Ten years ago, most young people in Nanyuanling village used to flee to the cities to find work. But now, more and more of them are returning to their hometown to set up rural tourism businesses.

Farming had long been the main source of income for the village in Wuyishan, a county-level city in Southeast China's Fujian province. But these days, it has turned into a renowned holiday resort in the region.

Things began to change when the first restaurant for tourists was opened in the village in 2011.

The restaurant was run by the village's Party chief, Hu Deqing, who spotted the potential to develop the tourism industry in Nanyuanling. The pretty village is only 3 kilometers from the picturesque Wuyi Mountain.

The advantageous location of Hu's restaurant brought many customers, and he started to generate a lot of revenue. He encouraged other villagers to follow his lead and open restaurants and homestays to expand the village’s tourism industry.

Now Nanyuanling has more than 130 homestays and 31 restaurants, and receives more than 200,000 visitors each year.

The villagers are looking to attract even more tourists through the internet, cooperating with online travel service platforms including Ctrip and Qunar.

The homestays run by villagers in Nanyuanling bring a lot of revenue to locals.[Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Villagers in Nananling establish a company to develop the rural tourism combing homestays, restaurants and characteristic agriculture.[Photo provided to chinadailty.com.cn]