Sanya, China

February 2018

In Southern China, in the South China Sea, there is a lovely island called Hainan.  At the southern tip of this island is beautiful city called Sanya.  So we went.

 

It was a bit of a trek for us to reach Sanya.  It certainly did not help that we were going for the Spring Festival (Chinese New Year).  Originally we had hoped to get there via a 34 hour train ride but all of the train tickets sold out within a couple of hours of going on sale.  Then we started the search for plane tickets.  We finally found some, but it took us about 24 hours to make what should have been a 2 1/2 hour flight. A few planes, trains, and automobiles later we arrived and it was worth it.

Even though our hotel was 2 kilometers from the beach, we were in a great location with spectacular views.

As always, the gardens were amazing.

We managed to find time to spend a couple of days at Dadonghai Beach, by far one of the best beaches I have ever been to.  In addition to beautiful white sand, the area is surrounded by restaurants, shops, and gardens.

 

 

The tree lined streets are great for leisurely walks.

Just watch out for fire crackers.

I love the way the utility sheds are painted.

There are other beaches around town as well.

 

Hats for Sale

On our way back to the Railway station we drove past the 6,668 room Beauty Crown Hotel which looks like a grove of giant trees.

We had a great time in Sanya.  The food was tasty, the weather was perfect (sunny and about 82), and the city was beautiful.