Shenzhen After Hours: A Few Places for Weeknights and Weekends

Shenzhen is a city well suited to “relaxing close to home.” You don’t have to set aside a whole day or drive far—the three hours after work, or a single weekend evening, is enough to switch from the office tower to the wind on a mountaintop, a sunset over the sea, or the incense smoke of a temple.

Below are five places within urban Shenzhen that I frequent myself and am happy to recommend. Most of them revolve around a single thing—watching the sunset, the night view, or the sea—and the barrier to entry is low for all of them. Some you can even go to on a whim right after work.

Tanglang Mountain: Chasing the Sunset After Work

Overview

• Location: Urban Shenzhen
• Duration: An evening after work (round trip within 3 hours)
• Getting there: Bus, taxi, or driving all work
• Cost estimate: Under 100 yuan (1 person, transport)
• Physical effort: 2 stars
• Suitable for: Anyone in good health
• Season and weather: July–August recommended; the sun sets around 19:10 in Shenzhen at this time, so leaving the office at six leaves plenty of time to reach the summit and see the sun off, and the sunsets this season are especially beautiful
• Main attraction: Chasing the summit sunset after work

After discovering that “hiking after work can catch the sunset,” a dull workday suddenly gained a bit of fun. One moment you’re at your desk writing code, and an hour later you’re standing on the summit in the wind, watching the sun slowly sink. That experience is hard to describe: your brain hasn’t yet shaken off the fatigue of work, yet the scenery around you keeps reminding you—relax, you’re already in another world, just enjoy life. The open view plus a gorgeous sunset is enough to sweep away the whole day’s exhaustion.

Detailed Guide

1. Take a taxi to “Longzhumen Entrance”; in July–August the sunset is around 19:10
   • If you’re reasonably fit, budget about half an hour for the climb—arrive at the entrance before 18:40
   • If you don’t usually exercise, budget at least an hour—arrive at the entrance before 18:10
2. Once at the trailhead, just follow the steps all the way up; don’t take the main road, it’s very slow
3. After watching the sunset at the summit, there are two ways down, both ending back at the original trailhead:
   • Down the same steps: faster (about half an hour), but there are no streetlights, and going down the steps is hard on the knees—take the steps if you’re pressed for time
   • Down the winding mountain road: slower (about an hour and a half), but it has streetlights and a relatively gentle surface—recommended if you’re not in a hurry

Mangrove Park: Watching the Sun Sink Below the Horizon

Overview

• Location: Bao’an West Bay Mangrove Park, Shenzhen
• Duration: An evening (about 2 hours)
• Getting there: Bus, taxi, or driving all work
• Cost estimate: Under 100 yuan (1 person, transport)
• Physical effort: 1 star
• Suitable for: Families with kids, the elderly, and couples
• Season and weather: The sunset looks better under clear skies
• Main attraction: A gorgeous sunset over the sea

Bao’an West Bay Mangrove Park is one of the best sunset-viewing spots in urban Shenzhen. Looking out at the distant sunset across the Guangzhou–Shenzhen Coastal Expressway, the photos come out especially nice, and people often come specifically with their DSLRs. Even shooting casually with just a phone, the sunset here is worth seeing in person.

Detailed Guide

Take transit or drive, navigating to “Bao’an West Bay Mangrove Park.” The nearby parking lot is large, so parking isn’t a concern. Just mind the sunset time—around 19:10 in July–August. Before you set out, search for “Shenzhen sunset time” so you don’t miss it.

Shekou Cruise · Greater Bay Area No. 1: Live Music and Sea Views at Sea

Overview

• Location: Shekou Cruise Home Port
• Duration: An evening (about 4 hours)
• Getting there: Take transit to “Shekou Cruise Home Port” and board; after the sea tour, the cruise returns to the original port
• Cost estimate: Around 300 yuan (1 person, transport + ticket + snacks)
• Physical effort: 1 star
• Suitable for: Families with kids, the elderly, and couples
• Season and weather: Any season; there’s air conditioning aboard, and on summer days the sea breeze on deck keeps it cool. The 6 p.m. ticket is recommended—you’ll catch daytime, sunset, and night views all in one go
• Main attractions: Sunset at sea, the sea-breeze concert on deck, the onboard magic show, passing under the Hong Kong–Zhuhai–Macao Bridge, the night view of Shekou Port

Watching the sunset at sea. The biggest difference between watching the sunset from a cruise versus from a park is that the boat is moving and the scenery keeps changing. The backdrop for the sunset can be the horizon, a small island, a cruise ship, even the Hong Kong–Zhuhai–Macao Bridge. Being able to experience so many different views in the same place is an immense joy.

The sea-breeze concert on deck. It’s really just a band performing on deck. Sitting on the open-air deck, drinking a beer and listening to the band sing pop songs by Jay Chou, Mayday, and the like, is perfect for unwinding.

The onboard magic show. I didn’t have high expectations, but I came away genuinely impressed (the magician was the champion of some competition—really skilled). The atmosphere was great and it’s worth seeing—I was just so absorbed that I forgot to take photos.

Passing under the Hong Kong–Zhuhai–Macao Bridge. This is probably one of the cruise’s main selling points. As the cruise approaches the bridge, the staff announce over the PA that everyone should head to the deck, and then the boat slowly passes beneath it, with “Ode to the Motherland” playing over the speakers and a detailed introduction to the Hong Kong–Zhuhai–Macao Bridge—full of patriotic sentiment, and a great experience to bring older relatives along for.

The night view of Shekou Port. By the time the cruise returns to Shekou Port, night has fallen and all the port’s lights are on. Taking in the night view of Shekou Port up close along the route is a wonderful experience.

Detailed Guide

To prepare in advance:

• Tickets: Just buy “Greater Bay Area No. 1” tickets directly on Ctrip or the “China Merchants Cruise” official account; I personally recommend the 6 p.m. departure, so you can catch both the sunset and the night view
• ID card: You’ll need to scan your ID both to collect your ticket and to board

Itinerary:

1. Navigate to “Shekou Cruise Home Port”
2. Once at the port, go in and head to the left, following the signs up to the second floor to collect your ticket and board
3. After the sea tour, the cruise returns to its departure point—just retrace your steps

Hongfa Temple: Said to “Answer Every Prayer”

Overview

• Location: Luohu, Shenzhen
• Duration: An afternoon (about 3 hours)
• Getting there: Transit or driving both work
• Cost estimate: Under 100 yuan (1 person, transport)
• Physical effort: 1 star
• Suitable for: Outings with kids, elders, couples, or friends
• Season and weather: Up to personal preference
• Main attractions: Temple culture and praying, viewing flowers at the botanical garden

Temple culture and praying. Being there in person, you really can feel a strong Buddhist atmosphere. Hongfa Temple is located within Fairy Lake Botanical Garden in Shenzhen’s Luohu District, backed by Wutong Mountain. It’s a Han Buddhist temple, and the area it was built on is known as the “green lungs of Shenzhen.” Construction began in July 1985, making it the first newly built temple in the country since the founding of the People’s Republic of China, and one of the temples directly under the Buddhist Association of China. On the first and fifteenth days of the first lunar month, the incense offerings each year are extremely busy, often requiring a large police presence to maintain order. What impressed me most at the temple was that “Answers Every Prayer” sign—friends who have something to wish for can come and give it a try.

The temple also has quite a few places selling prayer items, all sorts of interesting little things, a bit pricey; there are also free little cards you can scan a QR code to collect from a self-service machine. Many of the staff in the shops are there as volunteers, for about a week at a time, so anyone interested can also find time to give it a try.

Viewing flowers at the botanical garden. Hongfa Temple sits in the deepest part of Fairy Lake Botanical Garden, so the way there passes through the entire garden, flowers and plants all along the route. If you’re interested, you can take your time exploring; there were a lot of people the day I went, so I didn’t linger much.

Detailed Guide

To prepare in advance:

• Tickets: Search for “Shenzhen Fairy Lake Botanical Garden” in the WeChat mini program (adult ticket ¥15)

Itinerary:

1. Navigate to “Shenzhen Fairy Lake Botanical Garden”; taking the metro is recommended, as it’s crowded around there and hard to park
2. After entering Fairy Lake Botanical Garden, just keep heading inward to reach Hongfa Temple

Meishajian: Overlooking Yantian Port at Night

Overview

• Location: Yantian, Shenzhen
• Duration: An afternoon or evening (about 5 hours)
• Getting there: Take transit to OCT East, then hike up and back from the trailhead
• Cost estimate: Under 100 yuan (1 person, transport + snacks)
• Physical effort: 3 stars
• Suitable for: People with a fitness base
• Season and weather: A cool season (heatstroke is easy in summer); under clear skies the view is superb, and at night you can see the Yantian Port night view
• Main attraction: The night view of Yantian Port

I’ve been to Meishajian both during the day and at night. Personally, I found the daytime scenery fairly plain and unremarkable, and the weather was on the hot side; at night it’s much cooler, and watching the night view from the summit feels more special—standing on the summit at night in the sea breeze, looking out from on high, is well worth experiencing. Overlooking Yantian Port from above at night is especially beautiful.

Detailed Guide

1. Take transit or drive to “Meishajian Tea Stream Valley Entrance”; there’s a parking lot nearby, very convenient
2. Just follow the steps up the mountain
3. To descend, retrace your steps to the start

Going further. Meishajian has many trailheads, and Tea Stream Valley is just one of them (you start from halfway up and climb to the summit, so the actual elevation gain is only half). There are also the “Shanhai Daguan Trailhead,” the “Beishan Road Trailhead,” and others, so you can try different routes. The sunrise on the mountain is said to be beautiful too, so if you’re interested you can hike up at night to catch it. Right next to the Tea Stream Valley entrance is the little train station of OCT East; if you have time, ride the little train—it’s pretty fun. If you want a physical challenge, there’s the longer “Kui–Mei Traverse” route: from Kuichong town center across Lipi Mountain, Maluan Mountain, and OCT East all the way to Meishajian, about 35 km in total and taking around 9 hours.