Home, Homing, Home-Escape: Achieving Sustainable Rural Tourism in Post-COVID Huyuan Town, China

Abstract

Rural tourism in China has gained unprecedented popularity among the urban middle-class, leading to a significant reduction in the permanent rural population and the gradual erosion of native rural culture. This thesis navigates the complex space-time relationship between three main groups of occupants in Huyuan Town: rural residents, city migrant workers, and urban tourists, all converging around the central theme of "Home".

Rural residents hold a unique position on the idea of “Home” and a stake in preserving its cultural legacy as the sole citizen group in China to possess full ownership of their homes by the Chinese “Hukou” system. In contrast, city migrant workers who annually engage in a "homing" journey, returning to their villages for the spring festival celebration, driven by a longing for familial reunion and a sense of belonging. Yet, the burgeoning demand for high-end rural retreats, often overly romanticizing the Chinese Idyll, has created a paradox where tourists in search of a “Home-Escape" from the urban hustle and bustle are removed from experiencing the authentic local culture and heritage while inadvertently competing with and undermining local businesses in the tourism sector.

By fragmenting and descaling industrialized hotel services into small infill programs, replacing vacant space in rural residential houses, as well as generating large tourism infrastructure collectively operated by rural resident shareholders, this architectural intervention tackles the pressing issues of cultural preservation, rural population stability, and the economic empowerment of rural residents. It serves as a blueprint for revitalizing rural areas while ensuring they remain true to their authentic roots in the face of evolving urban-rural dynamics and post-pandemic tourism trends.