The annual Shanghai Tourism Festival will kick off this Saturday with 25 floats taking part in the opening parade. The floats arrived in Pudong last night and will parade down Huaihai Road on opening day before touring around each district of the city for the rest of the month. 

Around 8 last night, floats representing Tianjin, Nantong, Taipei and many other cities arrived at a parking lot near the former expo site in Pudong. Tourism officials say this year every float will have performers on it to interact with crowds during the parade.

"It's the first time for many provinces along the "Silk Road" to participate in the parade including Hubei, Shanxi and Henan. Besides, we encouraged every float to use environmentally friendly decorations. This year, parades will be held in 11 districts across Shanghai everyday between September 11th and October 6th, expect the Mid-Autumn festival holiday," said Shen Chao from Shanghai Tourism Bureau.

During the festival, 61 tourist attractions around the city such as the Shanghai Wild Animal Park and Oriental Pearl TV Tower will offer half-price tickets.