Obscure backwater turns into booming tourist resort with upgrading of ring road in Hainan

The perfection and upgrading of the island ring road has turned the once obscure backwater Wanning City in south China's Hainan Province into a booming tourist resort with continuous linkages of scenic spots, enabling visitors easier accessibility and affordability to enjoy the breathtaking sea sights.

The coastal road, completed in May 2016, has turned bays alongside into sought-after resorts. The uninhabited Jiajing island at Shimei Bay is now a paradise for divers with diverse coral reefs and colorful tropical fishes underwater.

"Driving along the road, from Riyue Bay, Shimei Bay to Nanyan Bay, you would see surfers everywhere. The number of surfers has increased from hundreds to thousands per month. The figure usually doubles every year," said Wu Runquan, chef coach of a local surfing club.

Apart from aquatic entertainments, there are also sightseeing and leisure facilities along the road catering to travelers. The Phoenix Palace BookStore, modified from a rarely visited cafe in January 2017, now receive an average of over 1,000 customers every day.

"This coastal tour road is helping the city draw more and more attention from tourists. It indeed brings a large flow of tourists and plays a key role in promoting local tourism," said Chen Runjue, manager of Phoenix Palace Store.

The 35-kilometer road is also a section of the Hainan Round Island Tour Road, which will be the first one of that kind in the world once finished. With its main line stretching nearly 1,000 kilometers, the round island tour road will pass 12 cities and the Yangpu Economic Development Zone. It will contribute to building Hainan into an international tourism and consumption hub.

"I am looking forward to the road to run through the Hainan Island as planned. Then we can enjoy such beautiful sceneries all the way when touring around the island," said a tourist from east China’s Zhejiang Province.