Explore the folk culture of Betel Nut Valley

Betel Nut Valley is a 5A-level scenic spot of Chinese folk culture in south China’s Hainan Province.

It is located in a tropical forest, which is home to the island's earliest natives, the Li and Miao ethnic groups.

Betel Nut Valley showcases many items of state-level intangible cultural heritage. Li brocade, with a history of several thousand years, was listed as UNESCO's first endangered cultural heritage group in 2009.

Now, Li brocade has been used to make a series of featured cultural and creative products, including clothing, scarves, schoolbags and accessories. The prosperous industry has created a large number of jobs for locals, considerably raising their income.

From 2005 to 2018, Betel Nut Valley implemented a number of tourism projects as a form of poverty alleviation, helping villagers use culture and tourism to lift themselves out of poverty.

The local government allocated about six million yuan (about $872 thousand) to build 123 shops for farmers to run independent businesses.

Before 2011, the average annual income of villagers here was little more than 10,000 yuan (about $1,453). Since 2011, by running shops at Betel Nut Valley, villagers’ average yearly income reached 50,000 yuan （about $7,257）. Poverty rates in the area dropped from 19.06 to 0.26 percent.