Nanshan and Shekou in Half a Day
Choose one Nanshan half-day rather than grouping Shekou, Chiwan, Nantou and OCT by district name. Port history and a hill make one route; the old town and creative park make another, and crossing between them wastes the visit.
The short answer
Morning on Metro Line 2. Start at the China Merchants History Museum at 09:00 from Shekou Port exit C (entry closes at 11:00, then a lunch break until 14:00). Have lunch at Sea World, one stop away. In the afternoon, climb Dananshan from the Bieshu trailhead, 560 m from Sea World exit D, and be down by 21:00. End at Shenzhen Bay Park on Line 9 for the sunset. Everything on that route is free.
Sunday: the China Merchants museum is closed, but the Tianhou Museum and the Nantou Old Town Museum are open. Monday: the Tianhou Museum and the Nantou Old Town Museum are closed (except on major public holidays), and the China Merchants museum is open. Tuesday to Saturday all three are open. The parks and OCT-LOFT's streets never close.
Give it a morning. It is at the far southern tip of the peninsula, closes at 16:00 and lets in its last visitors at 15:00, so it cannot be tacked onto an afternoon. Take Line 2 or 5 to Chiwan exit B, about 850 m. You can also pair it with Dananshan, whose western side runs down towards Chiwan.
Neither is in Shekou. Nantou is at the northern edge of Nanshan, about 8 km from Shenzhen Bay Park; go on Line 12, Tuesday to Sunday, before the museum closes at 17:00. OCT-LOFT is in the OCT area on Lines 1 and 2. Its galleries close around 17:30 and its bars run to 02:00, so it is the evening. Each is its own half-day.
Say which one. Shenzhen Bay Park is the 13 km shore for sunset and the view of Hong Kong's hills, from Shenzhen Bay Park station on Line 9. Shenzhen Bay Port is the border crossing at its western end, about 5 km from that station. Talent Park is the lake across the road. None of them has a beach.
Side by sideEach cell ends with the date of the notice it was checked against
Swipe sideways; the first column stays put
China Merchants History Museum
招商局历史博物馆Open the place →- What you see & how long
- The museum of the company that built Shekou. It has been in a new building on top of Weibo Hill since 26 December 2022, with a permanent show that walks through more than 150 years of the company in order. Time on site: not published · 2026-09-23
- Ticket / price
- Free; no ticket to buy · 2021-06-24
- Hours & closed days
- 09:00-12:00 and 14:00-17:30, last entry 11:00 and 16:30; Monday to Saturday, closed Sundays, public holidays announced separately. The 18:00 close in the city register belongs to the old building · 2026-09-23
- Booking & ID
- None: the museum states admission needs no booking; its visitor notes mention no ID · 2026-09-23
- Getting there
- Metro Line 2 Shekou Port station exit C. Walk along Yuanhai Road and follow Weibo Hill towards Time Square to the signboard at the foot of the museum, then climb to the top. No car park · 2026-09-23
- Food & coffee on the way
- Nothing to eat on the hill; have lunch or spend the evening at Sea World, one stop away on Line 2 · 2025-05-21
- Don't get this wrong
- A company museum, not the city museum (Shenzhen Museum is in Futian). Yanshan Road 21, still in the city register, is the pre-2022 building. Closed Sundays, not Mondays · 2026-09-23
Chiwan Tianhou Temple (Tianhou Museum)
赤湾天后宫（天后博物馆）Open the place →- What you see & how long
- The Mazu temple at the southern tip of the Shekou peninsula, run as a museum with five halls. The cisha exhibition is the reason to come; the buildings are a modern rebuild. The Left Fort and the Lin Zexu statue are about 1 km further south, uphill. Give it a morning of its own · 2026-09-23
- Ticket / price
- Free; no ticket to buy · 2024-07-19
- Hours & closed days
- Tuesday-Sunday 09:00-16:00, last entry 15:00. On the 1st and 15th of the lunar month it opens 08:00-16:00. Closed Mondays, except on major public holidays, traditional festivals and the 1st, 15th and 16th of the lunar month · 2026-01-28
- Booking & ID
- None: Nanshan Museum stopped requiring booking at all its sites from 19 July 2024, and no ID is mentioned. The WeChat booking you may read about dates from the pandemic years · 2026-01-12
- Getting there
- Chiwan 6th Road 9. Lines 2 and 5 to Chiwan station exit B, about 850 m on foot; or buses 226, B945 and M113 to the Tianhougong stop, about 130 m · 2026-09-23
- Food & coffee on the way
- Nothing listed · 2026-09-23
- Don't get this wrong
- Tianhou Museum, Chiwan Tianhou Temple and Chiwan Tianhou Ancient Temple are one place. It is a branch of Nanshan Museum, not the main museum on Nanshan Avenue. The cisha ceremony date changes every year, so check the temple's announcement · 2026-09-23
Shenzhen Bay Park
深圳湾公园Open the place →- What you see & how long
- Thirteen kilometres of free waterfront with the hills of Hong Kong across the water. Pick one section: from Shenzhen Bay Park station walk west past Bailupo, Beiwan Lugang and the viewing pier. Come at five and stay for sunset · 2026-09-23
- Ticket / price
- Free; no ticketing of any kind · 2026-09-23
- Hours & closed days
- 06:00-23:00 daily; no closing day published. Under an orange typhoon warning, parks stop operating immediately · 2026-09-23
- Booking & ID
- Nothing to book or show to walk in. Car parking is booked through the Chinese-only 'Beautiful Shenzhen' WeChat official account or the 'Shen i Park' mini-program, so come by metro · 2026-09-23
- Getting there
- Metro Line 9 to Shenzhen Bay Park station; exits A, C and D2 lead straight in. For the Bailupo section use Hongshuwan South (Lines 9 and 11) · 2026-09-23
- Food & coffee on the way
- Bailupo book bar, on the shore with glass on three sides, 10:00-20:00, coffee and pastries; nearest metro Hongshuwan South · 2025-07-21
- Don't get this wrong
- Not Shenzhen Bay Port, the border crossing about 5 km west of the park station. Not Talent Park next door either. You cannot swim anywhere on this bay · 2026-09-23
Nantou Old Town
南头古城Open the place →- What you see & how long
- The walled county seat Shenzhen was run from, rebuilt in 2019-2020 as a design quarter. See the south gate with 'Ningnan' over the arch, the wall, the Dongguan guildhall and the Wen clan shrine, and the museum at Jiaochang Road 2. You can cross it on foot in ten minutes; the museum adds its own time (not published) · 2026-01-12
- Ticket / price
- Free to enter; shops and museums priced separately · 2026-01-12
- Hours & closed days
- Streets open at all hours. Museum Tuesday-Sunday 10:00-17:00, last entry 16:30, closed Mondays except major public holidays · 2026-01-28
- Booking & ID
- Nothing to book for the streets or the museum; ID requirement not published · 2026-09-23
- Getting there
- Metro Line 12 to Nantou Ancient Town station, or Line 1 to Taoyuan and a short bus ride. The lanes are narrow, so a taxi only gets you to the gate · 2026-01-12
- Food & coffee on the way
- No particular place to name. The evening trade is the point: it was named a national tourism and leisure quarter in December 2023 and the shops run late. Shops take WeChat Pay and Alipay · 2026-01-12
- Don't get this wrong
- Not a preserved old town. The lanes are original but the shopfronts are not, and the Xin'an county magistracy is a reconstruction. Nantou Old Town Museum is inside the walls; Nanshan Museum is a separate, larger museum on Nanshan Avenue · 2026-09-23
OCT-LOFT Creative Culture Park
华侨城创意文化园Open the place →- What you see & how long
- Two blocks of old factories on either side of Enping Street, now galleries, design studios, a bookshop and bars. There is no gate and no set visit; come in the afternoon and evening, not the morning · 2026-09-23
- Ticket / price
- Free: no gate, no ticket · 2026-09-23
- Hours & closed days
- Streets open at all hours, no closing day. Exhibition halls close around 17:30; most shops open 10:00 or 11:00 and close 20:00 or 21:00; some bars stay open to 02:00. Four of the 43 art spaces and shops state a Monday closure · 2026-09-22
- Booking & ID
- Not applicable: an open block with no gate. No ID to enter the streets; venues set their own rules · 2026-09-23
- Getting there
- North block: Line 2 Qiaochengbei exit B, about 500 m. South block: Line 1 Qiaochengdong exit A, about 500 m. The two blocks are five minutes apart. Get the building code (A5, F1 and so on) before you set out · 2026-09-22
- Food & coffee on the way
- Old Heaven Books in A5-120, 11:00-22:00. After dark there is the jazz bar Penny Black in A5 (to 02:00) and a congee place in F3 (to midnight). Hours are from the park directory, entered 2021-2024 · 2024-04-19
- Don't get this wrong
- Not part of any theme park. Not the OCT Art and Design Gallery or He Xiangning Art Museum either, which are a little over 1 km west on Shennan Boulevard. It is in the OCT area, not Shekou · 2026-09-23
| Compare | China Merchants History Museum | Chiwan Tianhou Temple (Tianhou Museum) | Shenzhen Bay Park | Nantou Old Town | OCT-LOFT Creative Culture Park |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| What you see & how long | The museum of the company that built Shekou. It has been in a new building on top of Weibo Hill since 26 December 2022, with a permanent show that walks through more than 150 years of the company in order. Time on site: not published · 2026-09-23 | The Mazu temple at the southern tip of the Shekou peninsula, run as a museum with five halls. The cisha exhibition is the reason to come; the buildings are a modern rebuild. The Left Fort and the Lin Zexu statue are about 1 km further south, uphill. Give it a morning of its own · 2026-09-23 | Thirteen kilometres of free waterfront with the hills of Hong Kong across the water. Pick one section: from Shenzhen Bay Park station walk west past Bailupo, Beiwan Lugang and the viewing pier. Come at five and stay for sunset · 2026-09-23 | The walled county seat Shenzhen was run from, rebuilt in 2019-2020 as a design quarter. See the south gate with 'Ningnan' over the arch, the wall, the Dongguan guildhall and the Wen clan shrine, and the museum at Jiaochang Road 2. You can cross it on foot in ten minutes; the museum adds its own time (not published) · 2026-01-12 | Two blocks of old factories on either side of Enping Street, now galleries, design studios, a bookshop and bars. There is no gate and no set visit; come in the afternoon and evening, not the morning · 2026-09-23 |
| Ticket / price | Free; no ticket to buy · 2021-06-24 | Free; no ticket to buy · 2024-07-19 | Free; no ticketing of any kind · 2026-09-23 | Free to enter; shops and museums priced separately · 2026-01-12 | Free: no gate, no ticket · 2026-09-23 |
| Hours & closed days | 09:00-12:00 and 14:00-17:30, last entry 11:00 and 16:30; Monday to Saturday, closed Sundays, public holidays announced separately. The 18:00 close in the city register belongs to the old building · 2026-09-23 | Tuesday-Sunday 09:00-16:00, last entry 15:00. On the 1st and 15th of the lunar month it opens 08:00-16:00. Closed Mondays, except on major public holidays, traditional festivals and the 1st, 15th and 16th of the lunar month · 2026-01-28 | 06:00-23:00 daily; no closing day published. Under an orange typhoon warning, parks stop operating immediately · 2026-09-23 | Streets open at all hours. Museum Tuesday-Sunday 10:00-17:00, last entry 16:30, closed Mondays except major public holidays · 2026-01-28 | Streets open at all hours, no closing day. Exhibition halls close around 17:30; most shops open 10:00 or 11:00 and close 20:00 or 21:00; some bars stay open to 02:00. Four of the 43 art spaces and shops state a Monday closure · 2026-09-22 |
| Booking & ID | None: the museum states admission needs no booking; its visitor notes mention no ID · 2026-09-23 | None: Nanshan Museum stopped requiring booking at all its sites from 19 July 2024, and no ID is mentioned. The WeChat booking you may read about dates from the pandemic years · 2026-01-12 | Nothing to book or show to walk in. Car parking is booked through the Chinese-only 'Beautiful Shenzhen' WeChat official account or the 'Shen i Park' mini-program, so come by metro · 2026-09-23 | Nothing to book for the streets or the museum; ID requirement not published · 2026-09-23 | Not applicable: an open block with no gate. No ID to enter the streets; venues set their own rules · 2026-09-23 |
| Getting there | Metro Line 2 Shekou Port station exit C. Walk along Yuanhai Road and follow Weibo Hill towards Time Square to the signboard at the foot of the museum, then climb to the top. No car park · 2026-09-23 | Chiwan 6th Road 9. Lines 2 and 5 to Chiwan station exit B, about 850 m on foot; or buses 226, B945 and M113 to the Tianhougong stop, about 130 m · 2026-09-23 | Metro Line 9 to Shenzhen Bay Park station; exits A, C and D2 lead straight in. For the Bailupo section use Hongshuwan South (Lines 9 and 11) · 2026-09-23 | Metro Line 12 to Nantou Ancient Town station, or Line 1 to Taoyuan and a short bus ride. The lanes are narrow, so a taxi only gets you to the gate · 2026-01-12 | North block: Line 2 Qiaochengbei exit B, about 500 m. South block: Line 1 Qiaochengdong exit A, about 500 m. The two blocks are five minutes apart. Get the building code (A5, F1 and so on) before you set out · 2026-09-22 |
| Food & coffee on the way | Nothing to eat on the hill; have lunch or spend the evening at Sea World, one stop away on Line 2 · 2025-05-21 | Nothing listed · 2026-09-23 | Bailupo book bar, on the shore with glass on three sides, 10:00-20:00, coffee and pastries; nearest metro Hongshuwan South · 2025-07-21 | No particular place to name. The evening trade is the point: it was named a national tourism and leisure quarter in December 2023 and the shops run late. Shops take WeChat Pay and Alipay · 2026-01-12 | Old Heaven Books in A5-120, 11:00-22:00. After dark there is the jazz bar Penny Black in A5 (to 02:00) and a congee place in F3 (to midnight). Hours are from the park directory, entered 2021-2024 · 2024-04-19 |
| Don't get this wrong | A company museum, not the city museum (Shenzhen Museum is in Futian). Yanshan Road 21, still in the city register, is the pre-2022 building. Closed Sundays, not Mondays · 2026-09-23 | Tianhou Museum, Chiwan Tianhou Temple and Chiwan Tianhou Ancient Temple are one place. It is a branch of Nanshan Museum, not the main museum on Nanshan Avenue. The cisha ceremony date changes every year, so check the temple's announcement · 2026-09-23 | Not Shenzhen Bay Port, the border crossing about 5 km west of the park station. Not Talent Park next door either. You cannot swim anywhere on this bay · 2026-09-23 | Not a preserved old town. The lanes are original but the shopfronts are not, and the Xin'an county magistracy is a reconstruction. Nantou Old Town Museum is inside the walls; Nanshan Museum is a separate, larger museum on Nanshan Avenue · 2026-09-23 | Not part of any theme park. Not the OCT Art and Design Gallery or He Xiangning Art Museum either, which are a little over 1 km west on Shennan Boulevard. It is in the OCT area, not Shekou · 2026-09-23 |
Sea World & the Minghua：The French liner grounded in 1983 with a restaurant and bar quarter around it, one stop from Shekou Port on Line 2 (Sea World station, exit A). The streets are free. The ship reopened on 1 October 2025 as a ticketed theatre plus food and retail, and the resident show sold out ahead when it opened (draft entry). This is lunch or the evening after the museum, and the best free part is seeing the ship from outside after dark. Lunch or the evening in Shekou.
Nanshan Park (Dananshan)：The free view over the whole of Shenzhen Bay from a 336 m hill, an hour up and down on steps. Open 06:00-21:00. Start at the Bieshu trailhead, 560 m from Sea World station exit D. Go up an hour before sunset and be down by 21:00. The western side runs down towards Chiwan. A Shekou afternoon with legs.
Shekou Cruise Home Port：The ferry port for Hong Kong airport, Hong Kong Island, Macau and Zhuhai, about 1 km from the China Merchants museum. Passenger clearance runs 07:00-22:30. The airport boat is a sealed transfer that does not enter Hong Kong. Take Line 12 to Taiziwan exit A (4-6 minutes on foot), or get off Line 2 at Shekou Port exit C and take the free B601 shuttle. Neither Sea World nor Shekou Port station is the pier. Only if you have a boat to catch.
Shenzhen Talent Park：Across the road from Shenzhen Bay Park, but a separate park with its own entrance. It is a man-made lake with the Houhai towers behind it, open 06:00-23:00 and free. Walk in from Dengliang station exit C, 580 m. An hour round the lake at dusk is enough, and the Qiuxian Pavilion book bar serves coffee 08:00-22:30. The skyline photo instead of the shore.
OH Bay & the Bay Glow Ferris Wheel：Not on this route. The 128 m Ferris wheel is in Bao'an, across the bay, about 20 minutes from the airport. Its seafront park is free (6:00-23:00) but the wheel is ticketed separately. Use it as a half-day before a flight, reached by Line 5 to Linhai station, about 350 m away. Do not confuse it with Happy Valley or Happy Coast in Nanshan. Before a flight, not a Shekou day.
One by one
China Merchants History Museum
招商局历史博物馆The best single room in Shenzhen for understanding why this end of the city exists, and the one stop here with a clock. It opens 09:00-12:00 and 14:00-17:30, with entry closing at 11:00 and 16:30, and it is shut on Sundays. There is no car park and you walk up the hill. Nothing needs booking, and nothing needs a passport. It is the company's account of itself and nearly all the labels are in Chinese, so come for the documents. Put it first in the morning. For the first stop of a Shekou morning, Monday to Saturday.
Open the place →Chiwan Tianhou Temple (Tianhou Museum)
赤湾天后宫（天后博物馆）Out on its own at the far tip of the peninsula, with the shortest hours on this page: it closes at 16:00 and the last visitors go in at 15:00. It cannot be an afternoon add-on. Give it a morning of its own, or come down to it from Dananshan. Closed on Mondays, but on some festival and lunar-calendar days it opens anyway. It is also a working temple, busiest around the goddess's birthday. For a morning of its own, or paired with Dananshan.
Open the place →Shenzhen Bay Park
深圳湾公园The place to end the day. It is free, open 06:00-23:00, and faces the hills of Hong Kong. Do not try to walk all thirteen kilometres, because long stretches have no shade. Come at five, walk west from Shenzhen Bay Park station and stay for sunset. It is a shore to look at: there is no way down to the water, and it is not the border crossing, which is at the western end. For sunset at the end of the day.
Open the place →Nantou Old Town
南头古城Not in Shekou: it is at the northern edge of Nanshan, about 8 km from Shenzhen Bay Park, so count it as its own half-day. The history is real but small: the gate, the wall and a few halls. The rest is a 2019-2020 renewal of an urban village. The catch is timing. The museum keeps 10:00-17:00 and shuts on Mondays, while the streets stay open late, so a Monday evening gets you the shops and none of the history. For a separate afternoon, Tuesday to Sunday, before the museum closes.
Open the place →OCT-LOFT Creative Culture Park
华侨城创意文化园The evening option, and not in Shekou: it is in the OCT area, on Lines 1 and 2. There is no gate, no ticket and no single set of hours. Galleries close around 17:30, shops at 20:00 or 21:00, and some bars stay open to 02:00. If a gallery is the point, arrive by mid-afternoon; if the atmosphere is, arrive at dusk. It is one of the few parts of this side of the city still going after dark. For an afternoon into evening, on a day without Shekou.
Open the place →