The Hualapai Tribe and Grand Canyon West, the tribe’s premier tourism business, have agreed to a “sister canyon” relationship with the Chinese version of the Grand Canyon, located in the Chinese city of Enshi in Hubei province.
The agreement – meant to spur international tourism and an exchange of culture between the two locations – will be cemented Saturday October 8th, when the tribe hosts a 15-member delegation from the city of Enshi. In 2014, a delegation from the Hualapai tribe visited China to tour the canyon there.
The Mayor of Enshi, various Chinese municipal officials and directors of the Enshi Grand Canyon tourism development corporation will meet with members of the Hualapai Tribal Council and representatives from Grand Canyon West.
“The ‘sister canyons’ relationship with Enshi and their Grand Canyon is a great opportunity for the Hualapai Tribe, for Grand Canyon West and for the region,” said Dr. Damon R. Clarke, Chairman of the Hualapai Tribal Council. “We are honored to host this 15-member delegation and thrilled that they traveled thousands of miles to visit the West Rim. We hope many more visitors will follow in their footsteps, boosting international tourism and our regional economy and giving two unique cultures the chance to learn and grow closer.”
Like Grand Canyon West, which attracts more than 1 million visitors annually to the West Rim, Enshi’s Grand Canyon is fast becoming a global tourist attraction. The Enshi Grand Canyon is a little over 60 miles long, about 4,500 feet deep with a width of less than two miles.
Grand Canyon West offers a variety of tourism experiences, including the glass-floored Grand Canyon Skywalk, which allows visitors to “walk the sky” 4,000 feet above the canyon’s floor, Hualapai River Runners whitewater rafting tours of the Colorado River, helicopter tours of the West Rim and Hualapai Ranch, a Western-themed experience that allows guests to stay on the West Rim in a rustic setting.
During the Saturday meeting at Grand Canyon West, Enshi and the Hualapai tribe plan to sign a memorandum of cooperation to officially form the “sister canyon” relationship. The agreement is expected to increase tourism and help create new jobs in Mohave County.
China is an emerging tourism market for Arizona. The Arizona Office of Tourism China Market Profile shows visitation to Arizona has nearly tripled in the last six years from about 21,000 in 2010 to nearly 64,000 in 2015. About twenty percent of the visits were to northern Arizona. Chinese tourism accounts for five percent of total international spending in Arizona.
