A beach can be seen outside a homestay in Qiguan village. [Photo/zhoushan.cn]

Qiguan village in Gouqi town, Shengsi county, Zhoushan has been seeking common prosperity by developing its island tourism industry in recent years, local media recently reported.

Qiguan village was established by merging Dawang and Xiaoshipu villages in 2016.

At the beginning of the merger, Dawang village was deeply in debt. With the rise of the island tourism industry, the village has made full use of its advantages, including sandbeaches, to become a top rising tourist destination in Zhoushan.

The flourishing tourism industry have driven more Qiguan villagers to transform their beach houses into homestays, and Zhang Wenyue is one such villager.

Zhang paved the way for numerous homestays in Gouqi town by giving up his own homestay brand to cooperate with a high-end homestay brand in Shanghai.

"My homestay now only has six guestrooms, but they are more luxurious and priced between 600 yuan ($94) and 1,000 yuan per night," said Zhang, adding that he is only responsible for receiving guests and his Shanghai partner is in charge of attracting customers.

In addition, other island tourism-related companies have also been set up in Qiguan, creating lots of jobs for local villagers.

Last year, the collective income of Qiguan village totaled 900,000 yuan, while the per capita income of local villagers increased from 26,000 yuan in 2018 to 32,000 yuan in 2020.

According to Lin Zhibo, head of Qiguan village, the village's collective income will exceed 1 million yuan this year.

Lin said that the village will also further improve supporting facilities for tourism and entertainment, including the establishment of a center integrating accommodation, catering, and entertainment.