Homestays raise incomes and living standards

    By Cheng Si | China Daily | Updated: 2019-04-09 07:38
    Share
    Share - WeChat
    Visitors walk through the lobby of an art hotel in a renovated bamboo cannery in the Mogan Mountains.  WENG XINYANG/XINHUA

    "One ideal is down-to-earth, which is closer to genuine rural life and involves more rural elements in homestay construction, while the other is to shape homestays into more modern, luxurious places. It just depends on the individual investor's taste and their target group," he said.

    "I'm not that into traditional rural life. The homestay I built introduces urban life to the countryside because amenities are the key to attracting guests."

    Origins

    Wu Jun, a researcher with the Tourism Research Center at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said the origins of traditional rural bed and breakfast facilities lie in the early 1980s, when residents of Nongke, a village in Chengdu, capital of Sichuan province, adapted their farms to offer meals and beds for visitors.

    However, according to Lin from Kchange, there is an important distinction between the original B&Bs and modern rural homestays.

    "Traditionally, country dwellers attracted urban tourists by offering cheap lodgings and genuine rural activities, such as picking fruit. The owners regard their B&Bs as a side business because they have farmland to care for," he said.

    He added that modern rural homestays also differ from traditional rural accommodations in terms of management and emphasis, because their operation has been transferred from farmers to urban investors.

    "The modern homestay may share the same rural landscape as traditional farm B&Bs, but it functions as a place of leisure and a social platform. It emphasizes higher-quality services and aesthetics," he said.

    However, irrespective of whether accommodations are traditional B&Bs or modern rural homestays, legitimacy remains a problem for their development, according to Lin.

    "The homestay has not been clearly defined by law, and that has brought challenges related to management and supervision," he said.

    Also, conservative mindsets and seemingly irreconcilable conflicts involving land tenancy have daunted investors.

    Yao experienced resistance from villagers during the construction of his homestay in Shanggaowu.

    "The villagers clashed with our team over land tenancy," he said. "From their perspective, the land is owned collectively, so they wanted compensation because we were using their land for homestay construction.

    "Persuasion did not work and the situation quickly got out of control. It took time to dispel misgivings. Now, many villagers work for us as tour guides, waiters and cooks, and we also help them sell produce to visitors. Nevertheless, problems regarding legitimacy still beset me and other homestay owners."

    Lin said, "Thankfully, the (central and local) governments are exploring effective ways to manage homestays and clarify the legal position."

    Concerns

    In addition to these issues, there are concerns about safety and pollution.

    According to a November report by the China Tourism Academy, the development of rural homestays has been hampered by concerns such as fire prevention, and some homestays have been built on riverbanks or mountain slopes, so they are potentially at risk to natural hazards.

    Pollution is another headache, such as the excessive disposal of wastewater and formaldehyde, which has been found in paints and some types of furniture.

    In October 2017, the China National Tourism Administration issued four standards for homestay managers under which facilities were classified into two categories-gold and silver.

    Top
    BACK TO THE TOP
    English
    Copyright 1995 - . All rights reserved. The content (including but not limited to text, photo, multimedia information, etc) published in this site belongs to China Daily Information Co (CDIC). Without written authorization from CDIC, such content shall not be republished or used in any form. Note: Browsers with 1024*768 or higher resolution are suggested for this site.
    License for publishing multimedia online 0108263

    Registration Number: 130349
    FOLLOW US
    久久久久亚洲AV无码去区首| 日韩精品一区二区三区中文字幕| 中文字幕无码av激情不卡久久| 日韩久久久久中文字幕人妻| 人妻无码中文字幕免费视频蜜桃| 无码乱码av天堂一区二区| 中文字幕亚洲乱码熟女一区二区| 色情无码WWW视频无码区小黄鸭| 欧美日韩亚洲中文字幕二区 | 人妻无码一区二区三区免费| 暖暖免费中文在线日本| 无码中文人妻视频2019| 久久久久无码中| 本道天堂成在人线av无码免费| 在线a亚洲v天堂网2019无码| 伊人蕉久中文字幕无码专区| 日韩电影免费在线观看中文字幕| 无码的免费不卡毛片视频| 日韩精品人妻系列无码专区| 亚洲中文字幕无码久久2017| 无码粉嫩小泬无套在线观看| 亚洲日韩欧美国产中文| 狠狠综合久久综合中文88| 人妻少妇久久中文字幕| 中文字幕乱码人妻一区二区三区| 亚洲AⅤ无码一区二区三区在线 | heyzo专区无码综合| 日韩免费人妻AV无码专区蜜桃| 亚洲自偷自偷偷色无码中文| 东京热av人妻无码专区| 中文字幕乱码人妻综合二区三区| 最近2019中文字幕免费直播| 最近免费中文字幕mv在线电影 | 中文字幕一区二区精品区| 人妻丰满av无码中文字幕| 欧美日本中文字幕| 久久久中文字幕日本| 亚洲国产综合精品中文字幕| 无码人妻精品一区二区三区蜜桃 | 无码av中文一二三区| 久久精品亚洲乱码伦伦中文|