Autumn is at its finest—unleash your untamed spirit and passion in the sea of sands at Baogutu, have a beautiful encounter in the world of liquidambar trees at Wudantala, plant the seeds of kindness in Cagan Tai Gacha and Caogan Village, pause to admire the scenery on the distinctive Horqin Grassland, and immerse yourself in the warm Mongolian culture on the land of Tongliao. This is the true portrayal of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Poverty Alleviation Self-Drive Tour in Tongliao from October 3rd to 7th, 2018. This National Day holiday was filled with more joy, fulfillment, and soul-soothing satisfaction.
In order to thoroughly implement the concept of poverty alleviation work and actively respond to the national call to "encourage more impoverished regions and populations to achieve poverty alleviation through participation in and development of tourism," under the guidance of the Self-Drive and RV Camping Branch of the China Tourism Automobile and Yacht Association, the Tongliao Tourism Development Commission, in collaboration with Beijing Xingtianxia Auto Club, planned three poverty alleviation tourism routes based on Tongliao’s tourism resources and current poverty alleviation conditions. One of these routes is targeted at the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei self-drive tourism market. The specific route enters Tongliao from Naiman Banner at the southwestern entrance of Tongliao City via G45 Expressway, passing through four banners, counties, and districts—Naiman Banner, Kulun Banner, Kezuohou Banner, and Horqin District—covering five self-drive campsites, nine tourist attractions, and one autonomous region-level rural and pastoral tourism demonstration site. Among them, Cagan Village in Kezuohou Banner and Cagan Tai Gacha in Kulun Banner are both deeply impoverished villages.
Designing a poverty alleviation self-drive tour route is only the beginning; the key lies in attracting a large number of self-drive enthusiasts to follow the designed routes into Tongliao and into impoverished areas to provide effective tourism assistance. Therefore, Beijing Xingtianxia Auto Club will collaborate with China Traffic Radio to jointly organize a poverty alleviation self-drive tour to Tongliao. This is also a targeted, distinctive, and large-scale themed self-drive event aimed at promoting Tongliao’s unique tourism offerings, expanding its visibility and influence in the national self-drive tourism market, and advancing the upgrading of Horqin cultural tourism.
A total of 16 vehicles and 50 participants set off from Beijing, traveling through notable tourist spots in Tongliao such as the Strange Willow Forest in Naiman Banner, Baogutu Desert, Mengjiaduan Reservoir, Tongliao Jinhe Bay, Hasar Sacred Land Mongolian Culture Park, Cagan Desert, Wudantala Liquidambar Forest Park, and Kulun’s Three Great Temples. They experienced motorhome and wooden cabin accommodations at the Baogutu Desert Self-Drive Campsite and Beiganqi Self-Drive Campsite, tasted classic Mongolian dishes such as whole roasted lamb, hand-held lamb, beef jerky, sheep blood sausage, wild onion, and milk tea, visited Cagan Village in Horqin Left Rear Banner and Cagan Tai Gacha in Kulun Banner, and collectively raised funds to bring them a wealth of daily necessities, sports and cultural items, and warm clothing. The journey was filled with laughter and excitement, creating an exceptionally lively atmosphere.
According to Li Guanjie, founder of Beijing Xingtianxia Auto Club, self-drive tourism differs significantly in essence from traditional tourism. Traditional tourism products tend to rely on relatively mature tourist destinations, focusing on the destination’s fame, transportation conditions, infrastructure, and public services. In contrast, self-drive tourism leans toward more natural and pristine locations, emphasizing the journey rather than just the destination. It connects the dots along the way, not just the points themselves. Self-drive travelers may not necessarily visit specific scenic spots; they care more about the experience during the trip. As a result, self-drive tourism can often reach more remote and impoverished areas. In fact, the more impoverished the area, the more it tends to attract the attention of self-drive tourists. However, many independent self-drive travelers struggle to find such places and lack authoritative information platforms that offer professional travel advice. This leads to concerns about safety, accommodation, food, and transportation when traveling to underdeveloped regions. Tongliao, known as a miniature Inner Mongolia, is home to one-fifth of the world’s Mongolian population. It boasts deserts, grasslands, forests, lakes, rivers, wetlands, green mountains, flowers, history, culture, folklore, and cuisine. It also features the 500-kilometer Horqin Cultural Tourism Scenic Avenue, perfect for immersive self-drive exploration. We hope this poverty alleviation self-drive tour in Tongliao will serve as a guide and promotional effort, encouraging self-drive enthusiasts from Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei and across the country to visit Tongliao, experience its cultural heritage and natural beauty, and for participating travelers to help spread the word by sharing the wonderful stories and experiences they’ve seen and heard with family and friends.