What to do in Qingdao’s May Fourth Square

Speaking of Qingdao’s May Fourth Square, everyone must be very familiar with it. If you come to Qingdao for a trip, May Fourth Square is definitely a must-see attraction. However, many people think that May Fourth Square is just a landmark building, what’s so fun about it? Today, I will introduce you to some fun places around May Fourth Square. If you are interested, come and have a look!

1、Olympic Sailing Center and Lovers’ Dyke

Many tourists arrange May Fourth Square and the Olympic Sailing Center together, because it feels a bit of a loss to just see the “May Wind” sculpture. The Olympic Sailing Center was the venue for the sailing competitions of the 2008 Olympic Games and the 29th Paralympic Games. After the games, it has become a new tourist destination.

Lovers’ Dyke was originally a breakwater of a shipyard, and later it was named Lovers’ Dyke to commemorate the love story of the Olympic windsurfing champion. At the end of Lovers’ Dyke, there is a small lighthouse that is not very high. This lighthouse is called the Blessing Lighthouse. It was originally there, and it was rebuilt in 2006. To commemorate the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the height of the tower was set at 20.08 meters.

The light show in May Fourth Square, or the Olympic Sailing Center, is one of the most beautiful scenes in Qingdao in my opinion. The light show actually uses the high-rise buildings near May Fourth Square as the curtain wall to display various gorgeous and magnificent pictures, presenting a stunning effect. Therefore, you can watch it from near May Fourth Square or from the Olympic Sailing Center. If you watch it from the Olympic Sailing Center, it will be further away, not as clear as watching it from near May Fourth Square, but the view will be wider.

2、Yan’er Island

Yan’er Island is only a little over three kilometers away from May Fourth Square, and it is also a popular place to watch the night view. If you can only go to one island during your trip to Qingdao, I recommend Yan’er Island. Yan’er Island is not crowded with tourists during the day, so you can take your time to explore and take pictures.

The whole island is a park. At night, the flat ground on the top of the hill is where the aunts and sisters from the surrounding area dance square dance. Why do I know? Because I went too early, the lights were not lit, and the aunts danced until the fifth section before the lights on both sides of the walkway lit up.

You can go to Yan’er Island in the afternoon, first go down to the beach and the reefs to take pictures, experience the sea and play in the water. Then, take advantage of the daylight and take more personal photos. After that, go to the top of the hill and wait for the night view. The popular walkway on Yan’er Island is half on the mountain and half by the sea. During the day, it forms a beautiful scenery together with the blue sea, blue sky, reefs, and green land. When the lights come on, it outshines everything else and stands out.

3、Water Level Zero Point

Although it doesn’t look like it, it is actually a ticketed scenic spot, even a 4A one. It is between Yan’er Island and Wheat Island. It takes about 20 minutes to walk there from Yan’er Island along the coastal walkway. However, according to my observation, there are really not many people buying tickets to go inside. The reason is that the content of this scenic spot is too thin.

Although it is not noticeable, the Water Level Zero Point scenic spot is actually the only themed park in China that focuses on the zero point of elevation surveying. It’s called a themed park, but the main content is actually a simple bronze sculpture with the words “Water Level Zero Point of the People’s Republic of China” inscribed on it. From a photographic perspective, it doesn’t have much aesthetic appeal. Therefore, including myself, many tourists choose to take photos from a distance on the seaside walkway to check in at this place.