Dongzhaigang Mangrove Reserve

The boat ride costs 60 yuan, but it is not recommended. It is also nice to walk directly on the plank road next to the museum, which is free.

Be careful when parking. Don't park in paid parking lots, and don't park on the roadside within 50 meters of the scenic area entrance, as there will be a charge (if you park on the roadside, the old ladies will ask you for parking fees when they see you get in the car, which is a bit like being a bandit). Park on the road 200 meters away from the scenic area, the farther away from the old lady selling fruit, the better. Anyway, that road is a dead end and the police won't issue tickets.

I have been here three times and I can finally visit it. There was a plank road before, but it was demolished in 2017. This year, you can only visit it by boat. First of all, friends who drive should not enter the parking lot. Turn right at the gate of the scenic area and do not go uphill to the hotel. Enter the office building of the mangrove reserve and park next to the museum for free. The main reason is that the scenic area was closed last year, and these people still shamelessly charged 5 yuan. The boat ticket is 60, and there is no discount for Hainanese people. That's it. You take a boat the whole way. Hainanese people have seen a lot of mangroves, but the one near the sea looks a bit spectacular. You are not allowed to go up to the Wild Pineapple Island. You take a boat the whole way. The scenery is okay. There is also a 200-meter plank road behind the museum. You can get on the car directly after walking on the plank road, and you don’t have to walk to the parking lot to pay. It’s so smart haha

You can only view it from a distance by boat. The original plank road has been demolished. It's not very interesting to take a quick look.

It's too far to take the bus, and I can't get on it. The scenery on the way is okay. I don't recommend going. It's a waste of time. I was so tired that I didn't get there. There is no fixed shuttle bus. I ended up returning the same way. If you want to see it, you might as well go to Bali. There are large tracts of mangroves on the roadside, more than here, and the prices are not high. There are more beaches than here.

The scenery is still good, but unfortunately the trestle has been removed, leaving only a wasteland. It takes more than 20 minutes to take a boat tour around the half circle, which is not worth the more than two hours of round trip. However, since I came to Haikou, how can I leave this regret? After all, I was born and raised in the north, and it was the first time for me to see real mangroves, and it was the first mangrove reserve in my country - Dongzhaigang Mangrove Reserve. It's just that the attractions are too single. It would be great if the adjacent 72 underwater villages could be developed for diving.

There are two ways to go deep into the mangroves. One is to walk along a wooden fence along the river bank and watch the forest from across the river. The other is to go into the sea by boat, get close to the forest, and board the small island in the mangroves. I chose to go into the sea by boat. I rented a small boat, and there was a boatman to drive the boat and answer some of our questions. I thought that the mangroves would be a vast red, dazzling like light. When I arrived at the seaside, it should actually be the riverside where the sea water flooded in, but in front of me was an endless green jungle. Mangroves are a unique plant community on tropical seashores. When the tide rises, only the crowns are exposed.

There are antique water corridors and pavilions on the shore. There are large pleasure boats and small pleasure boats moored along the water. This is what the village prepared for tourists.

This newly developed commercial street will create a tourist and food town, and the mangrove scenery outside is beautiful.

[Note] I have seen many people posting fake travel notes. It is clear that the plank road in the scenic area has been closed and demolished since 2017, but they are still writing about the plank road tickets. I searched the text and found that it was a plagiarism of the travel notes in 2015.

After reading the ambiguous travel notes, I decided to drive there to find out for myself. I went there on October 4, 2018

The original plank roads have been completely demolished. The only way to visit is by boat, which costs 60 per person during peak season.

But after my own exploration, I found that there is a very short section of the plank road that can be visited for free! But it is quite hidden!!!

This should be a path used by conservationists in the mangrove reserve. On the path, we saw trees researched by the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

[Directions] Walk inside the cruise ticket office to the Dongzhaigang Museum. There is a large billboard on the left side of the museum. Go down the path next to it and you will find the plank road.

There is no one! It takes about an hour to visit and take pictures.

Very beautiful!!! It is really a forest on the sea. Going deep into it and seeing it with your own eyes is even more shocking. It is worth the trip

The scenery, air, sea and seafood from brackish water are all great👍

This is a natural oxygen bar. It is very relaxing to walk the 5.2-kilometer plank road back and forth. You won’t even breathe heavily. If you stay here for a while, your body will become healthier.

In August 2017, the State Environmental Protection Agency ordered the Dongzhaigang Mangrove Nature Reserve tourism project to suspend operations and rectify the situation because it was built without approval.

It's closed. I don't know when it will reopen. I took a few photos at the pier, so I can say I've been there.

Dongzhaigang mangrove forest is like what you see in "Animal World", with only the continuous green treetops on the water surface. If there is a storm on the sea, some large ships can come in for shelter, which is why the sightseeing plank road is only built around the edge. Walking on the plank road, you can also see countless hermit crabs, one big and one small, moving sideways from the cave. If you look more closely, you can also see some giant salamanders hiding at the junction of water and mud, moving vividly.

After we arrived, we found that the plank road was charged. My child said he didn't want to play anymore, so I said, "We've come all the way here, why don't we go?" After discussing for a long time, I felt that it really wasn't that interesting. The places that charge entrance fees are not as fun as the non-tourist areas. Mangroves should have a great impact on the environment. There is also a not-so-small mangrove research institute here.

Now the ones developed by the state are connected with the villages, with one ticket.

I knew about the mangroves when I was in school. It is a bit far from the city of Haikou. We went there by bike at that time. As a result, I didn’t get out of bed for a week, so it left a deep impression on me. When I arrived, the scenery didn’t attract me very much, but the scenery I encountered along the way was still good.

Transportation: There are minibuses at Wugong Temple to Dongzhaigang Mangrove Forest. According to the guide on China-TravelNote, we should find the bus to "Yanfeng" and take a tricycle to the mangrove forest after arriving at Yanfeng, but the locals told us that we should take the minibus to "Qukou" and get off directly at the entrance of the mangrove scenic area. Wugong Temple is the starting station, there is no clear sign, it is on the roadside near Wugong Temple. Ask people, the cleaners, security guards, and grocery store owners nearby will be enthusiastic to point out. The minibus to "Qukou" and the minibus to "Yanfeng" are waiting at the same place. It takes 1 hour from Wugong Temple to the Mangrove Scenic Area, and the fare is 10 yuan. The minibus from Qukou to Haikou runs about 10-15 minutes, and the last bus is at 18:00. It takes about 5 minutes to drive from the starting point Qukou Town to the entrance of the Mangrove Scenic Area, but it is safer to wait at the entrance of the scenic area ten minutes in advance.

There are two ways to visit the Mangrove Scenic Area. One is to take a boat trip, which costs 60 yuan per person. The other is to walk on the wooden plank road in the mangrove forest, which costs 26 yuan per person. This scenic area is called "free", but if you don't choose one of the above two ways, you won't be able to see the true appearance of the mangrove forest. It is recommended to walk on the plank road, where you can walk and stop at will and control your own time. Once you get on the boat, you have no choice.

If Haikou Volcano Park is a relic from tens of millions of years ago, the history of Dongzhaigang is only a fraction of that. 400 years ago, a major earthquake caused the land to sink into the sea, and Dongzhaigang was formed. Since then, mangroves have gradually spread along the coast and formed forests. In 1986, Dongzhaigang Mangrove Forest became China's first mangrove wetland nature reserve.

At dusk, the occasional passing cruise ship will roll over a few white waves on the river surface and then disappear. The surroundings are quiet, so quiet that you can almost hear the low whispers of birds in the woods. If you look closely, you will see egrets flying among the trees on the other side of the river. Under the plank road, groups of fiddler crabs are happily blowing bubbles in the mud. There is a section of the plank road that crosses above the mangroves and is specially made with a transparent bottom. The glass plank road here is not for testing courage, but for allowing tourists to clearly overlook every branch and leaf of the mangroves under their feet.

There is a tourist service center in the middle of the plank road, with some stalls selling drinks, snacks, and souvenirs at reasonable prices. There is also a toilet (don't miss it, there will be no more later)

You don’t have to visit the scenic area to visit the mangroves. If you know how to find them, you can visit them from many places. Don’t underestimate these seaside ecosystems. For animals and plants, it is a paradise.

The most worth seeing is the glass plank road, the rest is just ok

The biggest attraction here is the large mangroves growing in the sea. The scenery is actually average, but there are many water birds. If you like to take pictures of birds, you can bring a telephoto lens. There are few people and the environment is very quiet. It is suitable for taking a walk and relaxing. It feels good to walk along the winding wooden plank road leisurely.

Instead of taking the boat (60 per person), walk on the plank road, which is still free! It feels the same no matter how you walk, it's fine to relax. However, this mangrove forest is really large, and there is a glass plank road behind it.

On one side is a long plank road. Because it is too hot, you can take a boat tour if you don’t finish walking.

The environment of this place is clean and tidy. There is a viewing platform at the bend of the river, where you can see the scenery on both sides of the river. It is a place to rest.

Located on the east side of Yanfeng Town in the southeast of Haikou, there are minibuses from Wugong Temple (west side of the intersection) and South Bus Station in Haikou City to Qukou directly to the ticket office of the scenic spot (10 yuan/person, and the minibus goes directly to Wugong Temple when returning to the city). There are wooden plank roads and cruise ships to visit the scenic spot. Since May 2015, the wooden plank road has been charged, 22 yuan/person in the off-season from May to September, and 26 yuan/person in the peak season from October to April. The wooden plank road is 2.8km long and takes about 2 hours to go back and forth. The cost of the scenic boat tour is 60 yuan/person (you cannot go to Wild Pineapple Island, and the cost of the wooden plank road is not included. You have to buy a ticket to walk on the wooden plank road); private cruise ships are said to be able to go to Wild Pineapple Island, and the cost needs to be bargained with them (the price is lower than the scenic boat price if there are more people).

The endless woods are so beautiful that they couldn't be more beautiful. I also tasted the local duck eggs☺☺

Dongzhaigang Mangrove Nature Reserve is shaped like a funnel due to the land sinking into the sea. The coastline is tortuous and has many bays. The lagoon beach is flat. Mangroves are distributed on the entire coastal shoal. It is not only the largest mangrove nature reserve in China, but also one of the top ten tourism development zones in Hainan Province. The area has the largest, most complete and best-preserved mangroves in the country. There are 32 species of mangrove plants in 16 families, among which water coconut, red olive plum, Hainan sonneratia, ovalileaf sonneratia, pseudo-sonatia, Chinese fructus chinae, true mangrove, and sharp-leaved halogen fern are precious tree species.

Fresh air and beautiful scenery! It is said that the boats in the scenic area never need to be cleaned and there will be no dust accumulation. I personally experienced it and it is true. Sitting on the boat, enjoying the beautiful scenery on both sides, swimming fish, flying birds, and crabs on the branches, makes people feel refreshed and reluctant to leave. A group of people rode to a scenic spot under construction nearby. The wooden trestle meanders along the river bank. As far as the eye can see, there is a green sea of ​​mangroves. The only restaurant, the food tastes great!

After more than an hour's drive, we arrived at the mangroves smoothly. The driver told us that the bus would go back at 11 o'clock, and if we wanted to do it, we should wait there. We quickly confirmed and got off the bus.

There are two ways to play in the mangrove forest, one is to take a boat, and the other is to walk on the plank road. There are state-owned boats and local farmers' boats.

Let's talk about boating first. You can go to the state-owned dock. They are all battery boats. The prices are different in off-season and peak season, and they are clearly marked. Farmers' boats are diesel boats, and you can bargain. They are usually the same price as state-owned boats. You can look at the price first to get a rough idea. State-owned boats are not allowed to go to Pineapple Island, but farmers' boats can. Farmers' boats smell a little bit better, but everything else is the same.

After returning from the boat, we bought tickets for the plank road, which is only operated by the state-owned enterprise. When we went there, the plank road was divided into several sections, and there were people checking tickets at each section. You can see more clearly when walking on the plank road, and there are nameplates explaining things, but it was too hot when we went there, and there was no shelter, which was very challenging.

When we arrived at the Dongzhai Mangrove Tourist Area, we got off the bus to visit, but bicycles were not allowed on the plank road, so we could only watch from the observation deck.

Take the Shanghai-Wenzhou Expressway out of the city, exit at Meilan or Yanfeng, and follow X104 to Yanfeng. Do not enter the town and drive all the way to the Mangrove Reserve Management Station.

Dongzhaigang is a large inland sea. A small river flows into the inland sea near Yanfeng Town. The wide estuary area forms a special environment required for the growth of mangroves. Therefore, dense mangroves grow in this estuary that is alternately flooded by fresh and salt water.

Finally, we got together 6 people and we went on a boat tour. The boat sailed along the river, with dense mangroves on both sides, a wooden plank road on one side and a pristine mangrove beach on the other. The boat stopped moving forward at the river mouth and docked on the pristine beach side.

Except for boat rides, the entire Dongzhaigang scenic area is free. I guess when the plank road is officially opened, there will be an entrance fee. If there is a fee, readers can consider the purpose of coming. I think the mangrove landscape here is relatively plain, because the plank road here is along the coast instead of passing through the mangroves. It would be nice to come to the farmhouse here to eat fish or go on a picnic. I saw that the villagers caught a big fish, but I don’t know what kind of fish it is.

Before I came here, I dreamed of a tree growing in the sea. The sea was very blue. The roots and waist of the tree were immersed in the sea water. The tree was tall and straight. The branches were full of green leaves. It looked like a poplar tree. There were blue jellyfish in the water.

I didn't expect that there are such trees in real life. It's really incredible.

But it's not as beautiful as I imagined.

The water is not very clean and there is not enough water. The trees are also messy and not very tall.

The environment has been severely damaged. Maybe they looked like what I imagined decades or hundreds of years ago.

We took a yacht through the river of Dongzhaigang Mangrove Nature Reserve. There were green mangroves on both sides, and one or two water birds flew out of the forest from time to time. The scenery was very beautiful.