Shantou Photo Gallery

Shantou is located in the eastern coast of Guangdong province. Once a fishing village, the city opened as a treaty port in 1860 and prospered. This was also the place where upwards of 2.5 million Chinese boarded ships to move to Southeast Asia in the late 1800s to early 1900s.

Shantou became one of China's first economic zones in 1981. While it is overshadowed by nearby historic Chaozhou, this city is a bit more unique from other similar cities for being less crowded and having a crumbling city centre. From Shenzhen, high-speed trains take as little as 2 hours to reach Chaoshan station north of the city.