A homestay in Meishan town, Changxing county, Huzhou. [Photo/hz66.com]

The burgeoning homestay industry in Meishan town, located in Changxing county of Huzhou, has become a key driver in promoting rural vitalization in recent years.

Visitors, such as Mr Zhou from Shanghai, 148 kilometers away, have raved about their experiences in the town, particularly the natural scenery, mountain springs, and many Red tourist attractions.

"The natural scenery here is stunning, and the mountain spring produces excellent tea," Zhou said. "Whenever we return to Shanghai, we bring home several barrels of mountain spring water. We also visit the former site of the New Fourth Army's Jiangsu-Zhejiang Military Region to pay homage to the revolutionary martyrs, making it an excellent place for our children's patriotic education."

Meishan town's Yanghang village is home to the former site of the Jiangsu-Zhejiang Military region of the New Fourth Army.

Zhang Qiuyue, owner of a homestay in the village, revealed that several groups of tourists from across the country visit every month, and demand often exceeds their capacity, adding that specialty snacks, such as malt sugar, fried melon seeds, and dried bamboo shoots, produced in the village have also become extremely popular among visitors.

Homestays in Meishan town not only offer outstanding accommodation, but also activities like fruit picking, including bayberries and raspberries, and bamboo shoots.

Many homestays provide additional activities such as horse riding and swimming, making it an ideal weekend getaway for families.

Currently, there are 56 homestays in Meishan town, seven of which have received four-star ratings from the local government. So far this year, over 50,000 tourists have visited, generating over 1 million yuan ($138,692.4) in tourism revenue.