Happy TravellerZhuhai, also known as Chuhai, is a prefecture-level city located on the west bank of Pearl River estuary on the central coast of southern Guangdong province, Peoples Republic of China, on the southeastern edge of Pearl River Delta. Its name literally means pearl sea, which originates from the city’s location at the mouth of the Pearl River meeting the South China Sea. Zhuhai borders Jiangmen to the west, Zhongshan to the north and Macau to the southeast, and shares maritime boundaries with Shenzhen and Hong Kong to the northeast across the estuary.
Zhuhai was one of the original four Special Economic Zones established in 1980, as well as one of China’s premier tourist destinations, being called the Chinese Riviera. While the city is located in the traditionally Cantonese-speaking province of Guangdong, a significant portion of the population is now made up of Mandarin-speaking economic migrants originally from inland provinces. The core of Zhuhai, Xiangzhou District along with Macao, in the northeastern portion of the administrative division, are part of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area, the biggest built-up area in the world with more than 65,565,622 inhabitants as of the 2020 census, encompassing Shenzhen, Dongguan, Foshan, Zhongshan, Macau, the main part of Guangzhou, and small parts of Jiangmen and Huizhou cities but with Hong Kong not quite conurbated yet.
According to a report released in 2014 by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Zhuhai is the most livable city in China. The city’s climate is subtropical, with long, hot and humid summers with frequent thunderstorms, and short, mild and dry winters. Average highs in January and July are 18 and 32 °C (64 and 90 °F) respectively. Snowfalls are unknown and a frost has never been recorded in the city center.
Zhuhai is a major city in the Pearl River Delta region and a key port city, science and education city, scenic and tourism city, and as a regional hub for transportation. The outstanding geographic location, a wide range of supporting infrastructure and a deep-water port serve as a major attraction for foreign capital. Utilized foreign investment reached US$10.344 billion in 2008. Among the top 500 enterprises worldwide, 19 of them have investment projects in Zhuhai such as ExxonMobil, BP, Siemens, Carrefour and Matsushita.
Zhuhai is also known for its good climate and good air quality. Endowed with a long coastline, it is the only city on the western Pearl River Delta with natural deep-water ports. Zhuhai has two international seaports: Jiuzhou and Gaolan. Chu Kong Passenger Transport operates a ferry service between Zhuhai’s Jiuzhou Port, Hong Kong and Shekou Passenger Terminal, in the Nanshan District of Shenzhen.
Zhuhai and the surrounding landscapes have a reputation within China of being a garden city with a high quality of life. In 2002, the city attracted 1.3 million international tourists and 3.64 million domestic tourists. Following Guangzhou and Shenzhen, Zhuhai has the third largest amount of foreign tourism in the Guangdong province. Zhuhai hosts the China International Aviation & Aerospace Exhibition biannually in November. It is the largest Air Show in China and a huge tourist attraction. Realizing the benefits brought by tourism, the local government is expanding tourist destinations and is developing new spots such as Hengqin, Dongao, Hebao, Qiao and Yeli.
Come and experience the beauty and charm of Zhuhai, the Pearl Sea City, and discover why it is one of China’s premier tourist destinations.
