Yellow River Estuary Eco-tourism Area

Yellow River Estuary Eco-tourism Area

The Yellow River Estuary Eco-tourism Area is a national AAAAA-level tourist attraction.

The Yellow River Estuary Eco-tourism Area is a national AAAA-level tourist attraction, located within the Yellow River Delta Nature Reserve at the mouth of the Yellow River. The reserve was established as a national nature reserve in October 1992 with the approval of the State Council, covering a total area of 153,000 hectares.

The Yellow River Delta Nature Reserve is an internationally important wetland system required to be registered by the Ramsar International Wetland Organization. It is the youngest, most extensive, and most well-preserved wetland ecosystem in China's warm temperate zone. At the same time, the Yellow River deposits a large amount of silt here, creating nearly 20,000 acres of new land annually. The area boasts a rich diversity of bird species, with a total of 296 species, including over 200 migratory birds. There are 10 species of Class I nationally protected birds, such as the red-crowned crane, white-naped crane, Siberian crane, great bustard, and oriental white stork, and 47 species of Class II protected birds, including the whooper swan and grey crane. The number of rare and endangered bird species has been increasing year by year. During the spring and autumn migratory seasons, millions of birds come here to feed, roost, and soar, making it a vital stopover, wintering habitat, and breeding ground for birds in inland Northeast Asia and around the Western Pacific. Experts from both China and abroad have praised it as the “International Airport for Birds.” The area is also rich in plant resources, with a total of 400 plant species, including 116 wild species. Salt-tolerant seepweed, tamarisk, and Apocynum venetum are widely distributed in the nature reserve, while reed beds cover a concentrated area of 400,000 acres, and wild soybean, a Class II nationally protected plant, is found across 65,000 acres. The natural vegetation coverage in the area reaches 55.1%, making it the largest newly formed wetland natural vegetation zone along China’s coast. The unique ecological environment and exceptional natural conditions give the Yellow River Delta Nature Reserve aesthetic features described as “new,” “extraordinary,” “distinctive,” “vast,” and “wild.” It has been ranked among China’s “Six Most Beautiful Wetlands.” It has successively joined the “Man and Biosphere Reserve Network of China,” the “East Asian–Australasian Shorebird Site Network” under the Wetlands International Asia-Pacific organization, and was listed by the state in 1994 as one of 16 internationally significant wetland and aquatic ecosystem protection sites. In 2006, it was designated as a national-level model nature reserve.

Address: Dawenliu Management Station, Yellow River Delta Nature Reserve, Kenli District, Dongying City, Shandong Province

Rating: AAAA

Phone: 4001662158

Official Website: http://www.hhkstlyq.com/

Opening Hours:

8:00-17:30

Ticket Information:

Peak Season (April 1 – November 30): 90 RMB; Off-peak Season (December 1 – March 31 of the following year): 70 RMB.

Source: Kenli District Information Network

Further Reading:

· Batch 35 National AAAAA-Level Tourist Attractions (January 2020)