The ancient ethnic group known as the “Sea Gypsies” – the Tanka (Dàn) people. For generations, they have lived on boats and taken the sea as their farmland, giving birth to a unique wisdom of survival on the water. This spring, you don’t need to go out to sea to deeply understand this thousand-year legend hidden beneath the waves. The 2026 Sanya Tanka Culture Week is about to grandly open on the banks of the Sanya River. For three consecutive days, from a live waterborne spectacle to an authentic seafood market, we will take you on a comprehensive journey to unlock this marine cultural code unique to Sanya.

🌊 Three Must-Experience Activities: Watching, Eating, and Playing – All Covered

01. Live Waterborne Spectacle: Listen to a Intangible Cultural Heritage “Saltwater Song”

With the Sanya River and the stilted fishing houses as the real-life backdrop, an immersive waterborne performance will take you on a journey through time. Not only will you see Tanka girls in traditional costumes and witness their unique wedding customs such as “crying marriage and sending off the bride,” but you can also listen live to the national intangible cultural heritage – Tanka songs (Saltwater Songs). As the melodious tunes rise and fall with the tides, you will feel the resilience and optimism of the Tanka people: “people never leave the boat, and the boat never leaves the sea.”

02.A Taste of the Tanka: Seafood Delicacy Market

Strolling and snacking is the most direct way to understand a culture. Every day from 17:00 to 21:00, the food market opens on time! Here you will find the most authentic Tanka flavors: bouncy fish balls made by hand from fresh sea fish – savory but not fishy, steaming hot and delicious seafood porridge, and traditional preserved specialties passed down through generations. Amidst the rising smoke of cooking, take a bite of the ocean’s gift.

03.Hands-On Intangible Heritage Interaction: See New Year Paintings, Weave Fishing Nets

Static Exhibition “Tanka Memories in New Year Paintings”: On display are unique “Tanka fish paste New Year paintings.” These artworks, combining woodblock carving and real fish model rubbing (such as the representative work “Morning Melody on the Fishing Raft”), vividly recreate the Tanka people’s mornings and daily work on the fishing rafts. Each piece is living history.

Handicraft Workshop: Don’t just watch – you can also try it yourself! Learn to sing a few lines of Saltwater Songs with the inheritors, experience weaving a small fishing net by hand, or try making a distinctive floral Tanka hat, taking home Tanka intangible cultural heritage skills as your most special travel souvenir.

📝 Visitor and Check-In Guide

Event Location: Sanya River Bank, opposite Renmin Shuian on Hedong Road, Jiyang District, Sanya City

How to Participate: Free admission, no reservation required. Just come directly to participate in all activities.

💡 Suggested Itinerary: It is recommended that you arrive around 4:00 PM. First, visit the New Year painting exhibition by the river and try your hand at weaving fishing nets. As evening approaches, head into the food market for a bowl of hot seafood porridge and handmade fish balls. After nightfall, with a gentle breeze and delicious food, enjoy the live waterborne performance – a perfect in-depth cultural tour.

Tides rise in the South China Sea, songs echo for a thousand years. This March, come to the banks of the Sanya River for a spring date with the “Sea Gypsies”!