Xiangyang Daily (Wang Jingjing, the Journalist, and Wang Lingwei, the Correspondent) Recently, as you walk along the “No.1 Highway” in Fancheng District, Xiangyang, Hubei Province, you will see winding rainbow paths connecting a sea of flowers, a cluster of boutique homestays arranged in a staggered manner, and hear laughter and joy in strawberry greenhouses.

The “No. 1 Highway” revitalizes mountain and water resources. Uncle Zhang, a resident of Zhanghu Village in Niushou Town, remarked that since the opening of Fancheng District’s “No. 1 Highway” in 2020, scenic spots along the route have been seamlessly integrated into a cohesive tourism corridor. As a result, the formerly remote mountain village has rapidly connected to the broader regional economy, attracting a steady influx of visitors. Spanning 50.7 kilometers, the “No. 1 Highway” links nine reservoirs and traverses twenty villages, connecting key rural industrial nodes—including fruit-picking orchards and eco-friendly aquaculture farms—serving as a “golden channel” for rural revitalization.

Diversified business formats invigorate the “beauty economy.” In Songzha Village, Taipingdian Township, the Lifan Urban Farm — built with an investment of over 80 million yuan by local philanthropist Chen Mei and her husband — has pioneered a layered agricultural model of “multi-crop and multi-species cultivation on a single plot.” The farm grows figs and space lotus while also raising ostriches and peacocks. At the same time, it utilizes the space beneath photovoltaic panels for ecological aquaculture. “We are focused on building a garden-style, all-in-one practical base that combines youth experiential education with family leisure tourism,” Chen Mei explained. To date, the farm has developed more than 60 hands-on activity programs, serving tens of thousands of young visitors.

Cultural empowerment preserves beautiful nostalgia. In Zhanghu Village, over 660 hectares of lotus ponds have been woven together with Tang Dynasty poetry culture, inviting visitors to appreciate the lotus blossoms and gather lotus seeds while savoring the charm of a “homeland of poetry.” During the peak blooming season, the village receives an average of ten thousand visitors per month. Meanwhile, Fancheng District has been actively exploring new models of cross-sector integration under the “culture and tourism plus” framework, bringing intangible cultural heritage into the countryside. Taiping tofu and other intangible cultural heritage delicacies have revitalized traditional culture in rural tourism.