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Sanya Hainan Shopping Guide: What to buy and where to go in Sanya

What to buy in Sanya Hainan Island:

hinking about what to bring home for your family, looking for Sanya Souvenirs, please check out recommended souvenirs to bring home from Sanya.

Your first impression of Sanya’s shopping scene may be “seen it, bought it.” Much of the products you’ll be bombarded with can be found at other islands around the globe or at other tourist destinations within China. Straw hats, Hawaiian style beach shirts and, of course, the staple in practically every Chinese city, pearls. But hunt around a little harder and you’ll find some bargains with a little more local flavor. No matter where you go shopping or what you buy, whether in street stalls or specialty shops, remember to bring your hard bargaining face. Crafty vendors are more than happy to lighten your cash load.

Pearls
Odds are slim that you’ll leave Sanya without buying pearls. Local women wearing floppy straw hats and colorful, loose fitting pants wander up and down Dadonghai beach at all hours of the day carting baskets overflowing with bracelets, earrings and necklaces. Whether you like your necklaces long, short, delicate, pink, white, black or lavender, these ladies have them all. Even if you have resolutely decided you don’t want to buy, these women think nothing of plopping down beside you, making small chat and waiting you out; before you know it your limbs will be covered in multicolored strings of pearls, regardless if you initially wanted them.

The pearls sold on the beach are a mix of rejects from factories and cheap fakes. The rejects have little wrong except slight imperfections in color, shape or size that make them unsuitable for commercial shops. The women will scratch the pearls with scissors to show you their authenticity. If the color flakes off, they’re fakes. A real pearl will produce pearl powder when scratched, but the color and surface won’t be damaged. However, be warned that there are great imitations out there that can fool even the most discerning of eyes. Be sure to bargain hard, as the women will try to charge exorbitant prices. Necklaces can usually be bargained down to USD10. Or you can get about 50-70% off the first price.

Where to go for pearls in Sanya? 

If you doubt your eagle eye, it’s best to head to one of the larger factories. Try Haiyu Pearl Factory海钰珍珠, where you can watch the entire pearl cultivation process and view exhibitions. If you like what you see, you can buy away. Fresh water pearls sell for around CNY300-1000 per necklace, while seawater pearls can run over from CNY2000 to a million per necklace. Be careful though – even in these factories you need to pay attention to quality.

Join our tour with Haiyun Pearl Shopping Center

Pearl Cream and Powder
According to the Chinese, pearls are the fountain of youth. Women swear by the pearl’s beauty benefits, as its powder is supposed to keep your skin soft, wrinkle-free and young. Most department stores and cosmetic shops sell a number of brands of pearl cream, lotion and powder. If you’ve spent a long day in the sun and come away from the beach with a bad burn, several specialized pearl lotions work like aloe vera gel to prevent peeling.

You can get Pearl Cream and powers in most department stores

Candies in Sanya from coconuts

Step into almost any souvenir shop or supermarket in Sanya and you’ll be greeted by wooden barrels brimming with all manner of fruit and coffee flavored sweets. The coffee candies make for a great subtle caffeine fix while the coconut hard candies are smooth and creamy. If you prefer something to chew on, try the soft coconut and mango gummy candies – these juicy little squares are bursting with exotic island flavors. If you like what you taste, buy a bunch, stuff your carry on and take them back as gifts for colleagues.

Dried Seafood and Tropical Fruits

If you can brave the smell, wander through Sanya’s dried seafood markets. Squid, tuna, mackerel, shrimp, scallops and other unidentifiable creatures look like they swam up from the darkest depths of the ocean only to land on the table of a fanatical drier. Supposedly some of these dehydrated delicacies have medicinal properties. The dried sea snake can reduce fevers and improve blood circulation. Sea cucumbers (there are over 18 species in Hainan) are high in protein and are used in many traditional Chinese medicines. Reconstituting these sea creatures so that they’re edible can require from one hour to even one day of preparation, involving a witches brew recipe of soaking, simmering and boiling. If you want dried products that are easier on your nose, try the dried coconut, mango, pineapple and bananas.

If you can brave the smell, wander through Sanya’s dried seafood markets. Squid, tuna, mackerel, shrimp, scallops and other unidentifiable creatures look like they swam up from the darkest depths of the ocean only to land on the table of a fanatical drier. Supposedly some of these dehydrated delicacies have medicinal properties. The dried sea snake can reduce fevers and improve blood circulation. Sea cucumbers (there are over 18 species in Hainan) are high in protein and are used in many traditional Chinese medicines. Reconstituting these sea creatures so that they’re edible can require from one hour to even one day of preparation, involving a witches brew recipe of soaking, simmering and boiling. If you want dried products that are easier on your nose, try the dried coconut, mango, pineapple and bananas.

Coffee, Tea and Pepper

The breezy slopes of Hainan make for prime coffee, tea and pepper growing conditions. Whole bean or ground coffee costs around RMB30-50 per package in supermarkets. The price of tea is about the same. Hainan’s white and black pepper is also well known and perfect for spicing up home cooking. Supermarkets, like the Summer Mall in Dadonghai, sell bottles of pepper for RMB20 per package.

Local handicrafts

Street hawkers, gift shops and local mountain villages sell a variety of crafts like coconut, wood and shell carvings, as well as local Li, Miao and Hui minority clothing and batiks. However, most of these items are mass-produced and can be found virtually anywhere in China, so peruse carefully for products with more authentic local flavor.

Shopping Centers in Sanya, where to go for shopping in Sanya:

Thinking about what to bring home for your family, looking for Sanya Souvenirs, please check out recommended shop lists in Sanya.

Name Remarks
Jiefanglu Shopping Street解放路步行街 Prices are flexible, please bargain at least 20% off. Some shops accept credit card. Shoes, clothes, fake bags, wallet, cosmetics. fixed prices. some shops accepts credit cards, The biggest Supermarket Wanghao is just steps away. Easy to step into KFC and Mc Donald.
Hongqi jie 红旗街 For real Sanya shopping, visit Hongqi Street, great shopping at night market too, maybe the cheapest place you could find in Sanya for everything from sandals to clocks
Yuejin Lu跃进路 Great place to buy local handcrafts and pearls, remember to bargain at least 50% off the prices by the shop owners.
No.1 Market
第一市场
Prices are flexible, please bargain at least 30% -50% off, the biggest grocery market in Sanya for raw & dried seafood, local handcrafts, vegetables, tropical fruits, a good place to explore real Sanya life, great night market.
International Shopping Center 国际购物中心 fix prices, credit card accepted. shoes, clothes, fake bags, wallet, cosmetics. fixed prices. some shops accepts credit cards. Easy to step into KFC & Pizza Hut.
Yifang Department Store 一方百货  fix prices, credit card accepted, shoes, clothes, cosmetics.
Mingzhu Square
明珠广场
Sanya’s biggest department store, everything you need from food, drinks, clothes, shoes, computer parts, furniture, restaurants. The only Cinema of Sanya on the 7th floor
Summer Mall
夏日百货
fix prices, credit card accepted. Shoes, clothes, local specials, food, drinks, imported products, but prices are around 10-30% higher than downtown Sanya shops. Pizza Hut on the first floor.
Haiyu Pearl Factory 海钰珍珠
By bus No. 3 from Downtown Sanya, good tour to a pearl cultivation process even you don’t buy. Fresh water pearls, sea pearls, pearl creams and powder

For guests stay in Yalong Bay, Yalong Bay outlet is a nice place to go for shopping and local dining.

Sanya Duty Free Shopping Center in Haitang Bay: The new must visit shopping center in Sanya

Remarks: International credit cards are not widely accepted in Sanya, only  in some big shopping centers, such as Mingzhu Square明珠广场, Buxingjie步行街, Tianhong shopping center天鸿商场, Baosheng Square宝盛广场,Yifangbaihuo一方百货etc. So for shopping, Cash is always the best.

So with the above Sanya Hainan Shopping Guidem, you know what to buy and where to go in Sanya