Shenzhen: Coast, History and Cityscapes

Shenzhen’s regional travel themes bring together coastal landscapes and fortress history with old markets, museums and unusual replicas. To plan your trip, it helps to decide on your main focus first: should the trip centre mainly on the coast and historical heritage, or would you rather explore the city’s history and cultural sites? This decision gives your search for a holiday rental in Shenzhen a clear direction, without combining different experiences into a single neighbourhood.

Coast and fortress history in the wider area

In the wider region, Jiaochangwei stretches as a narrow coastal strip east of Dapeng Yintan Road and south of Pengfei Road, as far as Longqi Bay. The coastal figures for Dapeng New Area also give the landscape a broader scale: its coastline is 125 kilometres long, and the area includes 48 of Shenzhen’s 50 beaches.

Dapeng Fortress adds a long military history to this coastal perspective. Built in 1394, it was an important military coastal fortress in Lingnan during the Ming and Qing dynasties. In June 2001, it was designated a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit. The complex covers around 100,000 square metres and measures 345 metres from east to west and 285 metres from north to south. Its east, south and west gates are relatively well preserved. The fortress thus brings together historical significance and clearly defined architectural dimensions.

Market history and cultural heritage

Dongmen Old Street, also known as Shenzhen Dongmen Commercial Pedestrian Street, is Shenzhen’s oldest commercial district. Its history dates back to the mid-Ming dynasty, when it was still called Shenzhen Old Market. The history of Dongmen Pedestrian Street also dates back to the Ming dynasty, when Shenzhen was a market town. These historical connections give market and city history a concrete place in your travel plans.

Dongmen Cultural Square features a bronze relief of the old Dongmen market: three metres wide and 16.5 metres long, it depicts the bustling market life of Lingnan during the Ming and Qing dynasties. Guanlan Ancient Market is one of Shenzhen’s four major ancient markets and is considered the city’s best-preserved and most complete market heritage site. Nantou Ancient City is described as the origin of development in Shenzhen and Hong Kong, and its history spans 1,700 years of change. These places offer different ways to explore the past: market life, heritage and long-term urban development.

Museums, a city park and replicas

Shenzhen Museum is a national first-class museum that brings together collecting, preservation, research, exhibitions and education. It currently has four main exhibition halls: the Ancient Art Museum, the History and Folklore Museum, the Shenzhen Reform and Opening-up Exhibition Hall, and the former headquarters of the Dongjiang Guerrilla Command. The History and Folklore Museum opened in December 2008 and is located in Area A of the Shenzhen Civic Center. Covering around 10,000 square metres, it focuses primarily on Shenzhen’s history, including ancient and modern history, folk culture, and the reform and opening up of the Special Economic Zone.

Lianhua Hill Park lies on the northern edge of downtown Shenzhen. This ecological city park covers 181 hectares and officially opened to the public in June 1997. Window of the World offers a very different perspective on famous landmarks: it is a 480,000-square-metre replica park in western Shenzhen. Among its 118 attractions are replicas of Egypt’s pyramids, the Temple of Amun at Karnak, the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, the Taj Mahal in India and the Leaning Tower of Pisa in Italy. The replicas are built at a scale of 1:1 or 1:1.5. In front of the stage, visitors can watch shows and performances by artists from China and abroad; if these are important to your plans, check the schedule in advance.

Choose your focus for a holiday rental

For families, comparing these places offers various topics to explore together: a coastal fortress and its gates, depictions of old market life, and buildings recreated at different scales. Nearby, Siyue Academy and the former headquarters of the Dongjiang Guerrilla Command, also known as Ye Ting General Memorial Hall, are among the sites for anti-war education and patriotic education in the Dongmen Old Street area.

Before you start searching, consider which of these themes you want to shape your trip. Someone prioritising coastal scenery and fortress history may search differently from someone focused on museums, market history or replicas. Use these interests as a starting point, then compare the specific location details of holiday rentals with your own plans. This way, choosing accommodation becomes part of a Shenzhen trip that suits you, rather than just a search for a name on the map.

Discover more destinations

Discover more destinations: Dongguan, Jieyang, Zhongshan, Heyuan, Shaoguan, Shanwei, Zhaoqing, Qingyuan.

For the broader travel overview: Guangdong.