As the sun pierced dense fog enveloping a mountain in Southwest China's Guizhou province, a Miao ethnic village nestled halfway up the hillside slowly came into view.
The rhythmic clanging of metalwork from inside Miao-style wooden stilt houses broke the quiet. A few travelers sat around a workbench, learning how to make traditional Miao silver jewelry.
They were not typical tourists rushing from one attraction to another. Instead, they spent days — sometimes weeks — learning a local craft.
Zeng Yuchen, a 30-year-old short-video creator from Wuhan, Hubei province, was one of them. To make her trip more meaningful, she signed up for a seven-day course in Miao silver jewelry making, a national intangible cultural heritage that she said "offers a deep dive into the authentic culture of the Miao people".
She learned huasi, or filigree, a traditional technique that involves shaping thin silver wires by hand into intricate patterns. The process is far from simple, requiring: heating the silver, hammering it into shape, twisting fine threads, carving patterns and finally soldering everything together.
"The soldering step is particularly challenging," she said. "If the heat is too low, the pieces won't stick. If it's too high, everything melts. And if you make a mistake, you have to start over."
Zeng spent nine hours each day in the workshop, frequently seeking guidance from her teachers — recognized inheritors of Miao silver jewelry-making techniques. After days of practice, her hard work paid off. She created a small collection, including pendants shaped like birds and stars, as well as butterfly earrings and rings. More importantly, she gained a strong sense of achievement.
For Zeng, the experience went beyond simply making jewelry.
"This kind of trip allows me to deeply engage with the local culture and build strong connections with the people here," she said.
Over the past two years, she has taken several similar trips. She has learned ceramic inlay in Chaozhou, Guangdong province, practiced metalwork in Jingdezhen, Jiangxi province, and studied traditional weaving in Thailand.
"A study tour is like an interest class for adults," she said. "Now I have the freedom and the money to choose what I want to learn. It shows that young people are starting to take control of their time and life choices."
Zeng's experience reflects a growing trend among Chinese adults who are opting for immersive travel experiences over fast-paced, checklist-style sightseeing trips. Instead of simply visiting famous sites and taking photos, they are seeking opportunities to learn new skills and acquire knowledge.
According to the China Tourism Association, adults are becoming an important segment of the study tour market. These educational trips now take many forms, ranging from cultural tours to hands-on workshops in photography and traditional crafts, as well as scientific explorations and customized group learning experiences.