Stand on the pier at the Liugong Island Tourist Wharf on North Haibin Road and you watch the ferry cross to the island that shelters Weihai's harbour. Behind you the city runs along the coast; ahead is the wooded ridge that held a Royal Navy base when Weihaiwei was leased by the United Kingdom from 1898 until 1930.
Weihai suits travellers who want sea air, a morning of modern Chinese history and an afternoon on a beach, rather than a packed schedule of monuments. The city faces the Yellow Sea on three sides, so most of what is worth your time sits along the water or on the water. This guide covers the sights and experiences named in the source material, ordered so the strongest come first, and closes with a plan for a single day.
Top things to do in Weihai
1. Liugong Island
The island in Huancui District is the anchor of any visit to Weihai. It sits inside the city, reached by ferry from the Liugong Island Tourist Wharf on North Haibin Road, and it holds the core of the city's modern history: the British lease, the naval base, and the war that reshaped the region. The island also has its own hotel, the Liugong Island Hotel, if you would rather not rush back the same day.
Practical notes: the earliest ferry departs at 07:10 and the latest at 16:00, and the last ferry back to the mainland leaves the island at 18:30. General admission is ¥122, with a round-the-island boat cruise at ¥60, a one-way cable car ticket at ¥30 or ¥60 for a two-way ticket, and a sightseeing car at ¥20.
2. Museum of the First Sino-Japanese War
On Dinggong Road on Liugong Island, a short distance east of the ferry terminal on the south coast, this museum covers the war of 1894–95, which Japan won. It is the single best place to make sense of why the island matters before you walk the rest of it. Admission is free.
Pair it with the Weihai Naval School, which is in the southwestern part of the island. Both keep the same hours: 08:30–16:30 in the slack season and 07:30–18:00 in peak season, with no entry in the last 30 minutes.
3. Weihai Naval School
Also on Liugong Island, in the southwestern part, the naval school was established in 1890 by the Qing imperial government and abandoned in 1895 when the Japanese occupied the island. It is a short, sober stop that fills in the story told at the museum. Admission is free, and the hours match the museum's.
Because both sit on the island, the sensible approach is to take the ferry over, see the museum and the school, and then use the cable car or a walk to see the rest of Liugong Island before the last ferry.
4. Chengshantou National Key Scenic Area
In Xixiakou Village, Chengshan Town, Rongcheng City, Chengshantou is the easternmost end of the Chengshan Mountains, surrounded by the sea on three sides and joined to the land on one. It is known as the first place to see the sunrise at sea, and it has been called "the place where the sun rises" since it was named Chaowu in the Spring and Autumn Period.
Go for the sunrise if you can manage the early start, since that is the point of the place. The site sits close to the main north–south international shipping channel, so the view out to sea is part of the experience.
5. Weihai Motianling Cableway
North of the Chengshantou Scenic Area, this cableway connects Chengshantou and the Motianling Scenic Area and runs about 3,000 metres across the sea. The whole journey takes about 30 minutes, and the ride gives you the mountains-and-sea scenery from above.
The obvious combination is to see Chengshantou and then take the cableway, or the reverse, so you cover both in one trip out to Rongcheng.
6. Weihai Museum
Weihai's main museum is on level 3 of the Weihai Arts & Culture Center at 2A Jimo Road in Huancui District. It is free, and it is the right place to put the city's history in order before or after the island. It is closed on Mondays and open 09:00–16:30.
A bus stop sits just outside the Weihai Arts and Culture Center, served by many routes including 1, 11, 12, 23, 24, 26, 33, 36, 37, 41, 43, 49, 50, 52, 53, 101, 107, 109, 110, 112, 115, 117, 118, k2, k3 and k6.
7. First World War Chinese Laborers Memorial
At 9 Lianlindao Road in Huancui District, this memorial opened in July 2020 and is dedicated to the tens of thousands of Chinese workers employed as labourers by French and British forces in Europe during the First World War. It is administered by the Weihai Museum and admission is free.
It is open 08:30–20:00 and closed on Mondays. Take bus no. 4 and get off at the Weihai Hotel; the memorial is about 440 metres from there.
8. Weihai Huaxia City scenic spot
On Huaxia Road in Huancui District, this scenic spot is open 08:00–17:10. Adult tickets are ¥88, with ¥49 for children and for senior citizens. Bus no. 58 runs from the sea Park through the railway station to the Huaxia City scenic area.
It works well as a half-day stop on a day when the weather keeps you off the water.
9. Xixiakou zoo
In Xixiakou Village, Chengshan Town, on Yuxia Road in Rongcheng, the zoo is open 7:30–17:30. Adult tickets are ¥160; children between 1.2m and 1.4m and visitors aged 60 to 70 pay ¥80; children under 1.2m, visitors over 70 and disabled revolutionary soldiers enter free.
By car from Rongcheng or Weihai, follow the road east to the top of the mountain. A free bus to the zoo runs every half hour, and from Xixiakou village a bus leaves every half hour for Weihai City and Chengshantou, so you can link the zoo with the coast.
10. Weihai International Bathing Beach
At 178 North Huanhai Road in Huancui District, this is a free beach open 09:00–18:00. From the train station or bus station, take bus 12 to Weihai TV station, then bus 7 to the international beach Huiyuan apartment stop.
It is the easiest swimming stop in the city, and it sits near the Golden Bay Pier, so you can combine a swim with the sunset view.
11. Golden Bay Pier
At No. 128 Huanhai Road, near the Weihai International Bathing Beach, the pier is about 110 metres long and known for its inverted high-note shape and its sea view. It is a good place to watch the sunset and feel the sea breeze, and it suits a slow hour with a camera.
Come in the late afternoon so you are already in place as the light goes.
12. Half Moon Bay Beach
Near 43 Huanhai Road in Sunjiatuan Town, Huancui District, this is a natural beach named for its crescent-shaped coastline. The sand is fine, the water is clear and the setting is quiet, which makes it suitable for family play, walking or simply watching the sea.
Facilities around the beach are simple and the natural character is preserved, so bring what you need rather than expecting services. It is a good choice when you want to get away from busier stretches of coast.
13. Sunset Bay
At 文化西路358号, near the Second International Bathing Beach, Sunset Bay is a wide, clear-water beach and a fine place to watch the sun go down, when the golden afterglow falls across the sea. It is a wild bathing beach with limited facilities, so the appeal is the scenery rather than the amenities.
Treat it as a relaxed end to a day on the coast and bring your own supplies.
14. Han yue fang
Han yue fang is worth an evening. A night market opens at 5 PM, and there are many Korean food shops nearby — a natural fit in a city with a large Korean business community and many Korean visitors.
Come hungry and come after five, when the market is running.
15. Huoju 8 jie
Huoju 8 jie has a distinctive architectural style: the buildings here are mainly European in style, with green plants and flowers along both sides of the street. It is a short, easy walk that gives you a different face of the city from the coast and the island.
Combine it with an evening at Han yue fang, since both are best in the later part of the day.
16. Happiness Gate
Happiness Gate is known as the "gate of Weihai" and stands as a symbol of the modern city image. It is located 100 metres south of Weihai Old Port and belongs to one of the landscapes of Happiness Park. It is open 8:30–17:00.
It pairs naturally with a walk along the waterfront, and with Weihai Park, which is on Haibin Middle Road and open all day at no charge.
If you only have one day
Morning. Take the earliest practical ferry from the Liugong Island Tourist Wharf on North Haibin Road to Liugong Island. Start at the Museum of the First Sino-Japanese War on Dinggong Road, a short distance east of the ferry terminal, then walk to the Weihai Naval School in the southwestern part of the island. Check the ferry times as you go: the last ferry back to the mainland departs the island at 18:30.
Afternoon. Return to the mainland and head to Weihai Park on Haibin Middle Road, which is free and open all day, then walk to Happiness Gate, 100 metres south of Weihai Old Port, which is open 8:30–17:00. If the weather is warm and you still have time, finish at Weihai International Bathing Beach on North Huanhai Road, open 09:00–18:00.
Evening. Go to Golden Bay Pier on Huanhai Road for the sunset and the sea breeze, then eat at Han yue fang, where the night market opens at 5 PM and the Korean food shops nearby are the draw.
Frequently asked questions
How do I get to Liugong Island?
Take a ferry from the Liugong Island Tourist Wharf on North Haibin Road in Huancui District. The earliest ferry departs at 07:10 and the latest at 16:00, and the last ferry back to the mainland leaves the island at 18:30.
Which sights on Liugong Island are free?
The Museum of the First Sino-Japanese War and the Weihai Naval School are both free. General admission to Liugong Island itself is ¥122, with separate charges for the round-the-island boat cruise, the cable car and the sightseeing car.
Where can I watch the sunrise and the sunset?
Chengshantou in Rongcheng City is the first place to see the sunrise at sea. For sunset, Golden Bay Pier near the Weihai International Bathing Beach and Sunset Bay near the Second International Bathing Beach are both named for the view.
When is the Weihai Museum open?
Weihai Museum is open 09:00–16:30 and closed on Mondays. It is on level 3 of the Weihai Arts & Culture Center at 2A Jimo Road in Huancui District, and admission is free.
Decide which side of the city you want first — the island and its history, or the coast and its beaches — and start building your days around the ferry times and the sunset.