Dalian’s frequently applied label, ‘the Hong Kong of the north’, is an apt comparison to its bustling cosmopolitan sister city along the southern coast. Few other places in China have embraced such an open arms attitude towards the wider world, and it shows in every detail. Gleaming skyscrapers define Dalian’s silhouette, supported by one of the hottest nightlife scenes in China, ultramodern shopping venues and excellent dining.
Whereas most Chinese cities tend towards a staid grey feeling, Dalian has bucked this Communist trend from the beginning thanks to its historic roots tapped into Russian and Japanese influences. The result is a wonderfully refreshing downtown where the streets are easy to walk and the colonial architecture a real eye pleaser. Strolling around Dalian, you could easily forget that you’re still in northern China. In fact, visitors may well find themselves leaving with a new impression of this vast nation.
The locals understand this difference with overtly evident pride. The city is northern China’s largest port, and one of the very few ‘open door cities’ in the country. This has allowed foreign investment and influence to wedge its way into the local culture, creating something of a potential model for the future of Chinese society. Its location on the southern tip of the Liaodong Peninsula provides it with a pleasant urban seaside atmosphere balanced by an ample selection of beaches and inland mountains. This accessibility to the great outdoors is another defining characteristic of Dalian.
Often lumped together with Chinese cities like Shanghai, Hong Kong and Beijing, the bustling metropolis of Dalian certainly deserves its reputation as a hot travel destination. Hotels have been hustling to keep up with demand. Global five-star chains like Kempinski are adding to the swelling ranks of spiffy four-star options and a plethora of budget accommodation. Dalian is no secret to middle-class Chinese holidaymakers or international business people, so hotel room rates skyrocket during the summer season. But with its ample attractions, nothing seems to be slowing this city down.
China may have an impressively long timeline, but Dalian’s early history remains shrouded in a haze of speculation. Records show that the Han Dynasty established a shipping port at the southern end of the Liaodong Peninsula in 108 BC. But the next reference doesn’t come until 1371, when Tang Dynasty soldiers gave the remote area the nickname “Lion Mouth” because it was so difficult to reach.
The next 500 years saw only sporadic references to Dalian, as the majority of China’s cultural and political activities were centred around Beijing and Shanghai. Perched in relative isolation on the southern tip of the Liaodong Peninsula, Dalian remained a quiet fishing village removed from the drama of dynastic China.
It wasn’t until the British sailed a gunboat into nearby Lushun Harbour in 1856 during the Second Opium War with China that Dalian gained its first international recognition. The captain of that gunboat, William Arthur, was impressed enough with the natural harbour that he named it Port Arthur. The fact that the English saw strategic potential in the peninsula sparked a similar interest from the Manchu government.
Over the following years, several forts were built in the hills around Port Arthur and Dalian Bay. The 1894 Sino-Japanese War ended in brutal defeat for China, who had to cede Dalian, Taiwan and the Pescadores Islands to Japan. Japanese rule only lasted seven months, however, as European pressure forced them to return Dalian and Port Arthur back to China. Russia immediately saw the potential of Dalian’s port, which remained free of ice throughout the winter. The Russians secretly made a deal with China to help pay off their war debts in return for being allowed to rent Dalian.
Naturally this didn’t go down well with the Japanese, but the Russians occupied Dalian from 1898 to 1904. They developed the fishing village into a full-blown industrial centre, and thus the modern face of Dalian was born both economically and socially. The Japanese attacked Dalian in 1904, and after the long Russo-Japanese War Japan resumed control of the peninsula. This time the Japanese held on to the area until 1945. Japan’s defeat in WWII brought Dalian under joint Russian-Chinese control, but by 1950 China had assumed full control over the city.
Mao Zedong didn’t focus much attention on Dalian so it languished for three decades until Mao’s death. In 1984, Dalian was named one of the 14 cities in China open to foreign investment. With its natural port and strategic location, Dalian boomed in every aspect of industrialisation. Wisely, the city government also put a lot of energy into developing the city as a tourist destination. Its Japanese, Russian and Chinese heritage has been preserved and promoted, creating one of the few cosmopolitan cities in China. The result is a harmonious blend of industry and tourism, a double boon to this city on the rise.
Despite its location in chilly northeastern China, Dalian’s position at the southern tip of the Liaodong Peninsula with the Yellow Sea on one side and the Bohai Sea on the other gives it a surprisingly temperate climate. The weather in Dalian is very coastal, affected by the seasonal monsoon and the oceans around it. There are four distinct seasons in the area, and an average year-round temperature between 8 and 11°C. Plenty of rain falls on Dalian, but most of it comes in the summer.
Dalian’s booming summer high season coincides with its most pleasant weather. From May through September the temperatures are wonderfully mild, averaging around 20°C, and the city hosts countless festivals and special events. The beaches are at their best, and the crowds at their highest. Lots of rain falls in the summer, but it typically arrives at night, leaving visitors with plenty of daytime sunshine. Be sure and bring an umbrella for summer travel.
By the end of November, cold winds from the north howl through the city until February. Temperatures are reliably chilling, so dress for the conditions if you plan a winter trip. On the upside, there are virtually no other tourists and room rates are very cheap. Spring and fall are a good compromise for a visit to Dalian. The air is either warming up or cooling down to an ideal temperature, and tourist numbers are much more tolerable.
