The sea sacrificing ceremony of the 4th Tanmen Beachcombing Festival held on Aug 11 [Photo by Yuan Chen/hinews.cn]
Three major activities with seven highlights will be spread over 16 days during the 4th Tanmen Beachcombing Festival which started on Aug 11 and will end on Aug 26.
The festival, held in Tanmen town, Qionghai city, Hainan province, was expected to expose beach combing culture to hundreds of thousands of visitors.
The event started with a ritual offering of sacrifices to the sea in the hope of having safe journeys and good harvests in the following year. It was held in an ancient ferry crossing in Tanmen where a host of folk activities were organized.
Ian, a tourist from the UK, said that he specially came to Qionghai city from Sanya to appreciate the sacrificial rituals. He believes that the event is a great move to honor and carry forward Hainan's folk culture and tradition.
Following the introductory celebrations, a fishermen's sport meet and other activities were held to offer tourists a chance to appreciate Hainan's fishing culture.
In addition to the recreational events, the National South China Sea Museum will invite scholars to give lectures on the culture and history of the South China Sea.
Qionghai in recent years has been developing its all-for-one tourism to become a city with distinctive regional features. It has seen fruitful results as 13 townships under its administration have seen improvement by providing historical memories and ethnic characteristics.
The new-type tourist town has become a demonstration of domestic urbanization construction after its transformation from a purely traditional fishery to a combination of marine fishery, leisure tourism, seafood catering, and seashell handicraft marketing.
Folk dancers perform during the 4th Tanmen Beachcombing Festival [Photo by Yuan Chen/hinews.cn]
A fisherman demonstrates how to cast a fishing net during the 4th Tanmen Beachcombing Festival. [Photo by Yuan Chen/hinews.cn]
Overview
Haikou 
Sanya 
