Hainan Island Tour
After flying to Haikou, rented a car to travel from west to east, a 7-day island tour.
Danzhou, the farthest and last place where Su Shi was exiled, a must-visit on this trip. Life is like a journey against the current, fortunately, there is Su Shi.
What Su Shi was most proud of was not the glory of holding high office, but the wandering years of exile in Huangzhou, Huizhou, and Danzhou. In the lowest circumstances, he lived with the highest realm. His life was full of ups and downs, hardships, and three rises and falls, yet he could still love life, be open-minded and carefree, and face life with a smile, making people inevitably love him.
Qizi Bay in Changjiang, a coastline where cacti and reefs coexist, perfectly interpreting the crashing waves that roll up like a thousand piles of snow.
Yulinzou in Dongfang, with windmills on the left and a lighthouse on the right, sunlight scattered on the sea surface, turning into thousands of stars.
Xiaodongtian’s caves were explored twice; the sand by the sea is relatively coarse.
Tianya Haijiao, the seaside is full of tall rocks, the sand is extremely fine, and the sand wet by the waves is like a mirror. Fortunate to see the delicate green peaks and the light entering the deep ocean here.
Coming against the wind and waves, the boat swayed left and right like riding a sedan chair, surprisingly no seasickness. The sea water is indeed very blue. Riding various cute marine creature sightseeing cars, traveling on the island road, the half-mountain half-sea scenery comes from far to near, then near to far again. The sea breeze passes by, the waves come and go endlessly, without rest or stop.
The flamingos on the island look like they were painted on, with a kind of isolated beauty. The private custom beaches are not much different from those in movies. There are many delicious foods on the island, and the prices are also very reasonable. Citi Walk is quite interesting; after checking in at each stop, it forms a segment map of the island tour, a great souvenir.
Went in mid-December, not peak season, but many people still entered and left the island, each time queuing for an hour. If not staying on the island, it is recommended to leave earlier in the afternoon to avoid peak hours.
Sanya’s Sun Bay Road has beautiful scenery but parking is basically unavailable throughout. Atlantis Lost Chambers Aquarium has many marine creatures, suitable for taking kids.
Lingshui’s Fuli Bay is relatively primitive. Wanning’s Riyue Bay and Shimei Bay are quite similar, mainly for water sports. Personally, I prefer Riyue Bay. There are many small shops on the street, coconut trees along the road, a very relaxed and casual street. Due to recent weather changes, it often turns bad in the afternoon, so there is basically no chance to watch the sunset. The sunset at Shenzhou Peninsula Lighthouse was really a coincidence; probably no one expected to see a sunset on a cloudy day. There is a fairy mountain on the sea, with the glow pouring in, brief but extremely beautiful.
Passing by Wanning Dahua Cape, many small fishing boats;
Qionghai’s Yudai Beach, riding a sand dune buggy made the whole body shake, the beach is very high, and the waves are high and big, the biggest waves I have seen by the sea so far;
Wen’an Old Street has a strong sense of history and age. Being there feels like being in another world. Also checked out the Confucius Temple where the top scholar has not yet emerged, and the gate is not open.
Wenchang Aerospace Launch Center was not open to the public when I went, only the exhibition hall could be visited, not very interesting.
Dongjiao Coconut Grove, Wenchang’s coconuts are the best in Hainan, Dongjiao Coconut Grove is the most scenic, a large coconut grove with many mango and coconut sellers.
Stone Park has tall and smooth stones, many varieties, and large waves.
Mulan Bay’s coast is also mostly stones but relatively gentle. Mulan Bay’s windmill beach looks spectacular. The sand by the sea is very fine, almost like mud. There are many small pebbles on the beach, the only place with many beautiful pebbles on the beach during the island tour.
Hainan cuisine includes various indistinguishable noodles: Hainan noodles, Baoluo noodles, sour noodles... Dad’s tea, salt-baked chicken, seafood, Qingbuliang (a cold dessert), roast suckling pig, coconut chicken and fermented vinegar hotpot, Boqi rice, and many more I didn’t get to try. The hotpot flavor is very mild, as a northerner, I couldn’t quite get used to it. Breakfast noodles and various sweet snacks with Dad’s tea were also not very familiar, but everything else was quite good.
Arrived in Haikou, left from Haikou. Although not everything went as planned, the trip went smoothly, and the island tour was successfully completed. The schedule was tight, sometimes the weather was not good, and I didn’t stay too long in one place. The whole trip was over a thousand kilometers, circling mountains and seas, facing the sea and wind. Hainan Island has many bays, each with different features and water quality. Each stop has its own specialty and scenery. Personally, I like Wanning’s Riyue Bay and Wenchang the most.
Funny incidents on the way: left the iPad at the hotel but found it successfully in the end; left the water cup on the sightseeing car and didn’t have time to go back for it. The most troublesome thing was looking for a guesthouse late at night, found the community but not the entrance, found the entrance but not the building [facepalm]. Staying in a hotel is still more convenient.