Sanya

Sanya is an international tropical coastal tourist city located in the southernmost tip of Hainan Island of China. Sanya City is the second largest city in Hainan Island covering an area of 1.919 sq. m with a population of 481,200 and having 19 bays and over 40 islets lying along a 209 kilometers coast line. It is standing between 18.09 and 18.37 north latitude almost the same as Hawaii, Sanya is often called: “Oriental Hawaii.”

Originally considered by the Chinese to be the place where the civilized world officially ended and fit only to send convicts, the Hainan of today is conversely overrun with Chinese tourists and espoused by many as China’s idyllic island paradise.

Sanya has multiple air line and sea routes based at the Phoenix International Airport and the Sanya Port respectively. It is only one hour flight from Hong Kong and Guangzhou, 2.5 hours flight from Shanghai, 3.5 hours flight from Beijing and 6 hours flight from Japan and Korea.

Sanya is well known for its wonderful sunshine, white sandy beaches, fresh air and clear water all year round and tourism is the main industry of the city. It is the largest diving destination in the world as well as the most important destination for golf and meetings in China.

Sanya boasts the best air quality in China and ranks second in the world, next to Hawaii. Sanya has endless summer with an average temperature of 26° C. The yearly sunshine time totals 2.563 hours and the yearly average rainfall is up to 1,279mm. It is considered to be the most suitable city for people to live in. Sanya people enjoy and average life-span of 80 years, ranking the highest in China. Sanya offers blue sky and an azure sea for people coming from all over the world.

With an abundance of fresh catches of the day, seafood is very popular in Sanya. Customers can pick their own and have it cooked to personal perfection at most local restaurants. The four most famous dishes in Sanya are Wenchang Chicken from Wenchang city which is known for its tender meat and succulent bone marrow; Dongshan Lamb or mutton; Jiaji Duck from Qionghai city with a special ginger, soy and pepper sauce; and festive crab, also from Wenchang city, which is the best served steamed to retain its fresh flavor.

Yalong, Dadonghai, Sanya, Haitang, and Yazhou are the five major bays in Sanya. There are lots of tourism attractions, such as the Butterfly Musum and the shell aquarium, Cape Tian-Ya-Hai-Jiao, Lu Hui Tou, Wuzhizhou Island and the Tiger and Crocodile centre.

Lu Hui Tou

Lu Hui Tou (Deer turns its head) A large stone statue above Sanya harbour telling the story of a hunter pursuing a deer to an isolated headland in the sea. When the deer couldn't escape, it turned to look at the hunter and became a beautiful woman. The hunter couldn't kill her and instead fell in love with her. Luhuitou is a place for lovers and many people leave a padlock on a chain at the top of the mountain in the hope that their love will last as the lock remains there.