Jaded young Chinese reset lives with rural retirement

Dali, China - Mr Wang Dong hasn’t worked for months and doesn’t plan to, whiling away his days at a lakeside town as one of a growing number of young Chinese “retiring” in the countryside.

Extended breaks from work were long unheard of in China, with its fiercely competitive office culture and where officials vaunt the blood and sweat behind the nation’s rise.

But some are pushing back, giving themselves mental space to recover from burnout, feed the soul and consider other ways to contribute to society.

“All of us have different things going on at any one time and we need to pay attention to our present moment,” the 29-year-old Wang said at a self-styled “youth retirement home” in Dali in China’s scenic south-western Yunnan province.

“It’s been very meaningful for me to experience things during this period that can’t be judged in material terms,” he said.

Mr Wang pitched up at the hostel in 2025 after growing jaded with his job in hospitality.

Since then, he has passed the time by visiting a temple, practising traditional tea preparation, going on outings with new friends or simply lazing around.

He said he would stay for at least another month and that he had “no particular plans for my life afterwards”.

‘Letting it rot’

Youth retirement homes selling a vision of respite from the urban grind have gone viral in China.

Typically based in small towns, suburbs or rural areas, they attract people in their 20s or early 30s for several weeks or months and often offer fun group activities.

Several have sprung up around Dali – a small, sedate city by a glassy lake, long an outpost for those with a bohemian bent.

“I only permit entry to people who are pleasant to chat to, so the conversation won’t