Weaving through the continuous mountains and winding hilly paths, a traveller would reach a fairyland-like countryside, surrounded by lush landscape and lucid water, with white clouds drifting overhead against the azure sky, it's Baiji Township in east China's Anhui Province, and bustling rural tourism has turned the once barren place into an intriguing wonderland.
With targeted measures to harness local advantages, Baiji Township has transformed from poverty-stricken villages into a rural tourism hotspots.
The average altitude of Baiji Township is 800 to 1,200 meters, and the Baiji Mountains stretch here. At a time when there was no road access, all the natural beauty, the ancient trees, clear streams and seas of bamboos and clouds, were residing in the seclusive mountainous areas.
Baiji Township has three administrative villages and 11 villagers' groups. Because it is located in a mountainous area and the villages are scattered, the roads could only be built in sections according to geographical conditions. In 2019, Baiji Township fully realized the road access to all natural villages.
"I have lived here since I was born. There was no road before. I had to travel across the mountains to Huangshan City. It would take a day to get there. I couldn’t go back and forth without staying overnight. After the roads opened, it now takes just more than an hour to get to Huangshan City. Having seen the changes in the village, I am very happy from the bottom of my heart," said Wang Genhong, a villager.
The opening of roads also marked the start of a new life for over 2,000 villagers in the township. With more and more tourists coming here, many villagers chose to their jobs outside the province and returned home to open homestays.
Many homestays can host large-scale activities such as team building, and can provide tourists with a variety of services such as camping, barbecue and hot springs. In the peak tourist season, rooms need to be booked in advance. At present, there are 17 homestays in Baiji Township with more under construction.
In addition to running homestays, selling agricultural products is also an important source of income for local villagers. Dried sweet potatoes, wild ferns, dried bamboo shoots, and kudzu powder are called "Four Treasures" by tourists.
"I want to take some back home for tasting. I am more interested in dried sweet potatoes," said a tourist.
Meanwhile, as Baiji Township is located at the junction of Anhui and Zhejiang provinces, this year, Xiuning County and Shexian County of Anhui and Chun'an County of Zhejiang jointly launched a unique rafting project where tourists can enjoy the natural beauty of two provinces in one ride.
In recent years, China's economy has been accelerating its transition to a new growth model that pursues higher quality and better structure in the new era. In 2017, China began to implement the rural revitalization strategy to address the imbalance between urban and rural areas and between regions. Four years later, China announced it had secured a "complete victory" in its fight against poverty, embarking on a new journey of comprehensively promoting rural revitalization.
And many places like Baiji Township have begun to enjoy the fruit of such efforts.
Bustling rural tourism turns once-barren countryside into intriguing wonderland
