Firms getting inventive to negotiate pandemic

Jizhou district in the city of Tianjin, North China, should have been swarming with tourists during peak seasons but it is quieter than local businesses want it to be.

Tourism is one of the main industries of Jizhou. Homestays and tourist attractions in the rural areas of the district have met with severe challenges since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic more than two years ago.

Chenxi No 5 is a homestay in the local village of Shitouying. The high-end homestay has gained a stable following with its unique interior design, according to an Economic Daily report.

But business at the homestay has suffered since the outbreak of COVID-19. Gao Xiaoshuang, who runs the homestay, posted on social media:"Thank you for your understanding and support. When COVID-19 is gone, spring will arrive. Let's meet again then,"Economic Daily reported.

Scenic areas in the rural parts of the district also took a hit. "At the worst time, the number of visits was only 30 percent of the usual amount," Zheng Ruishan, a representative of the Jizhou Karst Cave scenic area in Hongshuizhuang village, told Economic Daily.

Rural tourism businesses have been taking action to increase revenues and stay connected with customers.

Jizhou district is known for high-quality farm produce. Amid the COVID-19 restrictions, Gao has started to sell local farm produce in her homestay via livestream.

Promoting the produce, which bears of the logo of her homestay, is a "win-win solution" as it helps both her business and local farmers, Gao told Economic Daily.

Rural tourism operators have also been working to seize opportunities presented by the recent consumer craze in camping.

Yunzhou district in the city of Datong, North China's Shanxi province, has combed through natural resources in local villages, such as rivers and volcanoes, and developed 10 new campsites.

Tourism businesses with appropriate resources in the district are encouraged to invest in the camping business and give preference to local villagers when they hire cleaners and other workers to help boost their income.

Sun Jinjun, an official with the tourism authority of Yunzhou district, said that camping, which has become popular since spring, has promoted rural tourism and vitalization.

"During the Dragon Boat Festival holiday in June, many villagers went to campsites near their homes to sell farm produce," Sun said. "Camping has boosted local employment, engaging more than 400 villagers in cleaning and other jobs."

In addition to tourism businesses' self-help efforts, governments are taking both temporary and long-term measures to carry businesses through difficulties.

Liu Wengao, deputy chief of Xiaying township in Jizhou district told Economic Daily that the local government met with commercial banks multiple times to introduce preferential policies for rural homestay businesses, such as a deferment on loans.

During the offseason, the township governments in Jizhou organize training for homestay operators to help improve their services and offerings so as to prepare them for peak seasons, according to Economic Daily.

To solicit more intellectual support for the long-term development of rural tourism businesses, the tourism authority of East China's Jiangsu province has launched a pairing-up program. It brings together experts in tourism or related disciplines with villages to provide them with advice on tourism development.

The program has paired up 69 experts and villages since its launch in June 2021, China Tourism News reported on June 17.

Participating experts include Yin Wei, an associate professor at Nanjing Institute of Tourism and Hospitality, and Lin Zurui, a professor at China University of Mining and Technology with a focus on rural planning and rural cultural heritage protection.

An official of the Jiangsu provincial tourism authority told China Tourism News that the growth of rural tourism in recent years comes with higher demands from customers. This makes the shortage of tourism expertise more prominent.

Thanks to the pairing-up program, Yanhu village in Yangzhou city, Jiangsu province, was recognized as a national-level key village for rural tourism in 2021. Five villages including Houwei village in the city of Nanjing, capital of Jiangsu province, were recognized as provincial-level key villages for rural tourism.