January and February next year are set to prove another culturally rich period for the city of Wuxi in Jiangsu province, as its Liangxi district kicked off a series of cultural events exposing the beauty and tourism resources of Wuxi.

Representatives from various organizing bodies press the button to launch the winter cultural tourism event on Dec 24. [Photo provided to China Daily]

At the city's gallery plaza alongside the old canal, fireworks illuminated the night sky on Christmas Eve accompanied with singing and dancing performances. The opening ceremony took the edge off of the wintery night to debut the extravaganza which will last until Feb 11, 2017.

More than 60 themed events will fill up the oncoming 50 days covering business, culture, tourism, sports, shopping and entertainment. The next event following the opening ceremony is a concert greeting the new year to be held on New Year's Day. Famed musicians will be invited to Wuxi to perform, including ethnic musical instrument master Wang Xiaofang, guitarist Feng Chong and talented drummer Diao Lei.

For those in favor of the purity of snow, the concert has provided spectators with a fascinating New Year's gift. Artificial snow will satisfy the curiosity of Wuxi residents as the southern Yangtze River Delta city generally has fewer chances to see gorgeous snow than its northern counterparts.

Apart from the concert, early birds will surely relish in a hiking event looping around the city during the New Year's Day holiday (Dec 31 to Jan 2). A praying ceremony will be held to bring prosperity and good fortune to both families and people in Wuxi.

Nanchang Street of Wuxi is crowded with visitors coming to celebrate the opening ceremony of the city’s winter cultural tourism event. [Photo provided to China Daily]

During the Spring Festival holiday (Jan 27 to Feb 2), an vibrant new year bonanza, including night markets, grocery fairs and plenty of celebrations in various scenic spots, is expected to brighten up China's most important festival of the year. The Lantern Festival on Feb 11 will see folk performances, lantern riddle solving and do-it-yourself lantern-making, marking the end of the winter festival season.

As a new district officially founded in February this year, Liangxi wants to show its strength in the tourism industry through this series of festival events. The whole event is co-organized by Wuxi Jiangnan Canal Tourist Resort, the Jiangsu Canal Investment Development Co and the Wuxi Liangxi Economic Development Corporation.