China's island province of Hainan has been experiencing a vibrant start to its peak tourism season, driven by its unique warm winter climate and a host of integrated cultural and tourism activities.
Travel enthusiasm is now palpable across the island, signaling strong market vitality. The surge in the number of visitors is evident at key attractions such as the Luhuitou scenic spot in Sanya, one of the best vantage points for overlooking the city. Since the onset of winter, the scenic area has seen a continuous rise in its daily average visitor flow.
"I think there are quite a few places to visit. Mainly, I'm going to the rainforest today, and maybe Tianya Haijiao [Scenic Area] tomorrow, and do some sports activities. It's great," said tourist Zhang Surong.
Hainan's offshore duty-free shopping has increasingly become a golden signboard for the island's tourism. The policy got a significant upgrade on November 1, expanding the scope of eligible shoppers and enriching the product categories available. This has led to a noticeable shift in consumer behavior, with newly added domestic products and small home appliances becoming hot-selling items.
"We can buy all the products we want in one stop, and the staff here also offer to help us get some coupons, allowing us to buy these desired products at a more favorable price," said customer Mei Mei.
The enhanced policies are also benefiting local residents, according to Yan Lin, assistant director of the sales department at CDFG Sanya Downtown Duty-Free Store.
"Now departing guests can directly select and purchase in the store, and the 'buy and pick up immediately' policy for island residents has also greatly enhanced the convenience of consumption for local residents," Yan said.
The booming tourism market is reflected in the island's transportation figures. In the past week, Sanya Phoenix International Airport has recorded a daily passenger throughput exceeding 80,000. As of November 23, 2025, the airport's total passenger throughput for the year had already surpassed 20 million, reaching the milestone 19 days earlier than the previous year.
In an effort to further broaden the opening-up of the tourism and consumption sector, local authorities have promulgated new tourism regulations designed to build the island into a globally influential hub for international tourism and consumption.
The regulations, which will take effect on December 1, 2025, provide a comprehensive legal framework covering tourism planning and resource protection, industry development and promotion, openness and internationalization, business operations and consumer protection, safety and emergency response, and market supervision.
Wang Yuan, deputy director of the policy and regulation department at the Hainan Provincial Department of Tourism, Culture, Radio, Television and Sports, talked about the future direction of Hainan's tourism development.
"We clearly encourage the development of tourism formats unique to Hainan, such as marine tourism, health and wellness tourism, low-altitude tourism, and rural tourism. In the future, Hainan's tourism will achieve a comprehensive upgrade and bring more diverse experiences and feelings to tourists," he said.
In addition, the Hainan Free Trade Port (FTP) is set to launch island-wide special customs operations starting on December 18. The special customs operations will increase the proportion of zero-tariff products in the Hainan FTP from 21 percent to 74 percent, while further opening up the local tourism, modern services, and high technology.
Hainan's winter tourism heats up with surge in visitors, spending
