China Focus: Reinventing quake-hit Lushan as a tourist economy

When the government set about rebuilding Sichuan Province's Lushan County after the earthquake that killed 196 people there on April 20, 2013, they took it as an opportunity to strengthen the area's tourist credentials and benefit the local economy.

The central government earmarked 46 billion yuan (about 7 billion U.S. dollars) for Lushan, most of it for reconstruction of homes and the environment, but some of it for economic development.

Three years on from the quake, reconstruction work is drawing to a close and many inhabitants of Snow Mountain Village have switched from growing corn, wheat and potatoes to running guesthouses. Stunning scenery makes the village very attractive to tourists.

Pushing open the front doors of Tian Yuxia's home, visitors are greeted by carefully cultivated trees and flowers, wooden tables and a rocking chair in the courtyard.

Tian was helped to create this welcoming environment by the local government and the China Foundation for Poverty Alleviation.

"City guests love my place, and keep coming back," she said.

Li De'an, Party secretary of the village, explained that a cooperative was set up in August, 2014 for villagers to decide on the financing and design of their guesthouses.

Advertising for Snow Mountain Village has appeared in Beijing Capital International Airport. Guesthouse beds there have been fully booked almost every day since its official opening as a resort in September.

"We even hired a professional manager to market Snow Mountain Village and train villagers," Li said. "Young locals who used to be migrant workers have begun to come back to seek opportunities."

In David New Village, named after Armand David, the French missionary who discovered giant pandas here more than a century ago, David's church has been renovated and a new panda museum has been added alongside quake-proof neighborhoods.

"We are actively promoting panda tourism to attract more visitors, who can stay with villagers who have turned their homes into guesthouses," said Xiong Zhihong, Party secretary of David New Village.

Yang Chuqiong, 33, opened a grocery store on the ground floor of his newly-built home, and several guestrooms on the second.

"With the re-opening of the road, more tourists are coming to spend their holidays here," Yang said.

According to the government of Ya'an City, which administers both Snow Mountain Village and David New Village, the combination of reconstruction and tourism in quake-hit villages has greatly raised income. The city's revenue from tourism in 2014 was almost double that of 2013, and it continues to grow.

At least 95 percent of the 2,160 reconstructive projects in Ya'an are complete, according to Yang Zhuang, the city's Party chief, who estimated the work had cost more than 87.6 billion yuan.

The quake killed 196 people and left more than 100,000 families homeless. By the end of last year, new homes for 33,696 households had been completed and another 16,919 dilapidated houses has been renovated. Endi