For prostitutes, read parachutes: rise of ‘air sports’ shows Hainan tourism evolution
- Where once prostitutes were deemed integral to tourism success, as the Post reported, ‘China’s Hawaii’ now draws ‘air sports’ enthusiasts
Headlines published 30 years ago in the South China Morning Post heralded the tourism success story beginning to unfold in China’s smallest province: “Hainan to draw tourists with second airport”; “Top developers eye Sanya development projects”; “Banyan Tree set to thrive on Hainan”.
Just six years after it had been detached from Guangdong, the 34,000 sq km (13,130 square mile) island province was being touted as China’s Hawaii or, as an article below another prophetic headline – “French holiday chains look to China for tourists of the future” – said, a local version of Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula.
The course was set but the times were different, as the Post article “Brave new foray in Chinese Honolulu; karaoke bars, escorts the star attractions in Hainan Island’s new tourist paradise” made clear: “If one were to ask who was most likely to thrive in Hainan Island’s southernmost coastal town of Sanya, the answer would have to be the entrepreneurs and prostitutes.
“Both popular ‘professions’ earn the highest incomes in this rugged town in China’s youngest and the most freewheeling special economic zone.
“In terms of importance to Sanya’s economy, prostitutes are perceived to be as equally indispensable as entrepreneurs, according to tourism developers. One even argues that the splendid beach resort will lose its attraction as a holiday destination if there are no prostitutes.”
Also bedding in – in an entirely different respect – were international hotel/resort chains, but the process was fraught and an article published in January 1995 explained that “tourists and foreign investors […] were being scared off by the island’s bad reputation for criminals and swindlers”.
How times have changed! More than 90 million domestic and international tourists visited Hainan in 2023.
Whether anyone still arrives primarily in search of prostitutes we couldn’t say, but – in a sign of how high the tourism industry has flown in the intervening three decades – Hainan is now a magnet not only for those looking for an authentically Chinese beach-resort experience, but also for “air sports enthusiasts”, reports Xinhua.
Air sports, in this instance, mostly involve jumping out of an aircraft wearing a parachute, but also include paragliding and drone racing.
There is now even a Hainan Air Sports Association, and its secretary general, Xu Liwen, told Xinhua that “the tropical island’s natural advantages make it ideal for developing air sports”, not least because the climate supports more than 340 flying days annually.
In 2023, 45,300 skydiving trips were taken by tourists over Hainan, 39.6 per cent of the national total, reports the state-run news agency. And the sport is becoming so consequential that it is considered by Beijing to be part of the “low-altitude economy”, which also covers all commercial activities carried out by drones.
Xu points out, rather obviously, that “air sports break the limitations of land-based sightseeing” and that “the era of mutual promotion of air sports and the local economy is coming in Hainan”.
Which is a far more wholesome boast than: “We have plenty of prostitutes.”
Growing up
Tourism expansion of an altogether more air-conditioned variety is being planned down in Singapore.
In 2010, the city state opened the integrated casino resorts of Resorts World Sentosa and Marina Bay Sands, both of which significantly helped tourist arrivals double to an annual 19.1 million by 2019.
“Now, the second phase of the resorts’ development is about to begin,” reports Nikkei Asia.
Genting Singapore, a subsidiary of the Malaysian company that operates Resorts World Sentosa, announced in May that it would tender out construction contracts for two hotels, with a total of 700 rooms, which are to be added to Sentosa island.
Back in the Downtown Core, a fourth hotel tower (with a 15,000-seat arena) will be added to the Marina Bay Sands, reports the news website.
Judging by the artist’s impression online, the new tower won’t be connected to the other three by an extension of that boat thingy across the top: the Sands Skypark. The real McCoy will take shape between July 2025, when construction is due to begin, and July 2029, when Singapore’s new skyline should be fully updated.
The moneymaking casino floors of both resorts will also be expanded, Marina Bay Sands having been granted an additional 2,000 square metres, Genting 500 square metres.
Digital nomads welcome
Digital nomads, boxers and trainee chefs sound like a motley crew, but all may now be able to get five-year visas for Thailand.
Destination Thailand Visas aren’t quite as generous as they first sound, however.
“Visitors who want to work and also visit tourist destinations will be able to get five-year visas valid for stays up to 180 days, extendable for another 180 days,” explains the newspaper. “They were previously entitled to only two stays of 30 days each.”
Another new measure sees 36 countries – including China and India – added to a list of 93 from which passport holders are eligible for visa-free entry.
