Is Gubei Water Town worth visiting now? Is Gubei Water Town fun?

For many young people, Shuigu Town is indeed worth a visit. In recent years, the infrastructure and entertainment projects here have been comprehensively upgraded, driving local consumption and providing first-class services to tourists and citizens. This is a great place to visit.

Consumers’ admiration for resource-based landscapes, their pursuit of high-quality services, and their demand for more fashionable and rich scene experiences have also given rise to the insistence on “being the best tourist and vacation destination in China”. Designers and practitioners in Beishui Town have thought more about the in-depth development of the destination.

The inner vitality of life

On April 29, 2021, with the arrival of the hottest "May Day Golden Week" in media history, the overall booking rate of Gubei Water Town also increased significantly. Rising, both individual travel and group travel exceeded this year’s Tomb Sweeping Day holiday. Two days later, Gubei Water Town showed the unique "tranquility" before the war. Self-operated stores related to traditional culture such as combs, paper kites, rattan, and batik, as well as various themed hotels, boutique hotels, B&Bs, and restaurants, have already prepared for the explosive growth in sales during the festival.

The stores in Shuigu Town include self-operated stores and independent stores. They are all managed uniformly to ensure product quality and reduce disputes between tourists and merchants. Under the total control model, these two types of stores meet the needs of different consumers.

The Hawthorn Tree Candied Haws Shop in the scenic spot sells candied haws for 15 yuan and candied haws snacks for 25 yuan. A few uncle-looking tourists came out with one or a box in their hands. Owner Zhang Huihui said: "The uncle is very good. They go around and buy again." This candied haws shop, which has become an Internet celebrity, is one of the earliest independent stores in Gubei Water Town and has been in business for 7 years. The shops in front and back of the store are all very good value for money.

A corner of Shuigu Town. Photo by Liu Min

The candied haws and hawthorns on the streets of old Beijing were all bought at the wet market. If you don't choose them, storage problems are also big. There is a selection process for Zhang Huihui’s candied haws. The aunt he hired would sort out the bad ones and string together the good ones from big to small. It’s beautiful, but it’s also time-consuming. Zhang Huihui said that he cultivated her aunt's aesthetics. She switched from graphic design to traditional snacks and paid more attention to appearance.

Zhang Huihui said that in general, the food and products at the scenic spots gave people a poor impression. All I want to do is look good and taste good. The appearance should be in line with the aesthetics of young people, and the taste should restore the pure taste of old people without adding additives. Look at Starbucks, a cup of coffee costs more than 30 yuan, while our traditional snacks only cost two or three yuan. "I learned something from this. I can use good materials, good craftsmanship, and a more labor-intensive way to make good things, instead of thinking about how to save time and take shortcuts."

The mountain where the scenic spot is located is the hawthorn production area in Beijing. Every September, Zhang Huihui collects "Wuling Red" from three or four nearby villages. The villagers knew his request and started picking the hawthorns while they were still hard to bite. Harvest in the morning sun, but not in the shade. Put it in a cold storage immediately after harvesting and it can be stored for 11 months. The making process of candied haws on a stick was learned from a master chef in Beijing. First of all, the traditional raw materials must be good, the hawthorns must be selected well, and the rock sugar must be used correctly. The rest is the ratio and temperature of sugar to water.

Commenting on the candied haws she made, Zhang Huihui said, "What I make is definitely better than what the old chef made, because the aesthetics are different." Zhang Huihui, who was born in the 1980s, likes traditional Chinese food very much. He believes that in recent years, something similar to the Renaissance is happening in China. In the past, he thought imported food was better. Now, people will slowly discover that traditional old things, traditional snacks, and traditional costumes will slowly be accepted again.

This candied haws shop in Shuigu Town is not Zhang Huihui’s first personalized store. He chose it because of the good environment. "Beijing is short of water, but here there are water, mountains and old houses." In Zhang Huihui's eyes, old wood assembled with new bricks is also an old house, with original simplicity and new life. "Each season can give people a different sense of growth, and this atmosphere is just one aspect of what I do to make money, and more importantly, to implement my own ideas. We like to do new things, We can't stop thinking, and it's hard to stop, so we are always thinking about what new attempts we can make. "Hawthorn Tree" started with candied haws, then developed hawthorn ice cream and hawthorn cake, and later made cakes, Zhang Huihui said. .

At the other end of Beishui Town, near the Simatai Great Wall, Beijing girls born in the 1990s, Siya and Mengqi, run an independent shop, "Qianshan Tea House". They originally chose this place because they felt ancient. Beishui Town is a unique and high-quality place. It didn't take much effort for the two girls to open their first store. That’s enough. The two of them usually live near scenic spots. “Opening a store is also a kind of life. I don’t want to say in a year or two that I’ve made a lifetime of money. ”

Asayama Teahouse adheres to the concept of tea space and aims to guide guests to have a deeper understanding of tea culture, which is also a way of life. In the teahouse, a pot of good tea can bring drinkers back to In the mountains and forests where tea trees grow, you will try to brew and taste it yourself when you return home. Therefore, the vertical circle approach of this teahouse is completely different from those with investment and catering. Siya said that it requires more time to immerse yourself. In this idea, enough time is also needed to engage with the guests.

Because of this, running a teahouse seems easy, but once you do it, you realize that it is a super complicated thing. Some soul scribes cannot do it and need to do it themselves. Meng Qi told reporters that he drew and printed the small labels on the tea leaves by himself, designed and organized the tea list by himself, ran the tea plant by himself, and the employees managed it by themselves and had to go to work.

The difficulty of a pure teahouse is that there are many things that are understood, and the things that are understood are not streamlined and standardized. The amount of tea leaves and the size of the container will affect the taste of the tea soup. You think these changes bring about aesthetics, but it is precisely what bothers the clerks the most. But in the past seven years, the college students who have "graduated" from Asayama and interned three times are all girls from nearby towns and villages. They use weekends and holidays to help manage the store and systematically learn the knowledge of traditional Kung Fu tea.

Teahouses are opened in scenic spots. When the scenic spots are crowded during festivals and festivals, most of the guests will rest, quench their thirst, and get hot water, making the small teahouse bustling. But in winter, there are always repeat customers who come to taste tea. The teahouse experience will be better if there are fewer people. For these guests, what they value is something they really need to calm down. They would rather pay for this kind of vacation that can impress them than go for cheap.

Monkey said, this is amazing. A couple came here the day before yesterday and said that everyone around them was asking, why did you travel so far to have tea there? She replied, I just want to sit in the teahouse there all afternoon. Can't you drink it in a teahouse in the city? I can't. I'm drinking from the exhaust. There are also couples who often come to our teahouse. They have stayed in all the hotels in Gubei Water Town and have recharged 100,000 yuan.

What is the soul, tone and values ??of Shuigu Town? What are the preferences and wishes of Shuigu Town users? Siya said: "I have been a teahouse for a while, and I have been thinking, why should it be opened in a scenic spot? This is something I have never been able to figure out before. It is a bit twisted. Later I figured it out, and I can give guests a surprise discovery. You are Different ones, this may be what we need to do.”

“Today’s customer base has undergone tremendous changes. Their spending power is different, their understanding of consumption is different, and their consumption needs are also different. This is itself. The fullest expression of vitality.” Li Yuan, head of the Beishui Town Business Department, said that industry experts believe that Wuzhen, located in the south of the Yangtze River, and Gubei, located deep in the Yanshan Mountains, are undoubtedly the best destinations for transformation and upgrading. The scenic spots in the transformation period have dual functions of sightseeing and vacation.

Wuzhen's model is based on "overall property rights development, complex diversified operations, equal emphasis on vacation and business, and all-round asset appreciation". It also attaches equal importance to sightseeing, leisure and vacation, and combines ticketing and operations to achieve high-quality cultural integration. Construction and operation of tourist destinations. Yes, the most successful aspect of the Wuzhen model is its replicability. Gubei Water Town is the first implementation project of the Wuzhen model in China, and its every move has naturally attracted much attention.

It is not a landscape scenic spot, but a holiday scenic spot.

Under the influence of the COVID-19 epidemic, the domestic tourism industry has suffered an unprecedented impact. Throughout the entire process of the shutdown, start-up and recovery of the tourism industry, epidemics have repeatedly occurred in many places, once again dealing a huge blow to the tourism industry, and tourism enterprises across the country generally suffered losses.

On March 24, 2021, CYTS released its annual report. The report shows that CYTS suffered an annual net profit loss for the first time since its A-share listing. Among the main holding subsidiaries, Wuzhen Company has annual revenue of 795 million yuan and net profit of 135 million yuan, contributing 89 million yuan to CYTS based on equity ratio. Gubei Water Town Company has annual revenue of 572 million yuan, and CYTS has achieved investment income of -79 million yuan. Yuan. Since Gubei Water Town and Wuzhen are from the same design team, the profitability of Gubei Water Town, which has been highly concerned by the industry, has once again become the focus of attention.

Beishui Town started operations on January 1, 2014, and showed rapid growth momentum at the beginning of its operation. The passenger flow reached 980,000 that year, reaching a peak of 2.7536 million in the fourth year of opening (year), and then began to decline slightly, with an annual reception of 2.56 million tourists. But from year to year, the average room occupancy rate and per capita consumption also continued to grow. Introduction by relevant personnel of Shuigu Town.

There are many tourists in Gubei Water Town during this May Day holiday. Photos provided by interviewees

According to the 2010 goals of CYTS: after Gubei Water Town enters a mature operation period, the business goal is to receive 4 million tourists annually and generate comprehensive tourism revenue of 1 billion yuan. Revenue targets are approaching, but passenger traffic is stagnant or even declining. Therefore, issues regarding Gubei Water Town’s label, management effects, and development potential have never stopped since its opening, with the most prominent voice calling it “fake” and “fake.”

Regarding "fake", Wang Zuoquan, director of the brand department of Gubei Water Town, said that "Gubei" in Gubei Water Town is taken from the name of Miyun Gubeikou, which is the name of a frontier fortress with a long history. The name "Water Town" comes from the fact that the Tang River, which runs through Gubei Water Town, is a tributary of the Chaobai River and is a real natural river. Gubei Water Town is actually a fusion of history and nature, embodying the North Country. But I guess this combination may have caused some people to have a vague understanding of the brand. ——There is both "ancient" and "town", that is, ancient town. Our building is built according to the architectural form of a traditional residential courtyard in the suburbs of Beijing. But we have never said that we are an ancient town, and our water is also natural water. How could it be "fake"?

The other thing is "expensive".

"A friend of mine once mentioned booking a room, and I told him that the service and quality we provided were in line with this value, so I settled an account with him." Gubei Light is a standard superior room, which costs 1,210 yuan on weekdays, including two people. Water town tickets and hot spring tickets, breakfast for two people are 596 yuan, and two people are 276 yuan, with swimming pools, children's entertainment facilities, gyms, etc. These are only in the accommodation area, but in the entire scenic area outside the accommodation area.

Mr. Li, who took his children on vacation during the May Day Golden Week, believes that whether something is expensive depends on how people position it as a luxurious and high-quality resort, so he doesn't pay much attention to price. He has taken his children here many times, but many elderly people around him regard Gubei Water Town as a park. They generally visit a park for free or at most ten or twenty yuan, while the Forbidden City only costs 40 yuan. "Gubei Water Town is not a scenic spot mainly for landscape, but a scenic spot mainly for vacation. This image has not been fully established in the minds of Beijingers."

In fact, Mr. Li, who is engaged in public space design, has been paying attention to Gubei Water Town, a place that exists like a star. He believes that there is nothing to criticize in the development logic and construction logic of Gubei Water Town. Beijing is too short of mountains and rivers, but it has resources such as Luo's "the best of the Great Wall" Simatai Great Wall. Gubei Water Town has been very successful in project positioning, reconstructing modern people's aesthetic scenes, and creating tourism products.

Tickets are more expensive because construction is more expensive and the cost needs to be recovered quickly. Beishui Town is equipped with a water plant that can provide direct drinking water. It is said that it now also supplies nearby villagers, as well as sewage treatment plants, underground pipe corridors, and heating facilities. "From an industry perspective, few investors actually pay such a high price to pay attention to the creation of the overall environment."

In addition, Gubei Water Town, as a high-investment tourist destination, has high depreciation expenses, financial expenses, labor costs, energy consumption, property taxes and other expenses. Gubei Water Town is four times the size of Wuzhen Tashi, so its operating costs are definitely higher than Wuzhen.

Rapid recovery after the epidemic

Chen Yu, CEO of Shuigu Town Tourism Co., Ltd., told reporters that last year Gubei Town was affected by three waves of epidemics in China, Xinfadi in Beijing, and Shijiazhuang in Hebei Province. It has only been in operation for half a year. Even in the difficult environment at that time, Gubei Water Town did not take the initiative to lay off a single person, ensured the income of employees, paid year-end bonuses and holiday benefits; actively responded to the national call, provided rent reductions and exemptions to leasing shops and partners; provided medical personnel across the country with Provide free tickets and preferential accommodation benefits; provide benefits to tourists and launch various preferential products such as ticket discounts and accommodation discounts. “Gubei Water Town uses actions to interpret responsibility and responsibility.”

Tourist Mr. Li also believes that the 2008 epidemic partially destroyed everyone’s consumption power. As the epidemic passes, weekend trips to Beijing will definitely pick up. "Wuzhen has been released for 20 consecutive years after sedimentation, and Gubei Water Town was only built seven years ago. It is too simple and crude to conclude that Gubei Water Town is cold now."

Data from the National Bureau of Statistics show that the number of domestic tourists in 2008 was 2.88 billion, a decrease of 52.1% from the previous year, and the domestic tourism revenue was 2.2286 billion yuan, a decrease of 61.1%.

Beishui Town data shows that the number of tourists dropped by 51% throughout the year, and revenue dropped by 40%.

Shuigu Town staff are cleaning waterways. Photos provided by interviewees

Wu Bihu, director of the Tourism Research and Planning Center of the Institute of Urban and Environmental Studies at Peking University, once said, “When all tourism companies were forced to close for one year and two months, Gubei Water Town can still achieve industry-leading revenue within the capital system with the strictest epidemic prevention measures. This is not an achievement of all scenic spots. "At this special stage, looking at the development prospects of a high-value destination, how can we expect to win much profit." Woolen cloth? In fact, the most rewarding thing should be whether the core team is still motivated.

The reporter learned that Gubei Water Town has recovered to nearly 70% of the same period in the first quarter of 2021. The number of tourists during the Qingming Golden Week has recovered to 70% of the same period of the year, the revenue has recovered to 90%, and the occupancy rate has recovered to 90%. Basically close to the same period of the year.

From the beginning of the construction of Beishui Town in 2010, the board of directors proposed to create a "new benchmark for China's tourism" and follow the path of high-quality development. Wang Zuoquan told reporters that in fact, since 2016, the business model of Gubei Water Town has been transforming from "high growth" to "high quality", that is, from the pursuit of tourist growth to the development model of scenic spot connotation growth, and the pursuit of scenic spot tourists. Growth in average length of stay and individual expenditure of tourists.

Data show that during the May Day Golden Week this year, Gubei Water Town received nearly 230,000 tourists, an increase of 175% over the previous year.

Good content comes from human needs.

On the opening day during the May Day holiday, there was an endless stream of customers coming to take family photos at the Great Wall Photo Studio in Gubei Water Town. Boss Li Jun said that there are many families in Gubei, and some guests want to take tours.

More than ten years ago, Li Jun opened a photo studio in Wuzhen. The photo studio is a cultural project that is closer to the needs of Wuzhen Tashi Scenic Area. The scenic spot also supports cultural projects. "The photo studio business is basically based on where the photo studio is located in the scenic spot. We will copy one and open it in the scenic spot." Li Jun said frankly that he recognized the brand "Wuzhen Tourism". "As long as we follow Director Chen, we will naturally have a sense of belonging and pride."

Comparing the business of photo studios in the two places, Li Jun said that Wuzhen is a national-level and world-class scenic spot with developed transportation and many other scenic spots in the surrounding area.

It is a must-see product for the five-city tour in East China and the online upstream of Wuzhen, Hangzhou and Shanghai, mainly for one-time tourists. The little girl wearing Hanfu took many beautiful photos with her best friends. At present, Beishui Town’s tourist sources are polarized from Beijing, Tianjin, Hebei, Northeast China, and Henan. High-end resort guests come from Beijing and are mainly families. They will repeatedly enjoy the changes in seasons and experience hotel services. The other part will be sightseeing and group tours in provinces surrounding Beijing. However, generally speaking, Gubei Water Town has higher consumption power.

In Li Jun’s eyes, Gubei Water Town must face tourists from all over the country and take advantage of the Simatai Great Wall, the steepest Great Wall in China. At present, the northeast and east of Beijing have not yet formed a complete online tourism product, and Gubei Water Town is "isolated" at the foot of the Great Wall. If the local government can solve major traffic problems and form an ecological circle around the industrial system around Gubei Water Town, the energy released in this area will be considerable.

There are many tourists in Gubei Water Town during this May Day holiday.

Wang Zuoquan told reporters that since 2000, Gubei Water Town has also been undergoing changes in its development methods, gradually increasing the proportion of team guests, gradually expanding from peripheral markets to mid-to-long-distance markets, and developing business meetings. market; this year, Gubei Water Town will promote elements of the Great Wall and convey the rich connotations of Gubei Water Town’s mountains, waters, cities and towns through the slogan “Simatai Great Wall, a Different Great Wall”.

A town is not a town but a town, a special existence between urban and rural areas. The gentry, literati, and elites in modern China seem to have an innate attachment to the small-town lifestyle. This small-town complex is also very common in modern society. The advantage of this mentality is that it helps to retain some core values ??of traditional culture that have been lost in the modernization process of large cities, but on the other hand, this mentality may also hinder the process of modernization to a certain extent.

Therefore, some tourists pointed out that Gubei Water Town, as a vibrant destination resort, not only provides a memory carrier for the lifestyle of small towns, but also does not develop a sufficiently deep environment suitable for young people. A large number of demands cannot be met for the immersive experience and consumption scenarios of modern fashion psychology. "Tourism and vacation must be targeted at young people and be a place that young people like. Everything should be centered around this."

In this regard, Chen Yu said, just like a town growing organically, this part is new and that part is old. We should put people first and continuously promote the renewal of Gubei Water Town. The main purpose of the update is to meet market demand, activate life scenes, accumulate cultural brands, and establish a dynamic balance through the enrichment and adjustment of scenic area business formats and the organization of activities.

Next, Gubei Water Town will also make some micro-space, small-scale, and acupuncture-involved transformations, and use a series of small scene transformations to continuously improve the quality of the destination. For example, in the paradise "Gu Lan" in Gubei Water Town, three luxury hotels are planning to launch all-inclusive products. It may be designed to take a boat ride into the forest and touch the leaves on the room windows, or it may be a stroll through Gulan, shuttling between artworks and exhibitions. This is a place where people can fully open their five senses and perceive aesthetics.

“Recently, we also want to launch a series of youth support programs to help children who have just graduated from college come and do something with us. For example, open independent stores, create popular activities, and invite them to participate. Help them realize their ideas. What this kind of plan sees is things, people, multi-professional cooperation and friendship

Chen Xianghong, the chief planner, designer and president of Wuzhen and Gubei Water Town, wrote on Weibo. Tao said, “When we talk about protection, development, tourism, and making money, we are not talking about packaging stories with some incomprehensible concepts, nor are we talking about principles or forbidden areas. I think the most important thing is to understand, create, change and meet the real needs of the target group from a human perspective.

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