Shuangyue Bay: When You're Worn Out, Come Here to Lie Flat and Watch the Sea

If all you want is somewhere to rest properly, Shuangyue Bay is a great fit. It’s in Huizhou, about two hours door-to-door from Nanshan in Shenzhen—not far, yet far enough to leave the city’s pace behind. There are no must-see, hardcore attractions here; the core experience is simply “lying flat and watching the sea”—spacing out on a guesthouse balcony, having one lively night on the beach, and eating some not-too-expensive seafood. Below I’ll cover the experience and the logistics separately.

Overview

• Location: Shuangyue Bay, Huizhou
• Duration: two days, one night (departing from downtown Shenzhen)
• Transport: high-speed rail + taxi (about 2 hours door-to-door, departing from Nanshan, Shenzhen)
• Cost estimate: around 1,000 (for two people, transport + lodging + meals)
• Physical effort: 1 star
• Good for: couples + photos, vacationing with elderly parents and kids
• Season and weather: summer is fairly hot and sunny; best to avoid the peak summer months
• Main highlights: watching the sunrise over the sea from a guesthouse balcony, fireworks + barbecue on the beach, cheap seafood, and more

Watching the Sea and Sunrise from the Guesthouse Balcony

My favorite part of the whole trip was watching the sea from the guesthouse balcony. Grab some snacks and an ice-cold cola, sit in the beach chairs on the balcony with the person beside you, gaze down at the sand below and the boundless sea, and let the sea breeze sweep all your weariness away. Maybe, like me, you’ll wish time would freeze right in that moment.

What’s even more delightful is waking up the next morning to watch, from the balcony, the sun rise over the horizon. As the sun grows from a tiny bright dot into a red orb, the temperature around you gradually climbs and the sky brightens—you can feel time passing without ever looking at your phone, a feeling that makes it hard to leave.

Setting Off Fireworks + Barbecue on the Beach

Before coming here, “setting off fireworks on the beach” was something I’d never imagined, because in my mind a scenic seaside wouldn’t allow that kind of pollution (though in reality the beach at Shuangyue Bay is still fairly clean). I’d always thought a seaside night should be tranquil, with nothing but the sound of waves in the darkness, giving you an illusion of being cut off from the world. But the beach at Shuangyue Bay is lively, with lots of people laughing and playing around on the sand: setting off fireworks, grilling skewers and drinking, doing team-building outings…

In fact, this everyday, bustling feel of the beach at night brought a kind of satisfaction like celebrating the Spring Festival. I’m sure many people will, like me, have the thought flash through their mind in that instant: “When I have time, I really must bring my parents here.”

Looking Out Over All of Shuangyue Bay from the Lookout

While at Shuangyue Bay I happened upon a lookout point. Only after climbing to the hilltop did I finally understand why this place is called “Shuangyue Bay” (Double Moon Bay)—the coastlines on both sides curve like crescent moons, with only a narrow channel between them. You can see this shape clearly on a phone map, but I never expected that standing on the hilltop you could also take in both crescent moons at once—a pleasant surprise on the trip.

Not-Too-Expensive Seafood (Compared to Shenzhen)

There are simply far too many seafood restaurants near Shuangyue Bay, and the competition is fierce, so prices overall are quite a bit cheaper than in Shenzhen. That said, I didn’t eat much, and I can’t really judge the seafood quality, but personally I found it reasonably good value. Here’s a Meituan group-buy deal to give you a sense of it.

Detailed Logistics

What to prepare in advance

• High-speed rail tickets: get off at Huidongnan Station; it’s half an hour from Shenzhen North, second-class seat ¥39.
• Guesthouse: the east side of Shuangyue Bay is for watching the sunrise, the west side for the sunset—book based on your preference. Guesthouses usually label their “sunrise rooms”; I’d suggest a higher floor for a better view. For reference, our sunrise room was ¥345.

Itinerary

1. Saturday morning: Depart from Shenzhen North, take the high-speed rail for half an hour to Huidongnan Station, then taxi to the guesthouse (a bit over half an hour, about ¥100), arriving around 10:00. At this point you usually can’t check in yet, so leave your large luggage at the front desk, head down to the beach below for photos and fun, then find a nearby seafood restaurant for lunch; finish around 13:00 and go check in at the guesthouse.
2. Saturday afternoon: Summer is fairly hot, so rest at the guesthouse and take an afternoon nap, then buy some snacks and drinks and listen to music and enjoy the sea breeze on the balcony. Around 17:00, head out and taxi to the Shuangyue Bay lookout (you can set your destination to the Sea Turtle Museum). After getting off, take a motorbike taxi up to the lookout (¥50 round trip for two; walking up yourself takes half an hour, too long), enjoy the view, then head down for dinner. Note that traffic is extremely heavy at this time, so don’t take a taxi—I’d suggest taking a motorbike taxi straight back into town for dinner (¥40 for two). After eating, head back to the beach below the guesthouse to set off fireworks (people sell them on the beach, and they’re not expensive), and you can even have a late-night snack before going back to your room to rest.
3. Sunday: Get up early to watch the sunrise (you can look up that day’s exact sunrise time in advance and set an alarm), and after that, go back to sleep for a bit; then check out, around 12:00. After checking out, eat at a nearby restaurant, then taxi straight to Huidongnan Station to take the high-speed rail back to Shenzhen, arriving in Shenzhen around 16:00.

Optional Add-Ons

• Various water activities: jet skis, deep-sea fishing, diving, and so on—they look fun and thrilling, but with limited time we didn’t go.
• Seeing sea turtles on Sea Turtle Island: because of our schedule, we arrived too late; it had already closed and we didn’t see them.