Gouqishan Island in Zhoushan. [Photo/WeChat account: sstour]

Zhoushan in East China's Zhejiang province recently published a five-year plan for its tourism industry, local media reported on March 1.

According to the plan, the tourism industry is expected to become a main contributor to Zhoushan's efforts to become a sea garden city, and the development of the industry will revolve around island leisure, Buddhist culture, and sports activities.

From 2021 to 2025, Zhoushan would intensify its promotion of the Putuo Mountain scenic area to the world and hold international island tourism conventions twice a year.

Zhoushan will seek to become a national sports tourism demonstration city and the Zhujiajian scenic area will apply for the recognition of being a national holiday resort.

The city will also groom more than 20 social media celebrities with no less than 50 million followers to promote local tourism resources, and train more than 50 ambassadors for its islands.

In addition, the city will also encourage local villagers to take part in the construction and operation of homestays in rural areas, promote special produce, and offer various tourism training sessions to villagers.

Zhoushan generated 433.55 billion yuan ($68.61 billion) in tourism revenue and received 294.5 million tourists from 2016 to 2020. The number of its A-level scenic areas increased from 14 to 31 during this period.