Starting from the 1980s, areas in the south of Anhui Province, west of Hunan Province, Xishuangbanna and Dali in Yunnan Province and Turpan and Kashi in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, where the economy was less developed, took advantage of their relatively primitive terrain and landform, cultural scenic spots and special local customs to make them into prime tourist locations. At the same time they strengthened the associated construction for transportation, accommodation, shopping and entertainment.

Through running tourism, many people in the early-liberated, ethnic minority-inhabited, border and remote areas were, and still are, seeing an improvement in their daily lives. By 1996, more than 3 million people in about 10,000 villages had got rid of poverty through tourism.