Xiapu Mudflats

Xiapu has four hundred kilometres of indented coast and enormous tidal range, and the aquaculture worked on its flats, seaweed grown on lines strung between bamboo poles, kelp dried on racks, oyster and clam beds, has turned the shoreline into a set of geometric patterns that shift with the tide and the season. Photographers found it in the 2000s and it has become one of the most photographed coastlines in China, with named viewpoints on hillsides above the flats: Beiqi, Xiaohao, Dongbi and others, each favouring a particular tide and time of day. Local drivers act as guides, timing arrivals to tide tables and light.

What you actually see

• The bamboo pole grids - seaweed lines strung across the flats in patterns.
• The tidal channels - water draining in branching shapes at low tide.
• The working boats and figures - farmers on the flats, often at dawn.
• The hillside viewpoints - named lookouts above the shoreline.

When to go

April to June and September to November; different sites work at different tides and seasons, with seaweed in spring and kelp in summer. Sunrise and sunset are when the flats are photographed. Tide tables govern everything.

Honest expectations

Getting the conditions right requires local knowledge, and most visitors hire a driver-guide. Some scenes are staged, with fishermen paid to pose. Viewpoints can be crowded with photographers. Accommodation in Xiapu is basic.

Nearby

Taimu Mountain lies north; Ningde and Fuzhou are south.