XINING, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- Northwest China's Qinghai Province welcomed a record 23 million tourists in 2015, up 15.5 percent year on year, according to the provincial tourism bureau.

This generated 25 billion yuan (3.8 billion U.S. dollars) in tourism revenue, up 22.8 percent.

The province held a number of festivals targeting winter tourists in 2015 and marketed new travel packages.

"Spring and winter tourism in Qinghai grew over 20 percent year on year on average in the last five years, with tourism revenue up 30 percent year on year on average," said Zhang Yan, deputy director of the provincial tourism bureau.

With an average altitude of more than 3,000 meters above sea level, Qinghai is rich in tourism resources. The province has seen rapid tourism growth, with tourists increasing from less than 4 million a decade ago to 23 million last year.