Taking the RG20 Campervan for a May Day Holiday to Qida Fishing Village in Lianjiang, Fujian, and Xiapu
First, watch the video of our May Day fishing village vacation in Fujian~
Day 1: Shanghai — Qida Fishing Village, Lianjiang County, Fuzhou
Day 2: Qida Fishing Village, Lianjiang County, Fuzhou — Xiawei Island, Xiapu, Ningde
Day 3: Xiapu County — Beioi mudflats
Day 4: Beioi mudflats, Xiapu County — Shanghai
Day 5: Catch up on sleep in Shanghai for a day
May Day expenses: Total 3995 RMB
Snacks and meals: 1955 RMB
Gasoline: 1067 RMB
Accommodation: 778 RMB
Parking + entrance fees + boat tickets: 145 RMB
The reason accommodation costs were so low is all thanks to our little workhorse—the RG20 MPV campervan~
We only decided to visit Lianjiang and Xiapu a week before May Day, so by then most accommodations were already fully booked~
Fortunately, with the RG20 campervan, we loaded up a carful of food, drinks, and camping gear. We only had a destination; no other plans were made~
Equipped with a 2.0T GDI turbocharged gasoline engine (165 kW, 350 N·m) and a ZF-8AT transmission, this setup made it easy even for me—a female driver with less than a year of experience—to handle. It took us up mountains and down to the sea, weaving through every corner of the fishing village~
My favorite features in the car are the little fridge and the water dispenser~
During the scorching May Day heat, the first thing I did after returning from outings was to open the fridge and gulp down a big bottle of iced drink, feeling totally refreshed~
Long summer trips are the easiest way to get internal heat; at that point, we would cook a pot of mung bean soup in the car for breakfast, and any leftovers could be stored in the fridge, both cooling and relieving heat~
Too bad we only made it once at the start—the thermos jug accidentally got cracked~
That pot of mung bean soup was really expensive~
Day 1 Shanghai — Qida Fishing Village, Lianjiang County, Fuzhou
At 3 a.m. on May Day, I was woken up to get ready for departure. I lazed in bed for half an hour, then sleepy-eyed, dragged my suitcase into the car and lay down on the back seats to continue sleeping~
The most beautiful early morning, on the highway, lying in the car, waking up to the dawn light of the rising sun~
Around 3 p.m., I was so hungry I couldn't stand it, so we headed straight to an old restaurant in Ningde city for food~
Rice noodles in soup and beef soup~
The loquats I had been craving—each one as big as a palm, but unfortunately they were out of season locally, so they weren't as sweet~
We sped towards Qida Fishing Village in the afterglow of sunset~
A strong smell of seaweed hit us in the face~
Exploring the floating seafood restaurant on the sea at night was delicious~
Just navigate to "Qida Village" and you'll see the sign by the roadside; call the number on it and a fishing boat will pick you up for free~
Two of us ordered four or five dishes, costing only 337 RMB~
First night: we camped overnight at the Sinopec gas station in the village~
Day 2 Qida Fishing Village, Lianjiang County, Fuzhou — Xiawei Island, Xiapu
No entrance fees for scenic spots~
At around 4 a.m., we drove up the mountain road to Qiguan Peak to watch the sunrise~
Navigate to Baiyun Temple~
The under-construction Baiyun Temple~
Get off here, then walk to Jiuxianjun, climb the small stone steps from halfway up the mountain, and you'll see the sea-fairy wonderland of Qida Village~
If you start climbing from the foot of the mountain, you have to climb over 1800 steps~
It was a bit unfortunate—it was cloudy when we went up, so we didn't see the sun emerge from the sea level~
Suddenly a golden ray shone through the cloud gap, illuminating the entire sea level~
Qida Fishing Village photographed against the light~
It must look especially beautiful at sunset—it's known as the Chinese version of Rio de Janeiro~
After coming down the mountain, we wandered into the fishing village to find food~
The fishermen mostly engage in abalone, seaweed, oysters, and mussel farming~
Sea cages, aquaculture rafts, and floating seafood restaurants~
For breakfast, we ordered a bowl of fish ball soup, stir-fried rice noodles, and oyster omelette inside the village—delicious~
After eating, we happened to visit the market, buying a bag of bayberries and a box of water chestnuts~
Then we headed to the next stop—Xiawei Island, Xiapu~
May 2nd is the peak period for major scenic spots across the country; we spent 2 hours playing and 6 hours stuck in traffic round trip~
A single-lane road was forced into three lanes. At first we were very disciplined and didn't dare to straddle lanes, but later we just followed local practice and fought our way through following the car ahead, arriving back in the county town just in time for dinner~
It's a popular Instagram spot, but there were too many people. When we arrived around 6 p.m., the security guard wouldn't let us go down~
The top-ranked seafood stall on DZDP; the speed of serving dishes was faster than the speed we found a seat. The taste was especially great~
Two of us ordered 5 dishes, costing 239 RMB
Day 3 Beioi mudflats, Xiapu — Colorful fishing nets
It's only 5-6 km from the county town to Beioi mudflats. Unfortunately it was cloudy, lacking light and shadow, but it actually gave a Chinese ink-wash painting vibe~
Then we spent 20 RMB per person to experience a fishing boat ride out to sea; the trip lasted 40 minutes, totally worth it~
We had lunch in Beioi Village. The landlady was very friendly and chatted with us, telling us that tomorrow there would be a grand event in the village—the 100th anniversary of Mazu's birth—and invited us to come back and visit~
Upon hearing this was a rare folk temple fair, we gladly agreed. Plus her family also offered accommodation, which was simply perfect—finally we could sleep comfortably~
Colorful netted fishing enclosures, a man-made photography spot. Navigate to: Nanwan Village, Xiapu~
Nanwan oracle bone script, also known as the sea maze~
We had to wait until around 6 p.m. when the tide went out for the oracle bone script to reveal itself~
Day 4 Beioi Mazu Folk Festival, Xiapu
