and a poetry exhibition.

"It's the 10th anniversary since Duan Wu customs was added to UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. The festival is a cultural, sports and cuisine gala for people from home and abroad," she said.

chengsi@chinadaily.com.cn