Haikou

Gateway to Hainan, with arcade-lined old streets, volcanic craters and a huge duty-free mall. A winter escape and the starting point for a Hainan island road trip, with authentic Wenchang chicken and laoba tea.

Haikou is the capital of Hainan Province. It sits on the northern tip of Hainan Island, on the south shore of the Qiongzhou Strait, facing the Leizhou Peninsula in Guangdong across the water. It is the gateway to the Hainan Free Trade Port and the starting point for round-the-island drives. The city is divided into four districts (Xiuying, Longhua, Qiongshan and Meilan), and the Nandu River runs through it from south to north before reaching the sea. The climate is tropical monsoon. From November to April temperatures are 20–28°C, dry with little rain, making this the peak season for escaping the cold and traveling (hotel prices double during Spring Festival). May–Oct is hot and rainy, and typhoons are frequent from July to October, so keep an eye on warnings when traveling. The main sightseeing areas fall into four groups. First, the old town, centered on the arcade-lined old streets (Zhongshan Road, Bo'ai Road and Deshengsha), the Bell Tower and Five Officials Temple: stroll the old streets, have laoba tea and try qingbuliang, a sweet coconut soup. Second, Haikou Bay and the west coast, a stretch that includes the Century Bridge, Haikou Bay Performing Arts Center, Holiday Beach and cdf Haikou International Duty Free City, good for an evening bike ride to watch the sunset and for shopping. Third, the Shishan Volcanic Cluster National Geopark, about 20 km southwest of downtown, where you can climb the Ma'anling crater. Fourth, the Dongzhaigang mangroves (Yanfeng) and Wenchang to the east (Dongjiao Coconut Grove, Tonggu Ridge and the Wenchang Space Launch Site), which can be combined into a one-day self-drive. Getting there: Meilan International Airport is about 20 km from downtown, with an airport express bus and the East Ring high-speed rail (about 30 minutes from Meilan Station to Haikou Station). Haikou East Station is the starting point of the eastern line of the round-island high-speed railway, about 1.5–2 hours to Sanya. Xiuying Port and Xinhai Port have Yuehai ferries to Xuwen in Guangdong; if you are driving onto the island, book ferry tickets in advance. The city has buses and shared bikes, and the Haixiu East Road area is the commercial center. We suggest 2–3 days: 1 day for the old town, half a day for Haikou Bay and the duty-free city, and half a day for the volcano crater or the mangroves, then use Haikou as the starting point for the round-island trip to Wenchang and Wanning. Notes: UV is strong in Haikou, so wear sunscreen even in winter; laoba tea shops are mostly open in the morning and afternoon; Wenchang chicken, vegetarian clay-pot stew, Hainan rice noodles and zaopo vinegar hotpot are must-try foods; offshore duty-free shopping requires your departure flight or ferry ticket information, and purchases are collected at the airport.

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