Enjoying Coconut Freedom in Haikou, Hainan: A Relaxing Day of Eating and Drinking

Here is 'Nightmare Infinity''s travel to Hainan, sharing my interesting journey and observations.

Every place experiences shifts in reputation depending on how many tourists visit, leading to polarization. Recently, Hainan's reputation hasn't been great, primarily due to exorbitant prices in some areas and the concentration of domestic and international tourists, which has negatively impacted the overall tourism experience.

Apparently, these issues are all centered around Hainan's flagship tourist destinations like Sanya, but for Hainan's provincial capital, Haikou, the personal travel experience is surprisingly delightful.

Recently 'off-season travel' to Hainan's provincial capital, Haikou, because I hadn't thoroughly researched beforehand, I could only wander around like a clueless tourist, occasionally getting 'ripped off.' But even so, I had a good experience because I discovered that after arriving in 'Coconut City,' it turned out that the focus wasn't on the play, but on the food.

Haikou's abundance of local snacks is breathtaking, leading to endless choices and difficulty in selection, so I had to eat four or more meals a day to minimize the regret of not being able to fully experience this trip.

What's most striking about Haikou is the rows of coconut trees lining the main roads. Unlike other coastal cities in China, here, coconut trees are almost ubiquitous, and the fruit hangs abundantly, occasionally dropping down for passersby to taste. Experiencing coconut—a regular part of the 'Coconut City' experience—is an established process. In large cities, especially in Beijing, Shanghai, a coconut only slightly larger than a clenched fist would cost around 10 yuan, and the sweetness would typically be mediocre. But Hainan's coconuts are remarkably generous: for half the price, you get a coconut 2-3 times larger, with richer coconut flavor and sweeter juice.

Even when visiting the 'rip-off zones' in attractions, if you pay 8-10 yuan, tourists are delighted, and the vendors also secretly rejoice and make a little extra profit—it's a win-win situation!

Drinking coconut juice is just a snack; a meal consists of three courses.

If you're exploring the famous Qilihe area, you'll find several small roads packed with unassuming small snack shops selling various noodles and soups. You can try different dishes for every meal, preventing boredom even after several days.

For example, Hainan Powder is one of the most authentic local snacks that tourists shouldn't miss.

Hainan Powder is eaten cold – actually, locals call it 'preserved powder.' It's refreshing, slightly spicy, and the last bite is always topped with a hot bowl of sea snail soup, providing a satisfying feeling that lingers.

If you don't want to eat cold noodles, you can try hot and soup-based noodles, such as Houan Powder.

If you search for Houan Powder on a map, you'll find that many shops have similar names, but Houan is actually a town under the Ningbing City of Hainan Province. Houan Town, as many people from Ningbing work in Haikou, they 'conveniently' bring local Houan Powder with them. Over time, it has become a famous snack in Hainan.

Houan Powder's key is the soup. Houan Powder's broth is made with pork bones, pork intestines, pig's large intestines, and a secret recipe passed down through the shop owner's family, combined with rectangular Hainanese rice, and pig's trotters, beef tripe, etc. The noodles are smooth and chewy, and the rich broth complements them perfectly. For those who like soup noodles, Houan Powder is a must-try.

Meanwhile, for dinner, if you've had enough noodles, you can try another local snack, Spicy Rice Noodle.

The standard Spicy Rice Noodle set includes a bold pepper soup, Hainanese rice, fragrant smoked sausage, and a half-cooked egg. When drinking the soup, if you only drink the soup, the flavor will be halved, you must add sour bean curd to drink with pig's trotters, otherwise, the soup will be just right. The pig's trotters are soft and chewy, and one sip makes the already robust person feel even more 'frosty' but they all praise it.

So, have you traveled to Hainan? Have you been to Haikou's provincial capital, Haikou? What local delicacies do you know in Haikou? If you have the opportunity, would you go to Haikou to try local specialties? Welcome to leave comments!

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