An elegant homestay in Lishui, decorated stylishly with red lanterns to welcome the Spring Festival. [Photo/WeChat account: wxlishui]

The homestay sector in Lishui city experienced a massive tourist boom during the Spring Festival holiday on Jan 21-27.

The number of guests received by these establishments in the city – located in East China's Zhejiang province – surged 187 percent year-on-year to 810,000, according to local media reports.

The direct operating revenue of the homestays reached 58.7 million yuan, up 205 percent year-on-year.

Statistics showed that those who chose to stay were mostly from Hangzhou, Wenzhou and Jinhua cities in the province, as well as cities in Jiangsu province and in Shanghai.

"This time, I drove to Lishui with my friends and family for the Spring Festival," said a guest called Chen, from Shanghai.

They stayed at the Taoye Homestay in Zhouzhuang village in Lishui's Songyang county. There, they experienced traditional festival customs such as making dumplings, writing Spring Festival couplets and paper cutting.

Tourists light fireworks at Mingkeli Homestay during the Spring Festival. [Photo/WeChat account: wxlishui]

"We booked the Mingkeri Homestay three years ago, but cancelled the trip due to the epidemic," said another tourist, called Zhang, from Hangzhou. "This time, I rebooked the homestay because we wanted to feel the local culture and the Spring Festival atmosphere".

Songyang's Mingkeli Homestay was fully booked before the Spring Festival holiday. This popular homestay went to the trouble of making special preparations, to enable tourists to feel even more of the festive vibe.