Sijiao Island 泗礁岛

About Sijiao Island

Sijiao Island (泗礁岛) is the largest island of the Shengsi Islands (嵊泗列岛) in the northern Zhoushan Archipelago (舟山群岛), Zhejiang, and holds the seat of Shengsi County (嵊泗县), about 54 km from Nanhuizui (南汇嘴) on the Shanghai coast.

The island covers 25.88 square kilometres, 21.35 of them land, and is shared between Caiyuan Town (菜园镇) and Wulong Township (五龙乡). The waters around the archipelago are a known fishing ground for hairtail, cuttlefish and large and small yellow croaker. In its island-by-island tourism plan, Shengsi County gives Sijiao the theme of a 'slow city on the sea' (海上慢城).

Jihu Beach (基湖沙滩) is listed by Chinese Wikipedia as the archipelago's main sight. A Jihu Beach restoration project was among the ecological works Shengsi County was pressing ahead with in 2021, and by 2024 the beach had a sea-sports base and a campervan site. Dabei Mountain (大悲山), on the east of the island, rises between the ridges to its west and the sea to its east and forms a triangle with Jihu and Nanchangtu (南长涂) beaches; from the top the view takes in Huaniao (花鸟), Lühua (绿华), Gouqi (枸杞) and Huanglong (黄龙) islands. Lingyin Chan Temple (灵音禅寺) stands on the mountain. Liujingtou (六井头), the island's easternmost point, faces the open East China Sea and is known as a place to watch the sun rise over the water.

A round-island coast road circles Sijiao: the roughly 80 km route of the 2025 round-Shengsi cycling rally covered most of Sijiao's shoreline, passing the villages of Jihu, Gaochangwan (高场湾), Shizhu (石柱), Tian'ao (田岙), Huangsha (黄沙), Bianjiao (边礁) and Huicheng (会城), all A-grade scenic villages, and the Zuoan road (左岸公路), named Zhejiang's most beautiful greenway. Several villages present fishing culture: Huangsha has an open-air museum called 'Memory of Boats' (船的记忆), Bianjiao a hall of fishermen's songs and work chants, and Shizhu a pier for leisure fishing boats. Shengsi fishing songs (嵊泗渔歌) are on the fifth national list of intangible cultural heritage.

What to look for

• Jihu Beach (基湖沙滩), the archipelago's main tourist sight, with a sea-sports base
• Dabei Mountain (大悲山) and Lingyin Chan Temple (灵音禅寺), with views over Huaniao, Lühua, Gouqi and Huanglong islands
• Liujingtou (六井头), the island's eastern tip, for sunrise over the East China Sea
• The Zuoan road (左岸公路), a coastal road named Zhejiang's most beautiful greenway
• The 'Memory of Boats' (船的记忆) open-air museum in Huangsha village
• The fishing-song and work-chant hall (渔歌号子馆) in Bianjiao village

Location & getting there

Getting to Sijiao Island

• Search for 泗礁岛 with 舟山市 and 嵊泗县.