Hainan
1>Introduction
Sitting at the southernmost tip of China, Hainan Province is separated from Guangdong Province on the mainland by the Qiongzhou Strait. Established as a province in April 1988, Hainan covers an area of 34,000 square kilometers, including Hainan Island and the Xisha, Nansha, and Zhongsha islands and their surrounding territorial waters. Hainan includes people of Han, Li, Miao and Hui backgrounds who live happily together. The population of the province has reached 6.7 million, among which 1 million are members of ethnic minorities and 1.2 million returned overseas Chinese.
A promising future lies ahead for Hainan tourist industry. Its two main pillars of tourist interest are Haikou and Sanya. The major drawing cards of the former are the Tomb of Hai Rui, Memorial Temple of Five Lords (Wugongci) and coconut tree groves in Dongjiao County. The latter offers a variety of choices such as the Remotest End of the Earth and Corner of the Ocean (Tianya Haijiao), Bay of Greater East Sea, Monkeys Island at Nanwan, Center of Touring Stockade Villages of the Li and Miao Peoples, and National Holiday Center ay Yalongwan.
What particularly attracts tourists, both domestic and foreign, to Hainan is its characteristic beauty of south China with sunshine, beaches, sea water and hot springs. As a result if recent efforts Hainan has completed and put into use a series of holiday resorts with high-level hotels, becoming a fabulous competitor in the tourist market of East Asia. Leading festival are the Hainan International Festival of Coconuts and Third Day of Third Lunar Month Festival.
2>View Spots
Crater Park at Ma'anling
Twenty kilometers from Haikou, the Crater Park at Ma'anling lies in Shishan County west of Qiongshan. Research has shown it to be the most well-preserved site of ancient craters in the world. Thanks to careful planning and construction, the park has taken on a new look and is waiting for guests to come.
Mangrove Nature Preserve at Dongzaigang
Located in the northeastern part of Qiongshan, the Mangrove Nature Preserve is only 27 kilometers from Haikou. The mangrove tree is a type of evergreen tree that grow in swamps and near beaches in tropical and subtropical zones. When the tide rises, the tree's thick trunks become submerged under water. Only the green canopies bob up and down with the waves - a truly magnificent forest in the sea! To display its singular and distinctive beauty to more viewers, the government of Qiongshan city has invested a large sum of money in building a dock and purchasing more yachts.
Wild Animal Zoo at Dongshan Lake
The concept of allowing birds and animals to return to nature has given birth to the wild life park type of zoo at Dongshan Lake. Twenty-seven kilometers from Haikou, the zoo covers an area of 2,000-plus mu in which more than 3,000 ferocious beasts (or birds) of 100- odd species live a free and natural life. In addition to lions, tigers, bears and elephants, one can see such rare animals as camels, yaks, short ponies, giraffes and African ostriches.
Lingshan Amusement Park
After a 15-minute-drive from Haikou, one comes to Lingshan Amusement Park at Lingshan County -- the first big amusement park in Hainan Province. Dozens of large-scale recreational facilities will certainly attract those with bravery and curiosity. And one will possibly become reluctant to leave after taking an adventure through the Horror World, Waterborne Great Wall, and Roller-coaster in the Tropical Forest; but the Underground Labyrinth and Underwater Entertainment World are particular wonders. Everyone can discover something to their fancy in the park since it blends a classic Chinese garden harmoniously with large amusement facilities.
Hainan Deer Farm
Situated in Lingshan County, Qiongshan, the Hainan Deer Farm is a breeding center that has streamlined research, production, processing and marketing. It now raises a variety of rare species of deer, such as the sika deer, with their number exceeding 600 heads. Many products, more than 10 series of them, have been put on the market as tourist commodities. These include such products as deer placenta paste, dried deer meat, dear bone liquor, and deer fat.
Hainan Taida Golf Club
The Taida Golf Club is located in Yunlong County, Qiongshan. It enjoys easy access to transportation, for it is only five kilometers from Haikou. The course has 18 international standard links 7,220 yards in length and 72 standard clubs. The first nine holes are on a gentle slope, but the terrain of the next nine holes is quite different. Moreover, the golf course has a cluster of accessories, including a conference hall, an exercising ground, a swimming pool, a tennis court, a designated shop for sports items, a fishing terrace and villas.
Beach Resort at Guilinyang
Eighteen kilometers from Haikou and four kilometers from Meilan International Airport, the Beach Resort at Guilinyang is easy to reach. A 6.8-kilometer-long silver coastline links two delicate and beautiful bays together to form the Coastal Resort at Guilinyang. Now shallow water ripples at the northeastern part of the coastal resort, but originally 172 villages stood there before an earthquake in 1605 buried them under sea, transforming them into a world-famous wonder known as the willages at the Sea Bottom (Haidi Cunzhuang). At present, a number of large-scale entertainment and recuperation programs, such as the Holiday Resort, International Games Village, Thailand Fruits Garden and World Wonder Park are nearing completion.
Qiongtai Academy
The Qiongtai Academy is situated at Wenzhauang Road in Fucheng County, Qiongshan. Construction of the academy was first initiated in 1705, the 44 th year after Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty ascended the throne. It is said that Qiongtai Academy was built in memory of Qiu Jun -- the most gifted scholar of Hainan, who was a Grand Academician of the Ming Dynasty. Now 280 years have passed, but the academy is as elegant as it was in its prime days. Exquisitely ornamented with carved beams and painted rafters, the Tower of the God of Literature (Kuixinglou) in the academy still stands calmly under the cooling shade of green trees. From its graceful beauty and serenity, one can still get much of the feeling of the past. The Qiongtai Academy, once the highest center of learning in Qiongzhou, was a necessary threshold over which men of learning needed to pass to seek an official post.
Coconut Forest in Dongjiao County
Taking the beautiful Qinglan Port as its neighbor, the Coconut Forest thrives in Dongjiao County, Wenchang. The forest boasts a variety of species of coconut trees with their number totaling 500,000. In this holiday resort, when a traveler feels a little tired of swimming in the sea, he can bathe on the golden beach while tasting fresh coconut juice, eating seafood, and listening to waves of music coming from the sea. That elation is really beyond description.
Memorial Temple of Five Lords
Where Haikou and Qiongshan border on each other, an impressive array of ancient buildings await the arrival of tourists who have an eye for architectural beauty. The group is comprised of temples, gardens and the houses of five famous ministers of the Tang and Song dynasties. Construction of these ancient buildings began during the reign of Emperor Wanli of the Ming Dynasty. The group takes its name from its main building, which is also called the Memorial Temple of Five Lords. Nine meters in height, the temple is a two-story wooden building covering a floor-space of 560 square meters. During the Tang and Song dynasties, five outstanding ministers were demoted and exiled to Hainan-the bleak end of the earth at that time. And it was to them that the temple was dedicated. With a golden-glazed board reading “Number One Building of Hainan” hung at the front, the temple has become the most popular site among Hainan’s cultural relics.
Hainan China Ethic Culture Village
Situated in the “Jadeite City” of Tongshen, the Hainan China Ethnic Culture Village is a cultural and tourist zone featuring the folklore o the Chinese people of different ethnic backgrounds. Upon entering the village, the tourist is greeted with authentic ethnic buildings of diverse architectural styles as if he has suddenly found himself in a real village of the said ethnic groups. Hainan China Ethnic Culture Village is an ideal place to savor and appreciate the folkways as well as scenery of various ethnic minorities.
China travel(vacation) Kaisertour report
