Village people

Renovated factories, rewilded industrial sites and unique activities are attracting more travelers to China's rural areas, Yang Feiyue reports.

Starbucks, a spacious library, art gallery and well-lit offices are among the many things visitors will see in Chenxiang village.

"All those facilities were built in old granaries that had been left unattended for a decade," says Xu Yiying, an officer with the village in Yaozhuang town, Jiaxing city of East China's Zhejiang province.

In 2021, local authorities hired professional designers to renovate the obsolete food warehouses, which were first built in around the 1960s, and give them modern functions.

"Most of them are in good shape, since the main structures still exist," Xu says. "We have preserved the original appearance and some essential aspects."