Ahead of the upcoming Dragon Boat Festival, Northwest China's Gansu province has seen its tourism market continue to rise, and Lanzhou, capital of the province, has become a popular tourist destination in Northwest China.

This is according to a holiday travel trend forecast report released on May 19 by Trip.com Group, China's online travel agency.

The report shows that Gansu achieved a 9 percent year-on-year increase in ticket sales for the upcoming three-day Dragon Boat Festival holiday thanks to its unique scenery and cultural heritage.

Against the backdrop of a 50 percent year-on-year increase in the number of searches for China's folk experience tours, the tourism routes launched by Gansu based on the Silk Road culture have attracted much attention.

In addition, the average summer temperature in Gansu is 5-8 degrees lower than that in eastern China, making natural scenic spots such as the Qilian Mountains in Gansu popular summer destinations.

The picturesque scenery of Gansu. [Photo/gansudaily.com.cn]

Hotel bookings for the upcoming Dragon Boat Festival break in Lanzhou increased by 21 percent year-on-year, with customers mainly coming from Shanghai, Beijing, Xi'an, Shenzhen, and Chengdu.

Lanzhou Zhongchuan International Airport has added multiple summer tourism charter flights, and the passenger capacity of flights to Gansu's Dunhuang and Zhangye during the upcoming Dragon Boat Festival continues to increase.

In terms of inbound tourism, Gansu's world cultural heritage sites such as the Mogao Caves in Dunhuang and the Maiji Mountain Grottoes in Tianshui have unique attractions for Southeast Asian and European tourists. Data shows the search volume for "Gansu Ancient Architecture Tour" by tourists from Malaysia and France increased by 90 percent year-on-year.