China’s first snowfall of the season arrived like a scene torn from a snow-globe daydream — streets swallowed by a drifting, smoke-white hush as a December 2 blizzard swept in. A viral video shows traffic inching through a world blurred to watercolor, where gusts of wind whip up swirling veils of powder, and the horizon disappears behind a curtain of frost. Several users posted videos on social media platforms, describing the whole scene as magical. While several people is having fun with the snowfall, farmers are busy with agricultural production across China.

‘Snow vacation’

Students in several provinces in China’s northeastern and northwestern regions are taking their first “snow vacation”, a pilot policy designed to boost winter tourism and encourage improvements to the nation’s paid leave system.

The break for pupils in compulsory education runs from Monday to Friday in Altay, Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, follows a nine-day holiday in Urumqi, China Daily reported.Local tourism authorities are rolling out discounted leisure and educational travel products during the holiday periods. Jilin has opened 171 A-rated winter scenic spots and 39 certified skiing and skating venues free of charge to primary and secondary school students, while offering reduced-price tickets for their parents. The province has also encouraged employees to take paid leave to accompany their children, and schools are instructed not to organise teaching activities or assign homework during the break.Travel agencies said the introduction of snow vacations has energised winter tourism in these areas and boosted travel bookings.Data from travel platform Qunar shows that ticket reservations for tourism sites in Jilin from Wednesday to Dec 7 have increased by 13 percent year-on-year. Flight bookings departing from Changchun, Jilin’s capital, surged by 57 percent from Friday—when the province announced the snow vacation—to Monday, compared with the previous week.“I’m so jealous of the students in these areas,” said Li Qin, a Beijing resident. “I love skiing and take a week of paid leave to ski every year. I hope the snow vacation can be popularised in other provinces so my future children can enjoy the white fairyland.”