(ECNS) -- Dazhai Village in Longji Town, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, celebrated its annual Red Yao "Clothes-Drying Festival" on Sunday, marking its transformation from poverty to a thriving tourist destination.
Once plagued by poverty with per capita annual income below 700 yuan (about $97), the village began its turnaround in 2005 when Pan Baoyu was elected director. In 2006, he convinced villagers to celebrate the festival together as a community.
Dazhai signed a cooperation agreement with a local tourism company. The company returns 7% of ticket revenue to the village for terrace maintenance. To keep farmers from abandoning their fields, the village introduced subsidies of up to 900 yuan (about $125) per mu (0.067 hectares) for those who continued farming.
Pan also proposed delaying the rice harvest from Oct. 7 to Oct. 26 to extend the tourist season. The adjustment turned the "golden week" into a "golden month," boosting local homestay businesses.
Today, Dazhai has over 200 homestays. Villagers now earn income from five sources: ticket dividends, terrace subsidies, land rent, irrigation subsidies and tourism-related businesses.
In 2022, the village was named a "Best Tourism Village" by the UN World Tourism Organization. In 2024, Pan received a national model individual award for ethnic unity.
The village has developed a revenue distribution system: 70% goes to farmers who maintain terraces, 12% is distributed per household, 12% per capita, 3% for village administration and 3% for compensation. In early 2026, 285 households shared a total tourism dividend of 6.47 million yuan (about $900,000).
Dazhai has also shared its experience with Xanglong Village in Luang Prabang, Laos, helping it develop tourism infrastructure.
(By Tang Yuxian)
京公网安备 11010202009201号