Mohe City, Heilongjiang Province, northeast China - Dec 19-20, 2024 (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
1. Aerial shots of snow-covered village
2. Various of snow sculptures, tourists
3. Various of tourists taking photos with landmark
4. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) Chen Lixuan, tourist from Guangdong Province:
"In Shenzhen, darkness falls around 18:00 in the evening. But here, the sun sets around 14:00 or 15:00 in the afternoon. We find this quite fascinating. We come here for the Winter Solstice to experience the polar night, surrounded by ice and snow, something we in the southern regions rarely witness."
5. Tourists riding snowmobiles
6. Car drifting
7. Various of tourists taking photos with snow sculpture
8. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) Zhang, tourist from Hunan Province (full name not given, ending with shot 9):
"I am very happy, excited, and thrilled. I want to experience the weather at minus 30 degrees Celsius. Even though the weather is very cold, we feel really hot when we play around."
9. Various of tourists cheering, dancing around bonfire
10. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) Liu Ping, tourist from Shanghai (ending with shots 11-12):
"We had a great time and felt that the northeastern region gave us a new kind of experience. Whether seeing the scenery or the people here, everyone was extremely happy. They took care of us, and we all had a great time. We were full of enthusiasm and are already thinking about coming for a second visit."
11. Tourists playing sled
12. Tourists on horse-drawn sleigh
13. Various of tourists taking photos with landmark

Mohe, China's northernmost city in Heilongjiang Province, is experiencing a surge in tourism as visitors flock to the city to celebrate the Winter Solstice and immerse themselves in the city's unique winter wonderland.

Winter Solstice, also known as "Dong Zhi" in Chinese, is the 22nd of the 24 Solar Terms on the Chinese lunar calendar and falls on Dec 21 this year. It has the shortest day and longest night of the year.

On this day, the sun shines directly on the Tropic of Capricorn, making the short daylight and long nights particularly noticeable for people living in the Northern Hemisphere.

In Beiji Village, or "North Pole Village" in Mohe, one of China's coldest places, daylight lasts just over seven hours, while darkness extends to nearly 17 hours around the Winter Solstice. During this time, numerous tourists from southern regions journey to the village to celebrate the Winter Solstice.

"In Shenzhen, darkness falls around 18:00 in the evening. But here, the sun sets around 14:00 or 15:00 in the afternoon. We find this quite fascinating. We come here for the Winter Solstice to experience the polar night, surrounded by ice and snow, something we in the southern regions rarely witness," said Chen Lixuan, a tourist from south China's Guangdong Province.

As an ancient Chinese saying goes, "The Winter Solstice is as significant as the Spring Festival." To celebrate the arrival of the Winter Solstice, Mohe hosts the 15th Winter Solstice Cultural Festival in Beiji Village, which has lined up a variety of ice and snow cultural activities, including car drifting and specialty food exhibitions.

In the village, tourists light bonfires, set off fireworks, sing, and dance in the icy and snowy landscape, immersing themselves in the joyful atmosphere of the Winter Solstice at the northernmost tip of the country.

"I am very happy, excited, and thrilled. I want to experience the weather at minus 30 degrees Celsius. Even though the weather is very cold, we feel really hot when we play around," said a tourist from central China's Hunan Province.

"We had a great time and felt that the northeastern region gave us a new kind of experience. Whether seeing the scenery or the people here, everyone was extremely happy. They took care of us, and we all had a great time. We were full of enthusiasm and are already thinking about coming for a second visit," said Liu Ping, a tourist from Shanghai.