Tourists admire cherry blossoms and tulips at the Xiangshan Mountain scenic area in Zhangjiagang. [Photo/zjgonline.com.cn]

Rural tourism has been gaining popularity these days as a variety of spring flowers are blooming in villages.

The Xiangshan Mountain scenic area in Zhangjiagang, Suzhou, East China's Jiangsu province has been embellished with blossoms since February. The area has more than 5,000 cherry blossom trees and about 100,000 tulip plants that have attracted hordes of tourists.

In addition, there are more than 400 hectares of peach blossoms in Fenghuang town and 13.3 hectares of rape flowers at Changdong community in the Changyinsha Modern Agriculture Demonstration Park. These two sites are particularly popular with tourists from nearby cities such as Shanghai, Hangzhou, and Wuxi.

Due to the thriving tourism industry, the hospitality and catering sectors in Zhangjiagang's rural areas have experienced significant growth. Hotel bookings in the past two months have doubled compared to last year, while sales of local specialties, such as Taoyuan chicken and Fenghuang tea, have also increased substantially.

According to a director at the Fenghuang Cultural Tourism Development Co, the town will further promote the integration of its tourism, agriculture and culture industries to bolster the consumption and economic growth of its villages.