China's Huangshan Tourism Development Co Ltd, a tour operator of tourism destination Mount Huangshan, held an online event to promote local culture and tourism among New Yorkers on Friday evening.

Organizers invited New Yorkers and other Americans to visit Mount Huangshan, also known as Yellow Mountain, a UNESCO world heritage site located in Huangshan in East China's Anhui Province.

More than 100 people joined in the event via Zoom link, while the promotion event was also livestreamed on Facebook.

Though the COVID-19 pandemic has brought unprecedented difficulties to cultural and tourism exchanges between China and the US, it can't stop peoples' aspirations for a happy life and their zeal to understand each other better via tourism, said China's Consul General in New York, Huang Ping.

The event is the first tourism promotion event of its kind since the outbreak of COVID-19 and marks the recovery of tourism and people-to-people exchanges between the two countries, Huang said.

"We value initiatives that promote tourism, travel, and culture between New York and other nations, which is important to rebuilding and reopening our economy in the post-pandemic era," said New York State Governor Kathy Hochul in a letter written on the occasion of the event.

The dialogue among representatives of the travel and tourism industries from New York and Huangshan can open networks of communication and progress and "I look forward to continuing to strengthen our culture, social, and economic ties in the future," Hochul said.

The efforts to promote international trade and tourism between New York City and China are appreciated, said New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio in a letter presented at the event.

Peter Koo, a member of the New York City Council and a Chinese American, encouraged people in the US to visit Huangshan when they have the opportunity.

Huangshan welcomed nearly 3 million overseas tourists or visits in 2019, including over 150,000 ones from the US, said Sun Yong, mayor of Huangshan.

Inscribed on the UNESCO World Cultural and Natural Heritage List in 1990, Mount Huangshan has formed relations with peers all over the world, including Yosemite National Park in the US.