Hainan Travel Guide: Visa-Free Entry, Best Season, Where to Stay and the Island Railway

Give Hainan five to seven days if you want more than one beach: a day in Haikou, the east coast by train, then Sanya at the southern tip. Three days is enough if you only want Sanya. Citizens of 61 countries can visit Hainan without a visa for up to 30 days, as long as they enter through a port in Hainan and stay in the province. The driest months are December to March, when Sanya gets under 25 mm of rain a month and January afternoons average about 27°C. Foreign visitors aged 18 or over can use the island's duty-free shops, even if they fly straight out of China from Hainan.

How Hainan Works and How Many Days You Need

Hainan (海南, Hǎinán) is an island off China's south coast, and it is also a province. Haikou (海口, Hǎikǒu), the provincial capital, is on the north shore. Sanya (三亚, Sānyà), the main beach resort, is at the far south. The east coast between them has Wenchang, Qionghai, Wanning and Lingshui, all on the railway. The middle of the island is hills and rainforest.

Here is how we would split your time:

• 3 days: Sanya only. Fly in and out of Sanya and skip the rest.
• 5 days: Land in Haikou, go down the east coast by train with one or two stops, and fly out of Sanya.
• 7 days: The same route at a slower pace, with a rainforest day and more time on a quieter beach.

Hainan suits people who want warm weather in winter, beach time with family, surfing, or a rocket launch. It does not suit a trip built around history and old cities. If this is your first time in China and you have one week in total, Beijing or Shanghai will show you more, and Hainan works better as a warm finish to a longer trip. If you are choosing between cold and warm parts of China, our winter travel guide compares them.

This page covers the whole island: entry rules, the railway, duty-free shopping and everywhere outside Sanya. For Sanya's bays, sights and hotel areas, go to the Sanya beach resort guide.

Visa-Free Entry and the Island-Wide Customs Closure

The 30-day Hainan rule

Hainan has its own visa-free rule, separate from China's other visa-free policies. Ordinary passport holders from 61 countries can stay up to 30 days for tourism, business, visits and family, but work, study and news reporting need a visa arranged before you travel. The list covers most of Europe, including the UK, plus the US, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, South Korea and much of Southeast Asia. The US and Mexico are on this Hainan list but not on the 50-country nationwide list covered further down. The full list is in the National Immigration Administration's notice of 20 August 2026. The 30 days start at midnight after the day you arrive.

Two conditions catch people out. You must enter and leave through a Hainan port, and you must stay inside Hainan province. So a connection through Guangzhou or Shanghai does not work for this rule, because you clear immigration at that first airport, not in Hainan. Look for a flight that lands in Hainan from abroad: a direct one to Haikou or Sanya, or a connection through a hub outside mainland China.

Most foreign visitors now arrive without a visa. In the first month after the customs change in December 2025, 87,000 foreign visitors entered Hainan visa-free under one policy or another, which was 93% of all foreign arrivals. You will still need to complete the arrival card. You can do it online before you fly through the immigration administration's website, app or mini-programs (small apps inside WeChat or Alipay), or on arrival by phone, on a machine at the port, or on paper. The official online form is free, and fake sites do exist that charge a fee. Border officers can ask why you are visiting, so keep your return ticket and hotel booking on your phone.

What the "island-wide customs closure" means for you

You may read that Hainan "closed" on 18 December 2025. It did not. The word is 封关 (fēngguān, literally "sealing the customs"), and it means the whole island became one special customs zone. Trade between Hainan and the rest of the world has been opened up, and controls now focus on some goods moving from Hainan to the mainland. If you arrive from abroad, you still go through border control and customs as usual. The government says plainly that this is a customs closure, not a closure of the island.

For travellers, almost nothing changed. The official explanation is that people and personal belongings move in and out of Hainan under the same rules as before, with no extra permit. You will still show your passport at airport security or when boarding a ferry, as you would anywhere in China. Your entry rule still decides where you can go.

Going on to the mainland

This is the one point to sort out before you book. The Hainan visa-free rule does not cover travel to the mainland. To continue there you need a different entry status, so confirm with the immigration hotline +86-12367, which has English service, before you book.

If your trip includes both Hainan and the mainland, use a rule that covers both:

• China's nationwide 30-day visa-free entry covers 50 countries, including Japan, South Korea, the UK, Canada and Australia, and any open port. For 48 of them it currently runs to 31 December 2026, so check the latest position if you travel after that date. Our visa-free entry guide has the details.
• The 240-hour transit rule is for people flying on to a third country. Hainan is on the list of allowed provinces, with Haikou Meilan and Sanya Phoenix airports as its two entry ports. You can stay anywhere in Hainan and travel across to other allowed provinces. Rules and conditions are in our 240-hour transit guide.
• A normal tourist visa if neither applies.

When to Go: Dry Season, Typhoons and Spring Festival

Go between November and April if you want sun, and aim for December to March if you want the driest weather. Sanya, in the south, is warm all year. Its average highs run from 26.9°C in January to 32.1°C in June, and the rainy season is May to October, with October the wettest month. Haikou, in the north, has a real cool season: January averages 18.2°C across day and night, so bring a light jacket. Haikou's rainy season is also May to October, with August the wettest month, and rain drops off in November.

Typhoons

Typhoons are most common from July to September and are still possible in October and November. The first typhoon to land on Hainan each year usually arrives in early August, but the first landing has come as early as April and as late as November. A typhoon lands on the island in about one November in ten, so it is unlikely but not impossible. Wanning and Wenchang on the east coast are the most common places for that first landing.

When a storm comes, the island's beach and sea businesses stop. In June 2025, Sanya paused high-risk activities in all its scenic areas and closed Wuzhizhou Island. In August 2026, swimming areas at Dadonghai and Yalong Bay closed, and Haikou's ferry ports and rail ferry stopped running. If you travel from July to November, keep a spare day before an international flight.

Spring Festival

Avoid Spring Festival unless you have booked early. Chinese New Year's Day falls on 6 February in 2027. This is one of the busiest times of the year, especially in Sanya: during the nine-day holiday in 2026, Sanya counted 3.31 million visits. Hotels, flights and train seats are all harder to find, and prices rise. The weeks either side are also busy, as families in northern China come south for the warmth.

Where to Stay: Sanya, Haikou or the East Coast

Choose by what you want to do each day. The train times below are the fastest from Haikou East Station on one sample travel day (12 November 2026), from 12306, China's railway booking site. Treat them as a guide and check the day you travel.

Ticket prices in this section and in the Haikou and Wenchang sections come from the Hainan government's scenic-area price list. These are official benchmark or ceiling prices, not always what you pay at the gate, and most benchmarks can move up or down 20% with the season, so check the ticket office.

Look at places across these areas on Booking.com, and pick your base before you pick your hotel, because moving between bases takes a good part of a day. Foreign guests are registered by the hotel at check-in. Our guide to booking hotels in China explains what to expect. If you rent a villa or a private home, you or your host must register within 24 hours of arriving, and since 21 September 2026 this can be done online through the immigration administration's app or website. See types of accommodation in China for how the options differ.

Sanya

Sanya is the simple answer for a first visit, and it has the warmest winters on the island. It has its own airport and its own page: the Sanya guide compares the bays and tells you which one to book.

Haikou

Stay here for one night, or two if you like cities. Haikou is the easiest arrival point for the east coast route, and it has more to do on a rainy day than a resort does. The sea front is pleasant, but people do not come here for the beach.

Wanning: Riyue Bay and Shimei Bay

Wanning suits people who want a beach without the crowds of Sanya. Riyue Bay (日月湾, Rìyuè Wān, "Sun and Moon Bay") is known for surfing. Shimei Bay (石梅湾, Shíméi Wān) is the calmer choice, with resort hotels. Both are a drive from the station, so ask your hotel about a transfer. Near Wanning town, Xinglong Tropical Botanical Garden has a benchmark ticket of 42 yuan.

Lingshui: Clearwater Bay and Fenjiezhou Island

Lingshui is close enough to Sanya to visit by day, and quieter to stay in. Clearwater Bay (清水湾, Qīngshuǐ Wān) is mostly a long stretch of resorts and apartments. Fenjiezhou Island (分界洲岛, Fēnjièzhōu Dǎo, "Boundary Island") is a 5A-rated island, China's top scenic grade, open 8:30 to 22:30. Its ceiling price is 132 yuan in high season and 127 yuan in low season, and the list does not say whether the boat is included, so check when you book.

Wenchang

Stay here if you have come for a launch or want a quiet coast. Otherwise it works as a stop on the way south. The section on Wenchang below explains how launch days work.

Baoting and Wuzhishan: the rainforest

The railway stays near the coast, so most people visit the interior as a day trip by car from Sanya. Yanoda Rainforest (呀诺达, Yānuòdá) in Baoting is the best-known stop, open 8:30 to 18:00 with a joint ticket at a benchmark of 90 yuan. Nearby, Binglanggu is a culture park about the Li and Miao, two of Hainan's ethnic minority peoples, with a benchmark of 80 yuan. If you do not want to arrange a driver, search Klook for a Yanoda day trip from Sanya and read what is included. Wuzhishan, further into the hills, needs more time on the road and is for people who are happy to spend most of a day getting there and back.

Ticket prices outside Sanya

This table puts the listed prices in one place. They are the benchmark and ceiling prices explained above.

Airports, the Island Railway and the Ferry

Fly to Hainan, then use the railway to get around the coast. Compare flights on Skyscanner, and book a multi-city ticket into Haikou and out of Sanya if you plan to travel the east coast. Unless you enjoy long train journeys, a flight from the mainland will save you a day or more.

The two main airports

Hainan's airports together had 92 international and regional passenger routes in December 2025.

Haikou Meilan has its own railway station, about 400 metres or five minutes on foot from Terminals 1 and 2. The ticket machines work in Chinese and English and take cash, WeChat, Alipay and UnionPay. The airport's rail page has the walking route. If your hotel is in the city, the airport shuttle to the Xinyuan Hot Spring Hotel costs 20 yuan and runs on a fixed timetable from 07:40 to 02:20, and city bus 1 costs 1 to 5 yuan by distance from 6:30 to 22:00.

Sanya Phoenix has a full winter schedule: from 25 October 2026 to 27 March 2027, 44 airlines serve 93 airports, with 13 airlines on international and regional routes. On the sample day about 45 direct trains link Sanya Station and Phoenix Airport Station in 8 minutes, with sampled fares of 3 to 8 yuan. Check Phoenix Airport's own website for buses. A taxi or hotel pickup is the simple option.

The island railway

The ring line runs right around the coast for 653 km. The east side runs from Haikou East through Meilan, Wenchang, Qionghai, Bo'ao, Wanning, Lingshui and Yalong Bay to Sanya. The west side is longer and slower, passing Dongfang and Phoenix Airport. For nearly everyone, the east side is the one to use.

Haikou has three main stations, and it matters which you pick. These are the trains to Sanya on the sample day:

Most people going to Sanya should use Haikou East or Meilan. Haikou Station matters mainly because long-distance trains from the mainland use it, and those trains do not call at Haikou East. Trains on the east side run from about 06:30 to 22:40 from Haikou East.

For stops along the way, the sample day shows these from Haikou East: about 25 trains to Wenchang (fastest 28 minutes, 27 yuan), about 27 to Qionghai (41 minutes, 48 yuan), about 12 to Bo'ao (45 minutes, 54 yuan), about 22 to Wanning (1 h 1 min, 71 yuan) and about 31 to Lingshui (1 h 18 min, 92 yuan). Fares are sampled and vary by train. On the west side, Dongfang is the main stop: the fastest train from Haikou East takes 1 h 30 min for a sampled 92 yuan, and from there to Sanya takes 56 minutes for a sampled 61 yuan.

Buy tickets with your passport on 12306 or an English booking site such as Trip.com. Our guides on booking train tickets and China's high-speed trains walk through the steps. In winter, book the Haikou–Sanya leg a few days ahead, and earlier around holidays.

By train from the mainland

There is no high-speed train across the strait yet. Trains from the mainland roll onto a rail ferry, and a high-speed line from Zhanjiang to Haikou is under construction. The sample day shows only conventional trains, none of them high-speed: Beijing West to Haikou in 34 h 32 min and to Sanya in 38 h 27 min on the Z501, Shanghai Songjiang to Haikou in 36 h 55 min, and Guangzhou Baiyun to Haikou in 11 h 36 min at the fastest. It is a long trip for people who like trains and whose entry rule covers the mainland, and storms can stop the rail ferry.

The ferry across the Qiongzhou Strait

The ferry runs between Hainan and Guangdong and is mostly useful for overland travellers and people with a car. There are two routes, and the tickets do not work on each other: Xinhai Port to Xuwen Port, and Xiuying Port to Hai'an New Port. Go to the port named on your ticket. The ferry operator sells through the "轮渡管家" (Lúndù Guǎnjiā, "Ferry Butler") app and WeChat mini-program, and WeChat service accounts, and at peak times every crossing must be booked in advance.

Tickets are in your real name, and a passport is an accepted ID. The province's crossing guide is written for Chinese ID holders and does not give the passport steps, so allow extra time at the port. Under the latest guide, foot passengers can enter up to four hours before sailing, and gates close 20 minutes before departure. If sailings are cancelled, all tickets are refunded in full. Fog can also affect the strait in winter.

Driving and getting around without a car

A foreign licence alone does not let you drive in China. You need a short-term temporary driving permit from the traffic police, which can cover a rental car, and Hainan has had an online pre-application system since 2023. Confirm the current steps and where to collect the permit with the rental company before you travel, and do not expect to get one on the spot at the airport. For most visitors, the train plus taxis, ride-hailing or hotel transfers from the station is the easier plan.

Offshore Duty-Free: What Foreign Visitors Can Buy

Yes, foreigners can use it. Hainan's offshore duty-free scheme (离岛免税, lídǎo miǎnshuì) lets you buy goods without duty when you leave the island, and it is open to foreign travellers aged 18 or over who hold a passport and a ticket out.

Who qualifies

There are two ways to qualify, and most foreign visitors will use the second:

• Leaving for the mainland: you are 18 or over, with a passport and a booked plane, train or ferry ticket off the island.
• Leaving China directly from Hainan: since 1 November 2025, you can also buy if you are 18 or over, hold a booked international flight or ship ticket from Hainan, and actually leave the country.

The age limit was 16 before that date, so older articles may be wrong. Book your ticket out before you go shopping, because you need it to buy. The full text is in the Ministry of Finance notice on the 2025 changes.

How much you can spend

The limit is 100,000 yuan per person per year, with no limit on the number of trips. There are 47 product categories, and each one has a limit on how many you can buy at one time. Anything over the amount or quantity limit is taxed as normal. The scheme has continued since the December 2025 customs closure. Shops can tell you the limit for each category, so ask if you are buying several of one thing.

Collecting what you bought

You generally do not walk out of the shop with your goods. You pay, then collect at a pickup point on your way out. The person who shops must also be the person who pays, so do not use someone else's card.

• Flying to the mainland: collect in the secure area at the airport.
• Leaving by train: collect at the pickup point at Haikou Station.
• Leaving by ferry: collect at the Xiuying or Xinhai port pickup points.
• Flying or sailing abroad: show your purchase record at the designated area in the airport or port, and take everything with you in one go.

Shops inside an airport's secure area are not for passengers leaving by train or ferry. If you are flying abroad, the goods stay with you as you board, so think about size, and about liquids if you connect at another airport.

Where to shop

In Sanya, the best-known shop is Sanya International Duty Free City at Haitang Bay, run by China Duty Free, and the Hailv (海旅) and Zhongfu (中服) groups also run Sanya stores. In Haikou the shops include stores at Riyue Square and Mission Hills and the Haikong (海控) duty-free centre. There is also a store in Bo'ao, plus shops at Meilan and Phoenix airports. New shops open from time to time, so check before you make a special trip. Sanya International Duty Free City is on Haitang North Road in Haitang District, not central Sanya, and is open 10:00 to 22:00. Allow a half day for the trip.

Buy for yourself only. People who resell or buy for others go on a credit record and are banned from the scheme for three years, so say no if a stranger asks you to use your allowance.

Tax refunds are a different system

Do not confuse duty-free with the departure tax refund. The refund applies to goods bought at normal price in registered tax-refund shops. You can claim on spending of 200 yuan or more in one shop on one day, and the rate is 11% or 8% of the receipt, before the refund agent's fee. Go to customs first, then to the refund desk in the secure area. Since 1 July 2026, forms under 10,000 yuan are spot-checked rather than all inspected, so keep your goods to hand in case you are picked. The whole process can also be paperless now. Bank of China lists Hainan among the places it handles refunds. Goods already sold tax-free do not qualify.

One Day in Haikou

A full day covers the main sights, and half a day is enough if you only want the old town and dinner. Take a taxi between them, since the sights are spread out. Do not plan the museum for a Monday.

Morning: the volcano park or the museum. The Haikou Volcanic Cluster Geopark (火山口公园, Huǒshānkǒu Gōngyuán, "Crater Park") is in Shishan Town, open 8:00 to 18:00, with a benchmark ticket of 45 yuan. Go early, before the heat. The Hainan Museum on Guoxing Avenue is open Tuesday to Sunday from 9:00 to 17:00, with last entry at 16:30, and is closed on Mondays except on public holidays. You do not need to book, but you enter with valid ID, so bring your passport. It is a good choice for a rainy day.

Afternoon: mangroves. Dongzhai Harbor Mangrove (东寨港, Dōngzhài Gǎng) in Yanfeng Town, Meilan District, is open 8:30 to 18:30. The benchmark for the boardwalk is 50 yuan. It is in the same part of the city as the airport, which makes it easy to fit in on the day you arrive or leave. Wugong Temple (五公祠, Wǔgōng Cí, "Temple of the Five Lords") is a smaller option closer to town, at a benchmark of 17 yuan.

Evening: Qilou Old Street. Qilou (骑楼, qílóu) means arcaded shophouses, built with covered walkways that give shade from the sun and rain. The historic district is open from 9:00 to 21:00, and since March 2025 it has added night lighting and a north gate square, so it works well for an evening walk. Eat here, then walk it after dark.

Wenchang and Watching a Rocket Launch

Wenchang is on the north-east coast, and it is home to the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site (文昌航天发射场, Wénchāng Hángtiān Fāshèchǎng). You can visit in a day from Haikou: the fastest train takes 28 minutes from Haikou East and 18 minutes from Meilan, and the sampled second-class fare from Haikou East is 27 yuan. The station is in town, and the launch area around Longlou and Dongjiao is a drive away, so plan on a taxi or a hotel transfer.

Seeing a launch

People usually watch from beaches, hotels and roads around Longlou, and what is open changes with each launch, so ask your hotel first. Launch dates are often firm only shortly before the day. Arrive a day or two early, and keep a spare day in case of a delay. If a seller offers a seat "inside the launch site", ask exactly where it is and how you get there when roads are closed.

Roads are the main problem. Around major missions the Wenchang police close roads in Dongjiao and Longlou. The notices refer to "major tasks" and are usually linked to launches. A notice for 3–4 May 2024 closed several roads and banned parking on them, and a September 2026 notice, as reported in the media, kept tour buses off the coastal highway at Dongjiao from 04:00 to 10:00 on 17 September and required cars to book entry through a WeChat mini-program. Times and roads change each time, so check the current notice or ask your hotel. Drones are also banned at these times: in June 2026 Longlou, Dongjiao and Wenjiao towns were all a no-fly zone.

Other things to do

Tonggu Ridge (铜鼓岭, Tónggǔ Lǐng) in Longlou is a coastal hill with a benchmark ticket of 45 yuan, plus 45 yuan for the return shuttle, open 9:00 to 17:30; launch days can affect access, so check first. The Soong family home in Changsa Town is the ancestral home of the family whose daughters married Sun Yat-sen and Chiang Kai-shek, with a benchmark of 13 yuan and the same opening hours. Check the opening of any space science centre locally, because hours and booking rules can change around launches.

What to Eat

Hainan's four famous dishes are Wenchang chicken (文昌鸡, Wénchāng jī), poached and served with a ginger dip; Jiaji duck (加积鸭, Jiājī yā); Dongshan goat (东山羊, Dōngshān yáng); and Hele crab (和乐蟹, Hélè xiè). For everyday eating, try Hainan noodles (海南粉, Hǎinán fěn), rice noodles with toppings and a savoury sauce; coconut rice (椰子饭, yēzi fàn); and qingbuliang (清补凉, qīngbǔliáng), a cold coconut-milk dessert with beans and fruit that is good on a hot afternoon.

With seafood, agree the price per jin (斤, 500 g) and see the weight before it is cooked. Sanya seafood restaurants must show labelled prices, and the province can fine sellers for short weight or for swapping ingredients. In one case published in 2025, a Sanya restaurant was fined 500,000 yuan and closed for three months for swapping live seafood with dead or frozen seafood. If you have a problem in Sanya, the complaint lines are 12345 and 12315; an English speaker may not be available, so ask your hotel to help. For allergies and water safety, see our food safety guide.

Five- and Seven-Day Routes

Both routes run north to south, into Haikou and out of Sanya. This keeps the best beach days to the end and lets you use the duty-free rule on your way out. Reverse them if flights are cheaper the other way.

Five days

1. Day 1: Arrive at Haikou Meilan. Evening at Qilou Old Street.
2. Day 2: Morning at the volcano park or museum. Train to Wenchang and stay on the coast.
3. Day 3: Train to Wanning and spend the afternoon at Riyue Bay or Shimei Bay.
4. Day 4: Train to Sanya, and check in near the beach.
5. Day 5: Beach morning, duty-free shopping if you want it, and fly out.

Seven days

1. Days 1–2: Haikou, with the museum, volcano park, mangroves and Qilou.
2. Day 3: Wenchang: the coast, Tonggu Ridge or the Soong family home.
3. Day 4: Train to Bo'ao, where the Boao Forum site has a benchmark ticket of 41 yuan, then on to Wanning.
4. Day 5: A full beach or surf day in Wanning.
5. Day 6: Train to Lingshui and a transfer to Fenjiezhou Island, then on to Sanya. With luggage this is a long day, so ask your hotel about holding your bags, or skip the island.
6. Day 7: Yanoda Rainforest by car, or a Sanya beach day, and fly out that evening or the next morning.

The west coast is slower and has fewer visitor services, so leave it for a return trip. Check the last train on quieter stretches, because Bo'ao gets about 12 trains from Haikou East on the sample day, against about 31 for Lingshui.

Before you book

Check that your passport is on the 61-country list, and book a flight that lands in Hainan from abroad if you plan to use that rule. If your trip includes the mainland, choose a different entry rule or confirm with +86-12367 first. Book November to March hotels early, and earlier still for Spring Festival. Book your outbound ticket before you shop duty-free. Set up Alipay with a foreign card before you travel, since it will cover most small payments. From July to November, keep a spare day before any international flight, and when you compare travel insurance such as SafetyWing, read the wording on weather delays.

FAQ

Last updated: November 2026