But everything changed when she recently returned to the group of islands. That visit was mainly motivated by director Fang Li's acclaimed 2023 documentary, The Sinking of the Lisbon Maru, which recounts the story of how local islanders rescued British prisoners of war from drowning in October 1942.

This time, she set her sights on Miaozihu, the central island of the group.

"Before the boat even docked, I could see the well-renovated buildings, the colorful neon signs of restaurants and homestays," she recalls.

"It was completely different from the impression I had of this place."

Today, the islands have been transformed. A modernized power grid is in place. The passenger ferry terminal has been expanded. Seafood stalls and coffee shops line the streets. Well-paved hiking trails circle the islands.

What once existed as a remote, geographically unique place has become a tourist hot spot, welcoming around 419,000 visitors last year.

Zhong Lei, a local islander, runs one homestay on Dongfushan and another on Miaozihu.

"Few people used to come to the islands," he says, "mostly art students looking for places to sketch, or foreign tourists who wanted some peace and quiet. But over the last couple of years, it's been busy year-round. I barely have to worry about occupancy rates anymore."

Zhong used to run a business at Shenjiamen Port in Zhoushan, but when he saw his home island gaining recognition through films, he decided to return and build a career in local tourism.