Niu himself has made plans to travel, something he could not afford in the past few years with his heavy workload.

"I will go into the wilderness to search for new routes for our outdoor trekking tours," he said.

To be sure, business in the past few years has been a breeze for people like Niu, whose wallets have swelled in line with the increasing popularity of Lijiang, since its inclusion on the World Heritage List in 1997.

Millions of tourists have flown thousands of miles to the southwestern corner of China each year - to catch a glimpse of its ingenious network of ancient waterways, quaint cobbled streets, and the fusion of various cultural traditions.

Tourists take photos at Yulong Snow Mountain, one of the most famous attractions in Lijiang, last year. Liu Debin

In 2000, more than 2.58 million tourists visited the town, helping the service industry contribute half of the local gross domestic product that year. The number jumped to 3.6 million in 2004, and exceeded 4 million in 2005.

In the past several years, Lijiang has been on the list of the country's most popular tourist destinations.

Niu, taking advantage of his identity as a native resident of the Naxi ethnic group, started out as an outdoor hiking guide in 1999.

During periods when the agency did not have enough guides to satiate the crowds of tourists, Niu himself would take the visitors to experience Naxi ethnic culture.