Yunnan province has elevated its reputation as China's preferred tourism playground in recent years, with visitors encouraged to embrace the botanical wonderland and treat it as a second home.

At the heart of the tourism success is the southwestern province's stunning scenery and its rich tapestry of ethnic cultures. Celebrated as the "kingdom of plants and animals" and the "world's garden", Yunnan has taken advantage of its enviable reputation for cultural tourism to draw both domestic and international travelers.

In 2024, the province's tourism revenue reached a record 1.14 trillion yuan ($158.7 billion), with 3.9 million long-stay travelers, a 20.7 percent year-on-year increase, according to a Yunnan provincial government report.

From January to November, over 50 percent of visitors came from all across the country, with repeat travelers accounting for 77 percent of all arrivals, the data showed.

In recent years, Wang Ning, secretary of the Communist Party of China Yunnan Provincial Committee, has responded to netizens expressing their love of the province, and invited them to experience in person its tourism slogan-"Yunnan, where your ideal life lives".

"Many ask me what exactly is 'an ideal life, called Yunnan'. I believe beyond the tourism buzz lies the true human touch; moving from online warmth to living warmth," Wang said.

To make this happen, the provincial leadership's upgrade of the tourism sector has included integration of cultural tourism and enhancement of people's well-being.

"Guests should become like family, transforming Yunnan's verdant landscapes and nostalgic charm into a 'sanctuary of belonging' that becomes a second home for multitudes of people," Wang wrote in one of his online responses.