Sustainable Tourism in China 1---Community Based Tourism

Although for most of the first time visitors to China, the big cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Xi'an, Guilin and the Yangtze River are must-sees, some people are really interested in the experiential type of tourism. They would like to go to the unseen and intact places in China that have fewer tourists and authentic local tastes like culture, architecture, ethnic group people, so on and so forth.

Community based tourism (CBT) is a very effective way to achieve the goal of sustainable tourism development. It means that tourism activities are mainly happening in the communities. Tour operators can help connect the travelers with the local people by sending the travelers directly to the local communities. Through this kind of interaction, the travelers can experience the most authentic things. CBT has an important merit that it does not require the travelers to only go to the remote places in China. Instead, CBT can happen in major cities too. For example, in Beijing, travelers can go to Simatai and Jinshanling section of Great Wall instead of the crowded Badaling section. After a 6-10 miles walk from Jinshanling to Simatai, the travelers will end up with visiting a local community at the foot of the great wall and learn making authentic dumplings with the local people. It may only cost an additional $30pp or so but these costs may directly go to the pocket of the local people, which may mean a lot to these poor families.

Absolutely CBT activities are more significant in remote areas. Yunnan, Guizhou, Tibet and Silk Road are famous for CBT activities. Yunnan and Guizhou is rich in the number of ethnic groups while Silk Road and Tibet are famous for its unique culture. If it is going to be your first time to China, I would recommend you spend 7 days for a quick look at the major cities and spend the rest to one of the destinations I just mentioned. This combined tour will make it once-in-a-life.

Oh, last point, forget about the Yangtze River Cruise. Since the Three Gorges Dam, a lot of famous heritages and beautiful scenes are buried under the water...