Journey to the source

Students visit an automobile production line in Hefei High-Tech Industrial Park in Anhui province. Lu Zhongqiu / China Daily

"Here, they can get away from the hustle and bustle of the city. They can pick vegetables and taste strawberries, and have a real farming experience."

The Shanghai Volkswagen factory also welcomes visitors. And, although many are businesspeople, there's a growing number of leisure tourists. Visitors can see the stamping and body-assembly workshop, and learn about the factory that has produced 10 million cars. A company spokesperson says the tours promote the German brand in China.

Cai Hong, manager at the China Cultural Center in Beijing, says the center takes groups to visit the vineyards of Hubei province every fall. But the really popular trips are based around a beverage more associated with China - tea.

"People really appreciate the knowledge we share," Cai says.

"We show them the different tea regions and the different tea types and the different ways to brew the tea."

Alan Fyall, tourism-marketing professor at the Rosen College of Hospitality Management at the University of Central Florida, says the potential for industrial and agricultural tourism in Asia is strong. He cites counterfeiting and food-safety problems as boons for the industry.

"You have a lot of people interested in an authentic product, and they will pay extra to learn where that bottle of wine came from or where that shoe comes from or where that car comes from," Fyall says.

"A lot of people - particularly the Chinese market - if they know something is authentic, they will pay for it. What the industrial tourism and farm tourism does is really guarantee the source, and that really does add to the brand. If you are buying your Nike trainers, are they really from Nike? Well, if you are buying your trainers from the Nike factory, you know they are real."