The city of Tonghua, Northeast China's Jilin province, will build its tourism into its main industry and focus on creating an international tourist destination in Northeast Asia, according to a recent official conference held in the city.

By 2017, tourist arrivals in Tonghua city will reach 13 million, and the city's tourism income will be up to 20 billion yuan ($3.27 billion). And by 2020its tourist arrivals will reach 20 million with an income of over 40 billion yuan.

A tourist takes photos in Longwanqun National Forest Park in Tonghua, Northeast China's Jilin proinvce, on Sept 29, 2013.[Photo by Zhang Nan/Xinhua]

The tourism layout will be scientifically distributed. The Heda Road will be taken as an axis, along which are various attractions, such as Yunxia Cave, a wine museum, and the cemetery of Yang Jingyu (1905-1940), a famous general of the Anti-Japanese Amalgamated Army of the Northeast.

The city will strive to be a tourist distribution center and a holiday resort featuring healthcare and recreation.

In the urban area of Ji'an, a prefecture-level city in Tonghua, Wunufeng (a mountain looking like five ladies) National Forest Park, and the relics of the Koguryo Kingdom (which was a slave-holding state during the Koguryo Dynasty and joined the World Heritage List in 2004) will serve as cultural and ecological cross-border tourism brands.

File photo taken on Sept 29, 2013, shows the autumn view of Longwanqun National Forest Park in Tonghua, Jilin province. [Photo by Zhang Nan/Xinhua]

And in Tonghua's Huinan and Liuhe counties, the Longwan Crater will be a first product for its rich tourism resources, such as an ancient town, a hunting paddock, as well as forest park and mountains.

The Yalu River Valley international tourism belt, which covers a large region that includes the Yunfeng Lake scenic area in Ji'an, Changbai county’s Shiwudaogou Scenic Area, and the southern slope of Changbai Mountains Scenic Area, will be developed as a high-quality travel route featuring cross-border adventure and self-driving.

A total of 30 projects, each of which has been allocated more than 1 billion yuan, will start to make its tourism resources into industries.

In addition, the city will make its airport a transport hub in Northeast China. It will also launch a group of projects to promote the cooperation among neighboring countries and regions.