Weihai Travel Guide: Liugong Island, Coastal Drive, and Korea Town (2026)

Weihai is a quiet coastal city in Shandong, two hours by ferry from Incheon and four hours by high-speed rail from Beijing. Plan two days. The headline stop is Liugong Island 刘公岛, a former Qing naval base and Sino-Japanese War site reached by a 15-minute ferry from the central port. The combined island and round-trip ferry ticket is ¥122 in 2026, and the dock runs roughly 06:50 to 16:30 with the last return earlier than you expect. Bring your passport — it is required at the ticket window. The second day belongs to Huanhai Lu 环海路, the 30 km Ring Sea Road that hugs the coast past the International Bathing Beach. Rent a city bike or hire a Didi by the hour to cover it without backtracking. Korea Town near the port is the dinner play: Korean BBQ, kimchi shops, and signs in Hangul thanks to the Incheon ferry route. Pay everywhere with Alipay or WeChat Pay linked to a foreign card; cash is rare and small vendors will not have change. Gaode Maps 高德地图 outperforms Apple Maps here for bus stops and ferry timings, even with a Chinese-only interface. Summer is peak beach season but also the busiest; April–May and September–October give you 18–22°C and empty boardwalks. Skip Weihai if you only want headline sights — there is no Forbidden City equivalent. Pick it for slow walks, fresh seafood, and a Korean-Chinese border feel that no other tier-two city offers.