Lingao

Lingao County occupies a stretch of Hainan's northwestern coast between Haikou and Danzhou, where most residents speak the distinct Be language rather than Hainanese, giving the county a linguistic identity unlike almost anywhere else on the island. Its economy is built on coastal fishing, rice and tropical fruit farming, and rubber cultivation, and Lingao is best known nationally as the site of the main amphibious landing during the 1950 Hainan Campaign at Cape Lingao, now preserved as a landing memorial park on the beach where Communist forces crossed the strait. The county has no university of its own, and students go on to Haikou or Danzhou for higher education, but Lingao maintains a well-preserved Confucian Temple and honors the Ming-dynasty patriotic poet Wang Zuo, whose former residence still stands in the county. Beyond its history, Lingao draws visitors to the cascading Guyin Waterfall inland and to its coastline of fishing villages and mangrove-fringed bays. Its cuisine is arguably its biggest draw within Hainan, with Lingao roast suckling pig and the delicate Duowen water spinach both ranking among the province's most sought-after regional specialties.

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