Panjin Red Beach

The Liaohe delta holds vast tidal marshes where Suaeda salsa, a salt-tolerant seepweed, grows across the flats, and each autumn the plant turns from green through pink to a deep crimson that covers the ground to the horizon, producing what is marketed as the red beach although no sand is involved. Boardwalks run out over the marsh for viewing. The wetland is a Ramsar site and part of the reserve system protecting the endangered red-crowned crane, which breeds here at the southern edge of its range, along with Saunders's gull, a rare species with a significant population in these flats. Oilfields operate nearby, and the reserve is bounded by industry.

What you actually see

• The crimson marsh - seepweed colouring the tidal flats deep red.
• The boardwalks - raised walkways over the marsh for viewing.
• The cranes - red-crowned cranes breeding at the southern edge of their range.
• Saunders's gull - the rare gull with an important population here.

When to go

September to October for the strongest red, with the peak usually in late September; the colour fades quickly after. Spring and summer show green marsh and breeding birds. The season is short and weekends crowded.

Honest expectations

The colour window is a few weeks and varies with salinity and weather; some years are much weaker. Access is confined to boardwalks. The setting includes oil infrastructure, which appears in many photographs. Crowds during the peak are heavy.

Nearby

Panjin city lies northeast; the Bohai coast runs south.