Wang Quan, mayor of Wuxi city, addresses a Wuxi tourism promotion conference in Tokyo on April 3. [Photo/Xinhua]

An economic and trade delegation from Wuxi, Jiangsu province, hosted a Wuxi tourism promotion conference in Tokyo on April 3.

The promotion conference was one part of an array of exchange activities themed on the 30th anniversary of Mushaku Ryojyo, literally meaning a journey to Wuxi, a famous song. The goal is to boost bilateral cooperation in the areas of economy, trade, culture and tourism.

Mushaku Ryojyo was sung by a celebrated Japanese singer, Daisaku Ogata, and composed by Daisaburo Nakayama during his visit to Wuxi 30 years ago. It is witness to the frequent exchanges between Japan and Wuxi. There has been fruitful communication and cooperation between the two sides across a range of fields but especially in tourism, according to Wang Quan, mayor of Wuxi city.

Japan has generated the most tourists to Wuxi. The data shows that more than two million Japanese have visited Wuxi over the last 30 years. In 2016, Japanese accounted for 10.4 percent of Wuxi's inbound travelers, a year-on-year growth of 8.8 percent.

Additionally, Tokyo has always been a popular tourist destination for Wuxi residents. Wang mentioned that the number of Wuxi tourists to Japan enjoyed an annual growth of 107 percent over the past three years, which shows a solid foundation and a promising future of mutual cooperation in tourism.

The promotional conference and other activities also covered economy and trade and managed the signing of 14 major projects worth $ 0.89 billion.