Rural Retreats: Villages Are Becoming Coffee Tourism Destinations In China – CoffeeTalk

Village cafes are becoming increasingly popular in China, offering customers a refreshing change of pace from city cafes. In some cases, these cafes are located in remote areas, such as Dongguan, where the Red Guan Coffee, opened by Ye Zhongwen in 2024, offers front-row seats to thundering trains. The Chinese government is supportive of initiatives by young people to set up cafes in far flung locations, deeming it an effort to revitalise rural areas.

China’s rural cafe boom has been fueled by the rise of rural tourism, with rural tourism across the country welcoming 707 million visits in the first quarter of this year, up 8.9% year on year. Over 40,000 cafes have sprung up in China’s countryside, and these cafes are more than just coffee stops but creative hubs revitalising rural spaces.

In Quzhou City, Zhejiang Province, one such cafe sprang to life from a dilapidated sheep shed halfway up an abandoned mining hill. Yu Jiafu, founder of the Sheep Shed Cafe, saw beauty and potential in the wild setting and rebuilt the roof with thatch, keeping the original stone structure, and using nearby mountain rocks to build the bar.

Visitors drive far and away to rural cafes to unwind. At its busiest, the cafe welcomed more than 5,000 visitors in a single day. On regular weekends, guests come from nearby cities like Hangzhou and Shanghai, even foreign travelers and Internet influencers with millions of followers have stopped by. Since its opening, the cafe’s grounds have evolved to suit the clientele, now boasting a swimming pool, an open-air performance stage, a camping area, and a wood-fired bread oven.

Zhejiang hosted its first “Village Cafe Masters” event in April, where 33 coffee entrepreneurs showcased their brands and products. A rural coffee base was also unveiled that links academia, industry, and local communities in support of countryside coffee development. Local authorities introduced support programs including digital training, resource matchmaking, and e-commerce tools to help young entrepreneurs thrive in rural areas.

Zhejiang plans to establish 1,000 rural practice hubs to offer young people more room to explore, innovate, and stay rooted in the countryside. For Yu, that mission is already personal. He wants to help the village grow, one cup at a time.

Read More @ The Star