Gaojiahu village in Northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region once heavily depended on farming, but now is prosperous with the development of rural tourism.

Resident Gao Yan said that until 2016, a majority of villagers made a living by farming, but in recent years, Barikun county has made great efforts to build Gaojiahu into a beautiful village. A reservoir was built in wetlands and wooden walkways were constructed, and now the village is a tourist attraction, Gao said.

Tourism and ecology are two pillars in the improvement of rural tourism, with 15 families starting a farm house to host visitors. More than 30 households use cows and fish ponds to develop a tertiary industry.

After the completion of the investment in the Gaojiahu Scenic Area project, a complete tourism and cultural industry chain will be formed, including farming culture, grassland culture and food culture.