A woman scans a QR code at Yuhu Park to order a meal. [Photo/hangzhou.com.cn]

Hangzhou's Liangzhu New Town in Yuhang district of Hangzhou — capital of East China's Zhejiang province — recently launched its first drone-powered food delivery route, connecting the Citymall shopping complex and Yuhu Park.

Visitors can now order meals via a smart kiosk and receive their food by drone in just 8 minutes — taking in the soothing landscape while their food is on its way.

The service adopts a drone-rider hybrid model, expanding deliveries beyond the usual 3-5-kilometers range and boosting efficiency with an integrated air-ground logistics system.

A take-away deliveryman takes food to the drones at the Citymall shopping complex. [Photo/hangzhou.com.cn]

It marks a key step in Liangzhu's push to develop its low-altitude economy — deploying smart logistics to solve the "last kilometer" challenge in scenic areas.

Moving forwards, more drone routes are being planned to extend the reach of the service and to unlock its market potential.

As China's low-altitude economy grows rapidly, Liangzhu aims to build a strong industrial ecosystem by supporting innovation, talent and enterprise collaboration — accelerating the integration of low-altitude tech with the digital and smart manufacturing sectors.

A drone takes off from the Citymall shopping complex. [Photo/hangzhou.com.cn]