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The Cangzhou city downtown section of the world's oldest and longest man-made river, the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal, has been opened to navigation for tourism activities.

Giving visitors a chance to appreciate ancient China's artificial waterway, the Canal’s opening to tourism is seen as an important move to advance the coordinated development of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region in North China.

Speaking at the opening of the 13.7 kilometres long Cangzhou Downtown Section of the Canal as a tourism attraction last week, Cangzhou Mayor, Xiang Hui advised “we and more than 230 representatives from all walks of life in the city gathered to witness the historic moment of the opening of tourism in the Cangzhou central urban area of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal."

With a history dating back more than 2,500 years, the 1,794 kilometres long Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal served as a significant transportation artery in ancient China.

More recently, in 2014 a stretch of over 1,000 kilometres of the canal was declared a world heritage site in 2014.

Cangzhou, known as ‘Northern Town of the Grand Canal’, has upgraded the supporting projects building 12 tourist piers and six landscape walking bridges, while renovating eight existing main bridges.

City authorities have set out to provide a one-of-a-kind destination for tourists at home and abroad by making the Grand Canal a centrepiece for historical and cultural projects such as the Hundred Lions Garden, Canal Park, Nanchuanlou Cultural Block, Garden Expo Park, children's entertainment, a sports park, F&B outlets and accommodation facilities.

To make Grand Canal regain its vitality, Cangzhou has actively implemented water diversion and water replenishment projects in recent years. Based on the diversion of180 million cubic meters of water in 2021, another 300 million cubic meters of water was completed this year.

More than 67,000 stems of arbour trees were planted on both sides of the Canal, with a green area forming a vibrant ecological corridor, and reinforcing the greening and upgrading projects.

Image credit: Cangzhou Municipal Government.

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