The 2013 Sichuan International Tourism Festival and the first China Online Media Reporting Tour kicked off on the evening of September 2. Representatives from a total of 34 major national online media outlets, travel agencies and tourist sites attended the opening ceremony.

The gathering consisted of three parts. First, Yu Xin, director of the Sichuan Tourism Information Center, introduced the work of Tsichuan.com. Then, Yuan Yuan, deputy director of the Tourism Promotional Center of Sichuan province, announced the third batch of "100 Most Photogenic Places in Sichuan".

During the following ceremony, Jiang Lan, deputy editor-in-chief of Newssc.org, and Li Xiang, from CCTV.com, made opening speeches. Zheng Weiqiang, deputy director of the online media office of the Sichuan Provincial Publicity Department, gave the activity flag to a media representative. Finally, Wu Mian, deputy director of the Sichuan Tourism Administration, announced the opening of the event.

The eight-day tour will provide reporters with a chance to go deep into tourist spots in northeast Sichuan and learn about the achievements made by the Sichuan government in terms of environmental protection, cultural inheritance, and urban and rural development. As an important activity for tourism promotion, the event aims to further promote the beauty of Sichuan.