XINING, April 12 (Xinhua) -- More than 1,000 domestic and foreign companies are attending a tourism festival, which opened Friday in northwest China's Qinghai Province.

The Qinghai culture and tourism festival will last from April to July. The Northwest China Tourism Marketing Conference, lasting from Friday to Sunday, is a major part of the festival.

With an exhibition hall covering 28,000 square meters, the conference has attracted participation of 1,268 companies in cultural and tourism sectors from across China and nearly 30 countries and regions.

More than 5,000 people are expected to join the conference, and over 10,000 contracts will be signed, according to the organizers.

Besides the conference, a series of forums will also be held during the festival.

The festival is jointly hosted by departments including Qinghai culture and tourism department, Qinghai provincial bureau of press, publication, radio, film and television and Qinghai provincial bureau of sport.

Qinghai boasts a broad nature reserve including pastures, snow mountains and Gobi desert. Qinghai Lake, the largest inland saltwater lake in China, is a major tourist attraction.

The province also has a number of Tibetan-inhabited areas, attracting tourists with their ethnic culture.