A scenic village that is a home for creativity

Bins for garbage classification were distributed among every rural household, and relevant personnel then collect them for further treatment at regular intervals.

"The management has saved village expenditure and further standardized Beigou village development," Wang says.

It also created job opportunities for locals.

Those efforts have upgraded local living environment and transformed Beigou into a national eco-culture village as confirmed in 2011 by the China Eco-Culture Association.

Tourists have flocked in. The village received about 20,000 tourists annually over the years, according to Wang.

Qin Jianfeng, chair of the 2049 Group, opened the Sansa Village hotel in September last year.

It was built on a former gas station.

"We built on it, ensuring the whole architecture style fits in with the village and the Great Wall," Qin says.

All construction materials were from the village, especially the stones and tiles, to ensure a touch of history.

Qin first helped Beigou lay the groundwork for tourism in 2009.

"It was part of our company's social responsibilities," Qin says.

Qin soon found the village's tourism potential.

"It's full of life and very distinctive," Qin says.

He then worked with the local authority to improve infrastructure and establish a tourism cooperative.

Qin helped offer service training to local villagers and helped more than 40 rural households to offer farmhouse experiences to tourists.

He was also a major force behind establishment of the Brickyard Retreat.

Qin's two hotels have hired about 60 locals.

"Everything has fully recovered since the National Day holiday (Oct 1-8)," Qin says.

His hotels in the village have been fully booked on weekends since the holiday.

About 30 percent of his customers now are Westerners living in Beijing.

Qin says it is great to see how well tourists have blended in with local villagers.

Some tourists loved the village so much that they have rented local homes and run homestays themselves, according to Qin.

"They bring their lifestyle here, adding to the international charm of the village," Qin says.

Local income has been increasing since Beigou was put on the tourist map.

Per capita income went from 4,500 yuan ($694) in 2004 to 28,300 yuan in 2019, according to Wang.

Speaking about the future, Wang says his biggest wish is to help locals further increase their income.

"We have invested 1 million yuan every year developing infrastructure and further improving the environment to attract downtowners and foreign friends to live in our village," Wang says.