There was a time when the only promising career path for young people in Chongli was to leave the small county in Hebei province for jobs in nearby cities like Beijing and Tianjin.

But with the local ski industry flourishing, young people like Zhai Yujia are increasingly choosing to stay to take advantage of job offers at budding ski resorts and in the fledging regional tourism industry.

"I felt so fortunate to be able to find a decent job at home after graduating from college in Shandong province," said Zhai, who was hired by the Genting Resort Secret Garden as a ski instructor in 2014 after obtaining a coach's license from the Chinese Ski Association.