Thousands of walkers descend on Dalian

The 21st Dalian International Walking Festival attracted more than 280,000 residents and visitors over the weekend in Dalian, Liaoning province.

According to the organizer, more than 120,000 walking enthusiasts from around a dozen countries and regions and 20 domestic provinces and municipalities participated in the event on Saturday.

In addition to the main venues at Xinghai Square and Binhai Road on the shoreline, the event had six branch venues in Jinshitan National Tourism Resort, the Lushunkou district and several other places.

Dalian is the first Chinese city to join the International Federation of Pedestrians. It held its first walking festival in 2003. Spanning two decades, the event has attracted more than 3.7 million participants.