China’s Hainan was supposed to be a world-class beach destination by 2020. What happened?

Despite Beijing’s ‘special zone’ initiatives, plans to turn the tropical island province into the ‘Hawaii of the East’ have not succeeded in attracting international travellers

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Domestic tourists in Dadonghai, Hainan. Photo: Steven Ribet

Published: 10:15am, 4 Oct 2020Updated: 12:34pm, 24 Dec 2020

In 2009, China’s State Council announced ambitious plans to elevate the tropical island province of Hainan into a world-class international tourism destination by 2020. A 2011 report by the World Travel & Tourism Council gushed: “Hainan is blessed with an abundance of natural resources – from its sun-kissed, palm-lined beaches, waterfalls and hot springs, to its extinct volcano crater and tropical mangrove and rain forests […]

“It is not surprising that Hainan has already been dubbed the ‘Hawaii of the East’. Yet few destinations around the world, let alone Hawaii, offer such a variety of attractions and opportunities for outdoor recreation, nature-based tourism and sporting activities.”

But 2020 has arrived and failure to fulfil the island’s potential has not been for want of Beijing’s support. The central government has designated the province a special development zone no fewer than three times, supporting it with a raft of subsidies and investment incentives. In 1988, Hainan was named a Special Economic Zone to piggyback other SEZs, such as Shenzhen and Zhuhai, and in 2009, the State Council designated the island a “Special Zone for the Development of International Tourism”.

In 2018, it was announced that Hainan would be developed as a “free port”, which meant an increase in visitors’ duty-free shopping allowance – from 30,000 yuan (US$4,410) to 100,000 yuan annually – as well as a range of tax breaks for attracting foreign investment and talent.

None of these measures have worked, and the local tourism board declined an interview with Post Magazine to explore the reasons why.

Sanya is a popular spot for pre-wedding photo shoots. Photo: Steven Ribet

The island has done a better job of attracting domestic tourists, touting itself as the nation’s premier beach destination. Local hotel managers say business this summer has been good, as might be expected with Covid-19 halting holidaying abroad. Yet in comparison with tourism to other provinces and growth in the national market as a whole, Hainan has lagged behind in its ability to pull in domestic visitors, let alone open their wallets.