Ningwu county's ancient ice cave has drawn many visitors who also come to enjoy other local attractions, including the wooden tombs and a cliff-side village.[Photo by Yang Feiyue/China Daily]

It has become a popular attraction.

More than 43,000 people visited during last year's May Day holiday alone.

The local government brought together over 100 experts from home and abroad, and travel agencies to discuss plans to protect the cave while developing tourism at a seminar in early August.

Tourism has created jobs that have lifted over 3,700 people out of poverty, Xinzhou's Party chief, Li Junming, says.

Animation, microfilm, wrestling, music and cycling events have been staged this year to enhance the visitors experience at Ningwu.

One advantage is that the various attractions are concentrated in one area.

Ningwu's Luya Mountain near the cave hosts hanging tombs, a cliff-side village, lakes and grasslands.

The wooden coffins suspended on the faces of cliffs, dozens of meters above the valley's floor, are believed to be the only of their kind in northern China. Some poke halfway out of holes burrowed into the rock, while others entirely inside.