Shengsi Islands

The East China Sea archipelago closest to Shanghai: Gouqi Island’s mussel “sea ranch,” the ivy-covered abandoned village at Houtouwan on Shengshan, Huaniao’s foggy lighthouse island and Jihu Beach on Sijiao.

The Shengsi Islands lie in the East China Sea at the northern tip of the Zhoushan Archipelago, where the Yangtze estuary meets Hangzhou Bay. It is Zhejiang’s only island county and the Zhejiang island group closest to Shanghai, made up of hundreds of islands including Sijiao, Gouqi, Shengshan, Huaniao, Huanglong and Dayangshan, and is known as the “Garden on the Sea.”

Where to go: ① Sijiao Island (county seat Caiyuan Town, the gateway)—Jihu Beach and Nanchangtu Beach, the Five Fishing Villages of the East China Sea, sunrise at Liujingtan sea cliffs, and a view over the whole island from Dabei Mountain; ② Gouqi–Shengshan (the most popular outer islands, linked by a bridge)—the mussel-farming “sea ranch,” the “Wonders of Mountain and Sea” stone inscriptions, Dawang Beach, the ivy-covered abandoned village at Houtouwan and the East Cliff precipice; ③ Huaniao Island—the Far East’s largest lighthouse, built in 1870, and the white-walled, blue-windowed “Fog Island,” with limited visitor numbers and advance reservations required; ④ lesser-visited outer islands such as the Yuanbao Rock of Huanglong Island and Dayangshan Island (next to Yangshan Port and the East China Sea Bridge).

Best season: June–September has the bluest water and is good for swimming, with July–August as peak season, when ferry tickets and guesthouses should be booked at least a week ahead; May–June is often foggy, when Huaniao has the best atmosphere; in autumn mussels and swimming crabs are at their plumpest; winter is windy with fewer ferries. July–September is typhoon season, with frequent suspensions of sailings.

Getting there: take a bus-and-ferry combination ticket from Shanghai’s Nanpu Bridge passenger station or Shenjiawan Pier to Sijiao’s Lizhushan Pier in about 2.5–3 hours, or sail from Zhoushan’s main island; there are scheduled ferries from Sijiao to Gouqi, Shengshan, Huaniao and Huanglong, and on the islands you get around by bus, taxi or rented e-bike.

Suggested time: about 3 days—1 day on Sijiao, 1–2 days on Gouqi + Shengshan, and add Huaniao if you have time. Notes: buy ferry tickets through official channels such as “Shengsi Passenger Transport”; leave slack in your itinerary for sailings canceled by wind and waves; take care when taking photos on seaside rocks and cliff edges.

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