The room charges at this Qianmachang Hutong home stay range from 260 yuan (US$38) to 460 yuan (US$67) per night.

Five hutong home-stay locations opened for business in the Shichahai area of old Beijing yesterday. The five host families had already offered accommodation during the Olympic Games. Another 15 hutong home-stays will open later this year, according to the Xicheng district government, Beijing.

The five hutong home-stays currently only offer overnight accommodation and daytime visits. "At the moment only a few host families can meet the high standards required to serve meals," said Liu Jun, deputy director of the Xicheng District Tourism Administration.

But Beijing will have 20 hutong home-stay locations by the end of the year, providing both accommodation and meals, Liu told Beijing Times. The first five families to be selected all live in the quintessential "Old Beijing" area of Shichahai. But locations in other areas will be considered, said Liu.

A night in a home stay starts from 100 yuan (US$15), with a family room starting at 400 yuan (US$59). High-class accommodation can range from 1,000 yuan (US$146), to as high as 5,000 yuan (US$731).

Only licensed home stay families will be allowed to offer accommodation to tourists; penalties will be imposed on illegal operators, the tourism administration said.

So far host families have mainly advertised their accommodation on websites. To help attract visitors, Xicheng District Tourism Administration is offering to assist the families in developing promotional plans in cooperation with websites, TV stations and travel agencies.

(China.org.cn by Yang Xi, February 28, 2009)