Hainan
Photogenic Mei She was built out of the rough grey volcanic stone so prevalent in this part of Hainan. Wander the quiet back alleys and gawp at the castle…
Must-see attractions in Hainan
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Hainan
The pedestrianised streets around Zhongshan Lu are a looking glass into Haikou’s French colonial past, with cobblestone blocks of porticoed row houses –…
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Hainan
Seven Fairy Mountain, named for its dramatic seven pinnacles, is found inside Mt Qixian Hot Springs National Forest Park. It’s a three-hour return trip to…
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Hainan
This sprawling, and pleasantly decaying, mansion was built in 1934 by several brothers who made their fortune in the Indonesian rubber industry. The…
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Sanya
A crescent-shaped sandy beach about 30km northeast of Dadonghai, Houhai Bay, which is in Tenghai village (滕海村, Ténghǎi Cūn), is the place for those…
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Hainan
What sounds like another of Hainan’s many tourist traps is actually a surprising retreat: a huge area of lightly tended tropical gardens with a network of…
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Sanya
Yalong Bay is the most picture-perfect of Sanya’s beaches, though jet skis and banana boats do buzz through (there are roped-off swimming areas in the…
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Haikou Volcanic Cluster Geopark
Hainan
While this geopark encompasses about 108 sq km of rural countryside, the main attraction here is a corny tourist park surrounding a (genuinely cool)…
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Hainan
The highlight of this modern Buddhist temple complex, 3km west of the town centre, is the enormous statue of the many-armed and many-headed Guanyin, the…
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Sanya
The long sandy strip off the city centre at Sanya Bay is where you’ll find crowds of mostly mainland Chinese tourists kicking back. In little covered…
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Five Officials Memorial Temple
Hainan
Hainan wasn't always a desirable holiday destination. In earlier times it was considered a remote part of the Chinese empire and used as a place of…
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Hainan
This modern colossus of a building should be your first stop when you arrive in Hainan. The displays on ethnic minorities, as well as Hainan’s 20th…
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Sanya
Dadonghai Bay sports a wider beach than Sanya and has a shaded boardwalk running along most of its length. The setting, in a deep blue bay with rocky…
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Hainan
If you like your ocean slate-blue and reckless (and largely resort free), Ri Yue Bay is for you. Colour is provided by local surfers rather than the usual…
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Hainan
With its blue water, golden sand and shady coconut trees, it's no surprise that several large resorts have staked their claim to Shimei Bay. Still, if you…
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Hainan
Bo'ao’s beach is a long, narrow strip of golden sand, just a few hundred metres east of the town’s main road. If you plan to swim, head at least 500m…
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Hainan
This coconut farming community takes up a big chunk of Wenchang County on the northeast coast. Cool, palm-lined lanes wind through traditional villages…
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Hainan
Tonggu Ridge is famous locally for its great views up and down the coast from the top, especially of the moon-shaped beach at Yue Liang Wan’s beach. It’s…
