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Tourists visit an azalea scenic area in Bijie City, southwest China's Guizhou Province, April 1, 2026. (Xinhua/Liu Xu)

GUIYANG, April 27 (Xinhua) -- As spring unfolds in southwest China's Guizhou Province, a 125.8-square-kilometer ancient azalea forest in the Baili azalea scenic area in Bijie City stretches across the mountains like a vibrant ribbon, with more than 40 varieties in full bloom drawing visitors from home and abroad.

Cynthia Tan, a tourist from Malaysia, took a direct charter flight from Kuala Lumpur to Guizhou to experience this sea of flowers, thanks to China's visa-free policy.

"The spring in this garden is amazing. Here we can see so many beautiful flowers. It's a special experience for Malaysians," Tan said.

According to Song Jiqiong, head of the ticketing department at the scenic area, in just one week at the end of March, the scenic area received over 180,000 visitors, an increase of 200 percent to 300 percent compared to 2025. The scenic area has also introduced an extended ticket validity policy this year, allowing visitors to enter the park for free within five days after purchasing a single ticket.

Perched on a hill in Dujuan Village within the Gamu management area of the Baili azalea scenic area, an ancient azalea -- carefully enclosed by a wooden fence -- rises several meters high with an 80-centimeter trunk and a dense canopy of blossoms. Known as the "king of azaleas," it is over 1,200 years old.

"The unique climate, soil and other natural conditions are ideal for azaleas," said Luo Dan, an official with the scenic area. Since the Baili azalea provincial nature reserve was established in 2007, local authorities have strengthened the protection of the ecosystem, natural landscapes and rare plants and animals, preserving sufficient ecological space for this azalea forest belt.

Thanks to long-term conservation efforts, this primitive azalea forest belt, which contains many ancient trees over a hundred years old, has become one of the world's largest, most species-rich and best-preserved primitive azalea forests to date.

Though the azalea bloom lasts just over two months, the "flower economy" of the Baili azalea scenic area has long moved beyond simple sightseeing, offering visitors the chance to hike among the blossoms, explore an intangible cultural heritage market, enjoy live performances and even take a helicopter tour over the sea of flowers.

Building on azaleas as a starting point, local authorities have launched over 100 cultural, sports and tourism events, including torch festivals and trail running, alongside offerings such as summer retreats, hot spring wellness experiences and study tours, all of which have encouraged more visitors to extend their stay.

To help visitors "take the beauty home," the scenic area introduced a reputable enterprise in 2020 and established a flower technology company. Drawing on the local climate and rhododendron germplasm resources of the mountainous region, the company has achieved artificial propagation and off-season blooming of azaleas through wild seed collection and development, tissue culture experiments and greenhouse cultivation.

A worker carries cultivated azaleas at a flower science and technology park in Bijie City, southwest China's Guizhou Province, March 28, 2026. (Photo by Han Xianpu/Xinhua)

"Artificially cultivated potted azaleas are in short supply both online and offline," said Li Tingyi, the company's general manager. Having successfully bred more than 110 varieties of alpine rhododendrons, the company achieved an output value of over 12 million yuan (about 1.75 million U.S. dollars) in 2025.

Its products sell well both at home and abroad, reaching markets in the Republic of Korea, Singapore and Japan, among others. "This technology has significantly curbed the poaching of wild azaleas and other illegal acts, striking a win-win balance between protection and development," Li said.

The growth of the flower industry has also created close-to-home jobs for local villagers. Wu Xuemin, 53, has been working at Li's company for four years, where she is in charge of seedling management as well as watering and fertilizing. "It's only a five to six-minute ride on my e-bike to work. Super convenient," she said.

In addition, the influx of tourists has boosted local agritainment businesses. In the Baili azalea scenic area, 50-year-old Huang Tianqing and her husband spent many years as migrant workers in coastal regions. Seeing the opportunities brought by the development of tourism in their hometown, they renovated their old house in 2019 and opened an agritainment business featuring 30 guest rooms and a dining area that can accommodate up to 200 people.

Tourists enjoy themselves at a homestay in an azalea scenic area in Bijie City, southwest China's Guizhou Province, March 29, 2026. (Photo by Li Hua/Xinhua)

"We serve authentic local farmhouse dishes that are very popular with tourists from other regions. Last year, we made over 1 million yuan in revenue, and our family's life has become more prosperous," Huang said.

Data shows that in 2025, the scenic area received over 8 million visits, and the output value of its flower cultivation industry exceeded 10 million yuan.