Yunnan villagers make the most of monkey business

Sometimes, Wang will leave early to pick up more customers at Mangshi airport, about 15 km from the village, in the family's four-wheel-drive vehicle, which was purchased in 2020.

"We charge 300 yuan per person for a round trip to the airport," she said, adding that she usually makes arrangements for their customers to stay in a hotel near the village.

She said the family can earn 30,000 to 40,000 yuan a year from the guiding service, although there were few customers between 2020 and 2022 because of COVID-19 travel restrictions.

Without the income from visitors, the family had to rely on growing orchids and beekeeping.

She maintains 20 bee colonies, which yield between 30 to 80 kilograms of honey.

"Due to excessive rainfall last year, our honey harvest was limited to 30 kg," she said. "The current market price for 1 kg of honey is about 100 yuan."

Their 21-year-old daughter and 18-year-old son have no regular work and live at home after graduating from high school. The son is learning to operate an excavator.

The couple is now planning to build a bird blind to draw more birdwatchers to the village.

"An Asian emerald cuckoo has recently been hanging around in the valley where we plan to build the blind," Huang said. "Hopefully, more rare birds will show up and help draw more visitors to our village."