Local cherry blossoms in Dalian, Liaoning province, which Wang helped to promote in May. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Wang's accounts of her travel experiences in more than 20 countries have won her more than 300,000 followers on major travel and news media platforms, such as Mafengwo and Trip.com.

In early January, Wang went back to her hometown Dalian, after returning from Edinburgh, just as COVID-19 hit China.

"I had to cancel my overseas travel plans and stayed at home," Wang says.

She spent the lockdown at home sharing her overseas travel experiences online, which she says helped to fill the void.

"It feels good to reach out to the outside world this way," she says.

When domestic control of the pandemic was getting better, Wang began to focus on helping boost local tourism, including the cherry blossom festival in Dalian.

She recorded local beautiful scenes with her camera and developed articles to offer vicarious experiences for her followers. "They were responsive and expressed interest in the beauty of Dalian," Wang says.

Home runs

As overseas destinations were not an option due to the COVID-19 situation abroad, Wang thought of shifting her focus to domestic getaways in June.

"I figured I should take my parents to experience more places, food and fun across the country while they still can," Wang says.

Her idea coincided with a rebound in domestic travel, and she managed to get sponsorship from recreational vehicle companies, travel appliances and coffee brands.

The intimate RV environment brought Wang and her parents closer together, she says.

"Before, my parents did not consider what I did 'a real job', and they wanted me to settle down behind a desk at a company," Wang recalls. "During the trip, though, they helped me take photos to develop travel content and began to see how serious and hard my job actually is."

The stunning views of the country's western regions, and the interactions between Wang and her parents, further stimulated her followers' desire to travel.