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Dalao Cherry Valley

Dalao Cherry Valley Scenic Area belongs to Dalao Community, Beizhai Sub-district. 3.6 km to the northeast of Beizhai Sub-district Office, Dalao Community faces Sunjia Community in the east, Beitou Community in the south, Wuyixiang Community in the west and Nanbeiling Village in the north. It enjoys convenient transportation as the highway stretching from Mt. Laoshan’s Hualou Scenic Area to Beijiushui Scenic Area runs through the village and the north-south coastal highway is close to the east of the village. The village is called Dalao due to its large area and population and its location in Mt. Laoshan. There is a beautiful legend about the origin of the village name. It is said that a pair of phoenixes flew to Laoshan Mountain and circled over the village for a long time, because they did not find a satisfactory place to land. Later, they flew over Dalao Village and saw an open ground between the north and south green mountains as well as the clear Baisha River flowing from east to west. They thought it was a good place and flew down. Hence, Dalao Village is also called Daluo Village (“luo” means “landing”). The ancient and mysterious legend has added cultural connotations to the tourist resources of Dalao Village.

The scenic area is operated by the Dalao Community Residents’ Committee and its Management Office. Cherry planting in Dalao Village has a history of more than 10,000 years. Before 1995, the cherries here were small and tender, and were sold for less than four yuan per kilogram. Cherry picking required a lot of labor and time, and the transportation cost was high. In 1996, Dalao Community held the first cherry festival, creating a precedent for cherry festivals organized by local people. After that, the cherry festival is held annually and attracts a large number of tourists who pick cherries directly from trees, thus solving the problem of picking and transportation. The cherry festival has gradually become a brand event with a high reputation and its organizer has changed from local people to the Laoshan district government and news media. So far, the festival has been going on for 20 years, and reaped 1.5 million yuan in revenue last year, with an increase of 8% over the previous year.

Covering an area of more than 2,000 mu (about 1,333,333.33 m2), the Dalao Cherry Valley Scenic Area is the largest orchard in Beizhai Sub-district featuring intensive planting, the most varieties and the best fruit quality. As the main venue of the Beizhai Cherry Festival, it receives some 150,000 tourists for sightseeing and cherry picking every year, and the number is increasing year by year. In recent years, the Dalao Cherry Valley Sightseeing Park has intensified infrastructure construction by building and improving roads, stone benches, recreation corridors, star-rated toilets and signs inside the valley, thus greatly facilitating tourists’ sightseeing and picking activities.

Over the past two decades, Dalao Community has increased investment in the Cherry Valley. In addition to infrastructure construction such as road hardening, it has vigorously developed additional industries, and registered and evaluated a group of households for running rural restaurants, which have become suburban restaurant brands of the scenic area. Since 2000, it has introduced more than 23,000 cherry trees of 17 verities from six countries including Italy, Ukraine, the U.S., Canada, and Japan, grafted more than 3,000 cherry trees, and built a 200-mu (about 133,333.33 m2) nursery for cultivating seedlings. More than 20 million yuan was invested to construct the road around the mountain and internal roads to enhance its accessibility. Thanks to these efforts, it has built a good image of an attractive eco-tourism destination with easy accessibility, complete infrastructure, a beautiful environment and fruits throughout the year.