Many people around China are anticipating the upcoming Dragon Boat Festival, which falls on Thursday this year, to chill out a bit by indulging in a short getaway. The three-day holiday is not long, but still, if you plan well and know exactly what you want from a trip, a fulfilling getaway is achievable. Since it is early summer, what you have in mind must be somewhere cool and special. Here we recommend a wide selection of destinations, hoping at least one of them will suit your discerning taste.

Beach resorts

Photo taken on June 1, 2016 shows the No 1 bathing beach of Qingdao, East China's Shandong province, June 1, 2016. To meet the needs of tourists, the No 1 bathing beach of Qingdao opened to the public one month earlier than previous years.[Photo/Xinhua]

As the country enters summer, beach tourism starts gaining momentum among tourists. Qingdao is one of many favorable coastal destinations in China. Although it can sometimes get foggy because of the hot weather, visitors still swarm to the seaside to seek some cool pleasure brought by the sea. There is just so much fun near the beach - sunbathing, swimming, snorkeling and diving, or you can just lie on the powdery white sand and enjoy doing nothing. Apart from Qingdao, there are a bunch of other beach resorts in China, such as Dalian, Sanya and Xiamen. They are all as good, just pick the nearest option.

The ferry dock in Gulangyu Island of Xiamen, Fujian province.[Photo by Zhu Xingxin/Asianewsphoto]