China To Build Asia’s Largest Ski Resort

In a nod to the growing popularity of snowboarding, skiing, and the purchasing power of China’s middle class, the government of China’s western Xinjiang state announced plans for a new four-season ski resort in the Kanas region. The project is valued at 730 million dollars. Construction will begin next summer and be completed in ten years according to the official Xinhua news agency.

According to China Daily:

The Kanas International Ski Resort will include a skiing site, a man-made lake, a golf course, and hotels and villas.

The deal is reportedly the largest planned tourism project since the “July 5 riot”, which badly damanged Xinjiang’s tourism industry.

Construction of the first phase of the project will begin next year, and the entire project will be finished in about ten years.

The highest point at the ski resort is 2,600 meters, and its slopes extend downward between 600 and 800 meters. The resort is covered with snow from November to May every year.