Province strives to strike a delicate balance

"Tourists came, but they didn't know what to do," he recalls.

Now, nearly every household participates in tourism-related businesses. Children wearing bamboo hats carry tea baskets through the hillsides, while families gather around roasting stoves to teach visitors the craft.

The village has received tourists from more than 50 countries, with over 30,000 people participating in tea-related experiences last year alone.

"More visitors come through word of mouth," Sheng says. The province's efforts have also caught the attention of international tourism experts.

Alexandre Garrido, a Brazilian specialist in smart tourism, visited Hangzhou in May during an international tourism standards meeting. It was his first trip to China.

"The people here are incredibly welcoming," Garrido says. "And everything was very well organized, from transportation to cultural activities."

Persi Leonardo, another Brazilian expert focusing on adventure tourism, paid particular attention to accessibility facilities at the Da Jingshan center.

He noticed entrance ramps, multilingual signs and facilities designed for elderly travelers and families with young children.

"The spaces think about all kinds of visitors," Leonardo says.

What impressed him most, however, was how visitors were encouraged to participate rather than simply observe.

"It's not just showing tourists the tea-making process," he says. "It's letting them become part of it."

Maria Velasco Gonzalez, a tourism policy scholar from Spain, had a similar impression after trying her hand at making whisked tea.

"They guided us through every step," she says. "I could understand not only how to do it, but also why it mattered." For her, that combination of professionalism and cultural warmth left a lasting impression.

Authorities in Zhejiang say the province has built a system that trains students to meet national certification requirements, guides villages in turning tea leaves into tourism products, and runs information centers that serve millions of visitors each year.

Those working in tourism businesses also insist that what visitors remember most is something harder to quantify, such as a bowl of whisked tea, a village story, or the warmth of the people serving them.