Tapping into its green potential

A water town, a historical street, a caravan resort and a traditional Chinese medicine experience are among what Zhejiang's Chun'an county can offer, in addition to the tourism hot spot Qiandao Lake. [Photo by Yang Feiyue/China Daily]

Fang Chaoxi, in his 20s, is one of the younger generation who quit his white-collar job in Hangzhou and returned to set up an inn in the mountainous Pinghu village, which is just five minutes from the Qiandao Lake zone, in 2013.

"I decided that it was better for me to be my own boss," says Fang.

His instincts have been proved right, and business is brisk.

Now his business brings in roughly 600,000 yuan ($86,335) a year. His guests come mostly from Jiangsu, Shanghai and Zhejiang.

"Most of my guests stay for around four days and just lie back and enjoy themselves," says Fang.

Now, the village has roughly 40 inns developed by locals which can accommodate more than 700 visitors at a time.

Local inn owners mostly promote their business online and the local offerings are very popular with the visitors. "They enjoy the local cuisine, the fishing and fruit picking," says Fang.

The village's white loquats are a specialty and the annual output could be worth as much as 13.6 million yuan, according to local authorities.

Other young people have also returned since Fang came back. "I was the first who returned, but now there are enough of us to play mahjong," says Fang.