10 Days in Putuoshan

A 10-to-15-minute ferry from Zhujiajian's Wugongzhi wharf; Puji, first recorded in 1080, posts its 5-yuan incense ticket, and the 33-m Guanyin of 1997 stands on the southern cliffs.

1. putuoshan puji temple
2. putuoshan nanhai guanyin

Fayu dates to 1580; the Xiangyun stairway climbs 1,088 steps (cable car available) to Huiji on 291-m Foding Mountain. Incense days fall on the 19th of the 2nd, 6th and 9th lunar months - go early then.

1. putuoshan fayu temple
2. putuoshan huiji temple

The Tang-era Guanyin story at Zizhulin and a slow afternoon on the sand; visit etiquette is simply the posted hours and the 5-yuan ticket.

1. putuoshan zizhulin
2. putuoshan baibusha beach

The short-line boat takes about 30 minutes; sailings are fixed and sell out on incense days, so queue early and keep the return ticket.

1. putuoshan luojiashan

A 14th-century Yuan-era stone pagoda in the Puji quarter, one of the island's oldest structures; spend the rest of the day on the courtyard lanes without a checklist.

1. putuoshan duobao pagoda

Bridge-linked Zhujiajian holds the Nansha sand-sculpture grounds (festival since 1999) and Daqingshan's green headlands; short bus hops from Wugongzhi wharf.

1. putuoshan zhujiajian beaches

A 15-minute ferry to one of China's busiest fishing ports; the quayside market peaks when the boats land in the late afternoon.

1. putuoshan shenjiamen port

An honest archipelago day - Taohua sits south in the Zhoushan group, reachable by ferry from Shenjiamen in under an hour, with cliffs, beaches and the Jin Yong novel connection.

1. putuoshan taohua island

The easternmost inhabited islands take about two hours by ferry from Shenjiamen; day trips are possible but an overnight on Miaozihu lets you catch the sunrise first.

1. putuoshan dongji islands

Dinghai's Ming walls and the 1840s Opium War memorial park make a calm last morning; buses from Zhoushan run toward Ningbo across the 2009 bridge chain.

1. putuoshan dinghai old town