Take a flight of discovery high above the enchanting Harbin Ice and Snow Festival in China with this stunning drone footage. Glide over magnificent ice palaces, illuminated sculptures, and vibrant winter displays that transform the city into a frosty wonderland.

As the 2025 Asian Winter Games concluded on February 14, the city of Harbin is now experiencing a remarkable upsurge in various aspects. The booming popularity, rising consumption and thriving industries are generating a strong momentum for the economy of the 'Ice City.

As the city hosted the 9th Asian Winter Games from Feb 7-14, there was a large influx of visitors who enjoyed sightseeing and shopping in Harbin, injecting new vitality into cultural and tourism consumption.

Plenty of people are sceptical that the ice-and-snow economy can lead to long-term change. More tourism can help at the margins, but “the ski resort does not solve the structural-adjustment problem,” says Andrew Batson of Gavekal Dragonomics, a research firm in Beijing.

China topped the final medal table at the Asian Winter Games in Harbin with a record haul on Friday but its delegation's head stressed the need for improvement if the country is to be competitive at the highest level.

It was the largest Games yet with a record 1,275 athletes from 34 countries and regions. But Harbin's popularity has long been underway.

Harbin, China - Recent China's ice and snow tourism has experienced booming growth during the 40-day Spring Festival travel rush which just concluded on Saturday. Data from Tongcheng Travel, an online travel service provider,

The Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival features ephemeral artworks built from ice blocks pulled from the Songhua River.

A pottery carving master demonstrates his craftsmanship at an intangible cultural heritage exhibition during the Harbin Asian Winter Games on February 6, 2025. Photo: VCG

By Yi XinEvery winter, Harbin, known as the "Ice City" in China's northeastern Heilongjiang Province, transforms into a vibrant wonderland of ice sculptures, winter sports, and joyful snowball fig

When asked for further details about Cook Islands' Prime Minister Mark Brown's attendance at the closing ceremony of the Harbin 2025 Asian Winter Games, Guo Jiakun said on Thursday that at the Chinese side's invitation,

Three years after the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics reshaped the winter sports landscape in China, the successful hosting of the 9th Winter Asiad has built on the legacy to further expand the thrills and chills into uncharted territories — from Asia's hot and humid southeastern islands to its dry and sizzling deserts in the west.