East China's Shandong province is ramping up efforts to build a so-called "beautiful countryside" as well as "scenic villages", in an attempt to boost rural tourism and increase incomes for farmers.

Five provincial departments, including the Shandong Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism, the Shandong Provincial Department of Finance and the Shandong Provincial Department of Natural Resources, recently put together a framework for how to construct the scenic villages.

According to the framework, Shandong will oversee the construction of villages and make sure they are in accordance with the standards for national A-level scenic spots.

The province aims to build 1,000 scenic villages by the end of 2022, and will ensure that all tourism facilities meet 3A-level scenic spot standards.

Relying on their natural landscapes and resources, "scenic villages" will focus on the preservation and restoration of ancient villages, dwellings, and trees.

Shandong will strengthen tourism services and facilities such as parking lots, public conveniences, and tourist signs in "scenic villages" and promote tourism products.

The province will encourage farmers themselves to participate in the construction of "scenic villages", and explore new development models such as "tourism company + specialized cooperative + farmers", so as to increase villager incomes.

Shandong will also promote the integration of "scenic villages" with traditional rural industries such as agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry and fishing, and cultivate new tourism formats such as rural tourism, study tourism, healthcare tourism, and creative agriculture.

The village memory hall in Xinfeng village in Tengzhou, Shandong province [Photo/sipaphoto.com]

A visitor enjoys the beautiful scenery in Nazhuang village in Yantai, Shandong province [Photo/sipaphoto.com]

An aerial photo taken on March 21 shows the beautiful rural landscape in Qingdao West Coast New Area. [Photo/sipaphoto.com]