Tulou Country is not usually the easiest part of a Fujian trip to improvise on the fly. Travel times, county-level routing, and the balance between driving and walking all matter more here than in the coastal cities.
That is exactly why it adds value as a curated extension. For the right traveler, one night inland can completely change the shape of the trip, especially when combined with Quanzhou heritage or a roots-oriented narrative.
In practice, the best tulou plans keep expectations realistic: choose one strong cluster, one manageable route, and enough time to absorb the settlement logic instead of trying to chase too many sites in one day.