Zhuhai

Special Economic Zone facing Macau across the Pearl River estuary. The most-walkable mainland Chinese city — a 53 km Lover's Road coastal promenade, 146 km of beaches, and the world's longest sea-crossing bridge.

Zhuhai is one of the original four Special Economic Zones designated in 1980, but took a different path from the others. While Shenzhen became a manufacturing powerhouse and Shantou remained a light-industry hub, Zhuhai chose a lower-density, service-and-education orientation. The result is a coastal city with more parks and green space than any comparable mainland city of its size, consistently rated among the most liveable urban environments in China.

The Lover's Road (Qing Lu) coastal promenade runs 53 km along the eastern shore, flanked by beaches on the Pearl River estuary side and rocky outcrops facing the offshore islands. The Fisher Girl statue — a granite figure holding a pearl above the water — is the city's emblem and stands at the promenade's northern end near the old town.

The Hong Kong–Zhuhai–Macau Bridge (HZMB), 55 km long across the estuary, opened in 2018 and terminates on Zhuhai's Hengqin Island. Hengqin New Area, China's experimental cooperation zone with Macau, has seen heavy development: mixed-use commercial buildings, resort hotels, and the Chimelong resort complex, one of China's largest theme-park developments.

Crossing to Macau from the Gongbei border — a five-minute walk from the central bus terminus — is the standard day-trip option and one of the highest-volume land border crossings in the world. Macau operates visa-free entry for most Western passport holders.