LUOSHUI,CHINA - FEBRUARY 9: Mosuo women at a dance show near Lugu Lake for tourists on February 9, 2019 in Luoshui, China. In recent years, Yunnan Province in Southwest China has become one of the country’s top travel destinations for the Lunar New Year holiday. Yunnan’s popularity is closely tied to its cultural diversity; The province is home to 25 of China’s 56 government recognized minorities and a booming ethnic tourism industry for travelers looking to experience local cultures. Lugu Lake, a once remote scenic area, has seen a spike in tourism since the completion of a new highway in 2017, making it more accessible to visitors. Tourism has been vital to local economies around Lugu Lake but it also presents a challenge for cultural preservation for minorities including Mosuo, Yi, Naxi, Pumi and Tibetan. Other ethnic groups around Yunnan also straddle tradition and rapid, tourist-driven development. According to the Yunnan Department of Tourism and Culture, the province received over 590 million domestic visitors and 6.6 million foreign tourists from January to October 2018. Tourism in Yunnan will continue to increase with the completion of a new high-speed railway in Jan. 2019 connecting cultural sites in Dali and Lijiang. (Photo by Betsy Joles/Getty Images)
