Hufu, a small county in Wuxi, Jiangsu province, came under the media spotlight on Oct 21. Hufu features oxygen enrichment as a health and leisure benefit to attract visitors.

Representatives of more than 30 media organizations from all around China visited Hufu as one of their countryside tours in Jiangsu, which explor the beauty of rural areas that are little known to people outside Jiangsu.

Sitting at the intersection of Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Anhui provinces, Hufu county covers an area of 118 square kilometers. It is embraced on three sides by green hills and on one side by Taihu Lake.

The favorable natural conditions have allowed Hufu to develop into a strong county in rural tourism.

Carrying on a theme of "Health, Heart, Home", Hufu attempts to build for visitors a leisure retreat where they can breathe clean air, enjoy the local high quantity of negative oxygen ions, have a taste of farming life, and escape from their hectic urban life while feeling at home with well-developed service facilities.

Bamboo forest, tea gardens, waxberry fields and lavender gardens make Hufu a four-season tourist destination. Guesthouses and starred hotels of unique local characteristics are also springing up to meet tourists' increasing demands.

To provide visitors with more convenience, the local tourism bureau started in 2014 to run free shuttle buses between the railway station and all major hotels and scenic spots.

Yangxian Lake in Hufu county shimmers in the sun.

Visitors can walk or ride bicycles along the path in the forest.

A Guesthouse of unique local characteristics in Hufu county.

Edited by Peter Nordlinger