As twilight paints the sky and serene lakes mirror the fading light, the eight-minute sunset becomes a daily spectacle rivaling the romance of dawn. Since the beginning of this year, Tongyuan, a town of Haiyan County, has harnessed the allure of the eight-minute sunsets to promote cultural tourism, innovate tourism forms, and build a fresh identity for its rural charm.

With spring breathing life into the land, Scenic Area of Fengyi has received a rising stream of visitors. You can find couples strolling hand-in-hand along rainbow-like roads in the sunset glow, photographers taking the photos of kaleidoscopic skies, and families spending their holidays at ease. Sunset watching in Fengyi has emerged as a cherished escape from the hustle of modern life.

Leveraging the sunset watching to build a new cultural tourism brand

People will brighten up when they watch the sunset for its low cost and accessibility. In today’s fast-paced life, immersing ourselves in the vibrant hues of a radiant sunset can relax us, which has become a popular trend now.

At the viewing platform, photographers have adjusted their cameras, eagerly awaiting a day’s grand finale. The vantage point offers sweeping views of farmlands, villages, and distant urban silhouettes, making it an ideal spot for capturing natural twilight masterpieces.

Since 2017, Fengyi has dedicated efforts in building beautiful countrysides and distinctive brands. Today, this scenic area attracts over 500,000 visitors every year; nearly three million travel guides and notes go viral on “rednote”, and many of them highlight the iconic sunsets here.

Innovating tourism forms to ignite culture tourism consumption

Watching a radiant and romantic sunset now becomes many tourists’ first choice, in response to which, this scenic area has tapped into its landmark scenery like the Moon Lake and flower-blanketed tea gardens to publicize its culture and enhance infrastructure. By aligning with nighttime economy and meeting travelers’ demands, it has created conditions for tourists to enjoy unique tour experiences.

During the holiday of the last National Day holiday, this scenic area organized the activity “Happy Tours to Fengyi for National Day” for visitors to watch drone light shows, attend lawn concerts and browse in the Moon Lake culture market, etc. By enriching nighttime dining, shopping, performances and entertainment, it capitalized on pre- and post-sunset moments to create a seamless “day-to-night” consumption scene. With the help of local B&B and Muxinju Resort Hotel, the scenic area transformed fleeting visits into lasting stays.

As dusk falls, “HERE Café” in this scenic area remains lively. The tourists sip coffee by the floor-to-ceiling window, watching the buildings with white walls and black tiles in the crimson distance. According to the owner, the sunset goes viral on TikTok and “rednote” and has boosted the foot traffic of the Cafe. Many young people come to enjoy coffee, take photos and purchase culturally innovative products in the evenings.

Seizing the “sunset watching effect”, this scenic area has nurtured new business formats, created new tourism scenes and developed new tourist products in recent years to fuse culture, tourism and commerce. It has carried out the lighting-up project for the environment, set up innovative road signs like “I Love Fengyi” and “Waiting for You in Fengyi”, and organized the exhibitions for culturally innovative products, intangible cultural heritages, and cuisines, which have beautified local environment, elevated visitors’ engagement and enhanced the sunset-oriented tourism brand.

The sunset here is not just a visual feast, but the achievements obtained from the vibrant fusion of rural heritages and modern tourism. It has sparked a burgeoning “sunset economy” and breathed new life into the region. In the future, Fengyi Village will further harness this golden sunset to further develop culture, tourism and rural nighttime economy and cultivate a distinctive rural culture and tourism brand with local unique charm.