The Songhua River in Harbin turns into a playground for visitors in winter. Photo provided to China Daily
On the same day, they teamed up with local fishermen and went fishing in the frozen lake and enjoyed an all-fish feast. Various delicious fish dishes again gave them a memorable experience.
After driving 277 kilometers, they arrived at downtown Heihe, the famous Sino-Russian port.
They drove around the city that is full of Russian styles, reserving the last two days of the trip for the countryside on the other bank of the Heilong River.
"Almost everyone in the team has the experience of traveling abroad, but they still felt excited about crossing the border through the frozen river by bus in only 10 minutes," Ge said. "Various activities were organized in Russia, including visits to museums, parties with local residents and shopping, which made the two-day trip colorful and memorable."
Beijing Orange Joy Club boasts more than 70,000 high-end individual members. "Self-driving tours account for about one-third of our activities," Ge said. "However, this is the first time the club has organized self-driven tours in extreme cold conditions in the Northeast.
"Both the route and accommodation arrangements were well received. I've decided to organize similar trips in the future so that more of our members can experience the thrills. I also hope someday we can drive our own cars to Russia across the Heihe-Blagoveshchensk Highway Bridge which is expected to open in 2019."
Since 2016, Heilongjiang province has exploited its strengths like being home to China's easternmost and northernmost points, and the river as international border, local forest, and developed several routes for those seeking to enjoy road-trip holidays.
The "Crossing Heihe, Pursue My Ultimate Expedition" campaign, promoted by the Heihe Tourism Development Commission in July 2017, has greatly enriched the city's tourism.
"I was attracted by the route as I had practised driving here several times in the summer. I finally chose it after recommending some adjustments to vehicles, to meet the demands of our club members," said Ge.
Zhou Lin, a travel researcher with the Heilongjiang Academy of Social Sciences, said: "Road trips have become a popular way to travel in China, along with package tours and independent tours. It's an interesting way of experiencing new places.
