Villages bank on desire for simple life

Over the May Day holiday, a man surnamed Yao treated his family to a tranquil getaway in the suburbs of Beijing. They chose a cozy short-term rental villa nestled in the mountains, a 90-minute drive from their home in the capital's downtown area.

"It felt like living in a painting, far from crowded tourist spots," Yao said.

Once, this remote mountain village in Beijing's Miyun district suffered from terrible traffic and a lack of development. At one point, it didn't even have basic amenities like small shops.

Significant changes began to manifest last year when the village implemented an investment project to renovate a number of its dwellings. As a result, both incomes and spending increased notably, triggering a new wave of development in the secluded mountain village.

In recent years, Chinese city dwellers have begun to embrace a new lifestyle by choosing to move to rural areas.

This shift has led to the vitalization of mountain villages and the restoration of abandoned farmhouses, breathing new life into previously neglected areas.

Meilixinxiangcun, an online platform dedicated to rural housing, offers a diverse range of houses for rent in rural areas across the country. According to its customer service team, leases run from a few months to decades, with annual rents varying from 10,000 yuan ($1,440) to tens of thousands of yuan.

The prospect of renovating a courtyard house has become a cherished desire for many city dwellers.

One Shanghai resident, known by the username "Zhanzhan" on the social media lifestyle platform Xiaohongshu, has shared captivating videos of her home and courtyard renovation journey online, attracting a significant number of views.

Born in the 1980s, Zhanzhan chose to rent a house in the suburbs of Hangzhou, capital of Zhejiang province, for a period of 15 years. She spent six months completely renovating her new home.

"This was my first time ever refurbishing a house, and I couldn't even understand the plans. But I had a clear picture in my mind of what I wanted, so I started out on this creative endeavor fueled by intuition and deep love," she said.

Within two days, her video documenting a year's worth of hard work went viral, propelling her subscriber count from 3,000 to 50,000.

She managed to capture the attention of many young people, some of whom were also inspired to live in the countryside.

Zhanzhan sees an increasing number of young people being drawn to the idea of living in villages, and more urbanites opting to rent rural courtyards in the suburbs within a one to two-hour drive of bustling city centers.

She said these rural retreats will be havens for rest and relaxation during holidays or serve as studios where individuals can work and unleash their artistic talents.