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Sandy white beaches, lush jungle and swaying palm trees—Hainan Island has them all in abundance, and Sanya, on the southern coast, is the best place to base yourself for swimming, water sports and sun bathing. Stay at one of the new luxury hotels along Sanya's gorgeous coastline, find budget accommodations in town or hobnob with the backpacking set at one of a number of pleasant hostels (see Sanya hotels for more). Wherever you stay, you're never far from the water. You can join the crowds on the popular beaches of Yalong Bay, visit Buddhist temples, linger in tropical gardens and see rare Macaque monkeys on Nanwan Monkey Island.  If you're after a little privacy and a more pristine beach experience, hire a driver, ride a bicycle or take a taxi to one of the island's more remote spots. Today, what was quite recently a quiet fishing port has become home to lux... more »

Tropical Haikou has atmosphere and easy-going charm to spare. Unlike Sanya, Hainan Island's tourist destination of choice, the provincial capital of Haikou remains something of a well-kept secret. Pleasant broad palm-lined streets, French colonial architecture, Tang and Song Dynasty monuments and memorials all make for an attractive backdrop to the everyday hustle and bustle of life in this port, with Han mainland immigrants mixing it up with Li and Miao ethnicities. Haikou's off-the-beaten-path allure is heightened by the fact that it's an excellent point of departure for explorations of the rest of Hainan. Head east toward Wenchang or southeast to Qionghai and continue down East Hainan's South China Sea beach-laced coastline toward Sanya. Travel south into the heart of the island and the highland peaks of Wuzhi Shan and Qi... more »

A quirky beach town on Hainan's east coast where the Wenquan River flows into the South China Sea, Bo'ao takes its name from Ao, a mythological creature with the head of a dragon and body of a turtle, who, legend has it, was subdued (bo) in the waters of the Wenquan estuary by the Bodhisattva Guanyin after raising hell in response to his rejection by his father, the Dragon King, who didn't much care for his half-turtle bastard son. The strange fusion of its namesake creature is well suited to Bo'ao. Not only is the town situated between the river's fresh water effluence and the open ocean's salty surf, but it's also caught at present between Chinese boom-time opulence, here embodied by the site of the annual Bo'ao Forum for Asia (China's take on the Davos World Economic Forum), contrasted with the gritty quirkiness of a small coastal town that has, in many ways, yet to suffer ... more »