For many, traveling is a mix of joy and pain. After finally saving up for a holiday, you’re faced with a tough choice: package tours offer little freedom and feel rushed, while independent travel is exhausting and often lacks depth. And if you're unlucky, you might even run into shady businesses, dishonest guides, or local troublemakers—making travel feel like "paying for suffering."
In reality, whether you choose a package tour or go independent, once you arrive in an unfamiliar city, you’ll encounter all kinds of people who actually help make your trip happen: helpful passersby, tour guides at attractions, taxi drivers, hotel owners, or even attractive strangers on WeChat or Momo. They help you find local food, sights, and avoid detours... You’ll notice they all share one undeniable trait: they’re locals.
Travelers hope to see the most beautiful scenery, experience the most authentic local culture, and taste the most genuine regional specialties—but without the help of locals, this often becomes an "impossible dream." Is there a way to make every aspect of travel—food, accommodation, entertainment, activities, and shopping—"just like a local"? Kezan Travel offers the perfect solution: travelers can find a variety of experiences on the platform, including food, culture, gatherings, sports, and quirky adventures, all provided by locals in the destination city. Each experience is clearly priced on the website, and you can book directly if you like. Even if you don’t find a ready-made trip, you can easily post a travel request, wait for locals to bid, and ultimately decide based on mutual selection.
"Choose a local who interests you and experience travel as if you live there." Communication and trust are especially crucial, which is why Kezan Travel emphasizes "making travel simple, free, and trustworthy." At launch, each city channel on the website recruits numerous local experts, known as Kezan’s "Zhi Ke" (local insiders). The website team verifies each Zhi Ke to ensure honesty and fairness. Meanwhile, Zhi Kes list their earnings and expenses transparently, allowing travelers to choose them and their itineraries based on their budget. Notably, Kezan Travel follows a Taobao-like transaction process: payment is only transferred to the Zhi Ke’s account after the traveler confirms the order and leaves a review. If a Zhi Ke engages in fraud or overcharging, Kezan’s guarantee fund will fully compensate the traveler. Under this "pay-after-you-travel" model, any form of scamming simply won’t exist.
"Sleep on my sofa," "Sing your way to the market," "Full medical accompaniment," "Take you cow-herding," "Photography follow-up," "Raid the snack street," "Watch the sunrise together," "Explore every alley"—behind these fun and quirky activity tags lies the warmth and sincerity of locals. They all send the same message: I’m your host, no matter who you are, you’re welcome here.
Currently, Kezan Travel has successfully launched the "locals" concept in Guilin. As for why Guilin was chosen as the starting point, Kezan’s CEO Meng Hongbing shared his insight: Guilin is a renowned tourist city, and with the opportunity to build it into an international tourism destination, it has the potential to become a globally influential spot in China. The goal of the Kezan team
It is reported that Qunar.com, which went public in October 2013, also launched a “Locals” section at the same time to compete in this new concept. Unlike other travel websites, Kezan.com focuses on more distinctive, free, and personalized travel experiences, promoting “who to travel with” rather than the traditional “where to go.” To allow more travelers to experience this convenient service, Kezan.com is planning to establish branch sites in key tourist cities across the country, enabling registered members to be both “travelers” and “local guides.”
The slogan of Kezan.com is “Making the world feel less strange.” Let’s embrace this new way of traveling together. I’ve already set off, and I hope to see you in Guilin.