Chongming promotes rural homestays

ᶮធ

The First Chongming Countryside Homestay Festival was held on November 11 alongside the Fumin River, in Hongqiao Village of Jianshe

Town.

Stage performances, as well as various farmer fairs and other activities, attracted many people.

The festival also featured fresh figs, Chongming liquor, freshwater crab and other specialties for visitors to try and purchase.

Over the years, Jianshe has made great efforts to develop the accommodation industry by virtue of its unique regional advantages.

In central Chongming, Jianshe has obvious regional advantages. It’s adjacent to the South Garden, site of the 10th China Flower Expo, the S7 Expressway and the planned high-speed railway along the Yangtze River.

There are now over 260 homestays (farmhouses) in town, accounting for about a quarter of the total in Chongming.

There are not only boutique homestays in town, but also budget B&B chains, as well as various homestay communities.

Jianshe developed a miniprogram to promote the local homestay business and specialties. Through the miniprogram which debuted last month, users can book and shop online.

It also established a homestay group, not only to help them promote and market, but also teach butler skills and provide information about policies and regulations to further nurture the homestay industry.

Somland

Somland is at No. 520 of Yaodong Village in Jianshe Town. The main building has three floors and nine rooms. Somland faces water on both sides, adjacent to the river courses of Laodangang and Hongmei Road.

Opposite its backyard are magnolia and metasequoia trees.

Here, outdoor swimming pools, campsites, a fruit and vegetable farm, a garden, open-air barbecues and other recreational areas are available for guests to enjoy.

The concave and convex texture of the building’s exterior walls is made of recycled bricks cut and spliced according to the texture of Chongming old cloth.

The traditional and manually tied reed roof practices localization and sustainability. It uses Chongming local materials flexibly to present the beauty of local architecture.

Somland adopts a natural and sustainable design concept, and uses recycled bricks and wood, natural clay, tree branches,

Chongming old cloth and other distinctive materials to build an indoor space.

Designers hired local carpenters to create indoor tables and chairs. Local tailors processed pillow cushions with used Chongming old cloth, and worked with straw weaving craftsmen to customize handmade indoor elements such as woven seat lampshades, providing guests with a comfortable and relaxing rural vacation space.