It was October 6, and—as usual—sea breezes swept across the pier at Wuzhizhou Island in Sanya, while the beach down below bustled with holidaymakers.

But instead of heading for the sand, tourists Yang Yanrong and Lin Nuo made their way to a jetty to board the Jiaozi and experience the island’s newly launched underwater sightseeing experience. Having visited Sanya several times, the two had already had their fill of its beaches, coconut palms, and turquoise waters. This time, they wanted to discover what lay beneath the surface.

Helpfully, there was no need to carry an oxygen tank or learn how to dive. Instead, seated inside a sightseeing cabin, the two slowly descended beneath the water. Voices from shore and the sound of crashing waves gradually faded, giving way to an unusual sense of calm.

Through the cabin’s wide windows, the water shifted from a bright, translucent blue to a deeper hue. Coral reefs and rocks slowly emerged into view. Sunlight filtered through the water, casting rippling patterns of light and shadow, while small fish darted in and out of coral crevices.

"It is like the underwater world I used to see in documentaries is suddenly right in front of me," Lin said, holding up his phone and occasionally lowering his voice as if afraid to disturb the silence around him.

Yang leaned closer to the window, following schools of fish as they swam past. For her, this quiet observation of marine life was more relaxing than rushing around to take photos at the hottest spots on land.

Further along the coast at Baifu Bay, meanwhile, diving enthusiasts were taking a more direct approach, putting on their gear and plunging into the water themselves.

Once underwater, many were surprised by the scene before them. Soft corals, which often remain contracted at other times of the year, had opened up, as if putting on a special National Day holiday display. Pink, orange and purple tentacles swayed gently with the current, spreading across the reef like a vast flower garden blooming on the seafloor.

Divers observe leather soft corals and brightly colored dendronephthya soft corals growing on a reef at Baifu Bay on October 5.

Even more striking were the schools of sardines. Vast swarms of silver fish circled through the water, at times forming shimmering clouds before scattering and streaming past divers from all directions.

Surrounded by fish and coral, many visitors slowed their breathing and took in the living sea around them. Regular divers in the area said that encountering such flourishing coral and large schools of sardines was a rare and welcome surprise during the holiday.

For most tourists, the experience offered aboard the Jiaozi lowers the barrier to exploring the underwater world. Many people are fascinated by what lies beneath the sea but cannot dive themselves. Now, seated inside an underwater sightseeing cabin, they can come face to face with a real marine ecosystem without the physical demands of a deep dive.

The "underwater flower garden" at Baifu Bay, meanwhile, is a natural result of the marine ecosystem's gradual recovery. Long-term coral conservation and environmental management have provided favorable conditions for soft corals to thrive, while also attracting schools of fish to the area.

Together, innovative tourism experiences and an improving marine environment are creating a distinctive underwater attraction.

Increasingly, visitors like Yang and Lin are no longer content simply to stand on the shore and gaze out at the sea. For them, the new frontier lies beneath its surface, both literally and metaphorically, as they spend more time immersing themselves in a destination and experiencing it up close.

From the shore to the depths, Sanya is turning its marine resources into accessible, immersive holiday experiences, letting the ocean's allure extend far beyond the beach.