Beijing on Saturday held a trial opening of the site for the upcoming 2019 Beijing International Horticultural Exhibition to test the reception capacity of the event.
About 30,000 people, mainly local residents in Yanqing District in Beijing's northern suburb, which hosts the event, became the first group of visitors to the 503-hectare expo site at the foot of a section of the Great Wall.
Slated to kick off on April 29, the 162-day expo is poised to impress an estimated 16 million visitors from home and abroad with a huge collection of plants, flowers and eye-catching pavilions as well as ideas for green development.
More than 110 countries and international organizations, as well as over 120 non-official exhibitors, have confirmed participation, which will make it the highest attendance in the expo's history.