Shenzhen's Sino-British street to be developed for tourism

A number of museums and exhibition halls are being planned to boost tourism around the historical Sino-British street, once a renowned shopping destination, in the Yantian district of the Shenzhen special economic zone.

Further developing the historical and cultural aspects of the street should attract plenty of tourists at home and abroad, said Xu Gang, director of the Sino-British Street Administrative Bureau.

Located in Shatoujiao, or Sha Tau Kok, the street was once a shopping paradise and a must-go tourist stop in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, in the 1980s and ‘90s when the country had yet to allow independent visits to Hong Kong.

The street is now jointly managed by Shenzhen's Yantian district government and the Hong Kong government. Visitors must obtain a permit at the street’s entrance.

Xu’s bureau, which was officially established last December, has mapped out a plan to boost the street’s cultural development to regain its past glory, he said. As an example, the Sino-British street has the mainland’s first tea themed restaurant, he said.

In addition to the Fishermen’s Dancing Folk Custom Museum, which is currently being built, other planned sites include a culture of tea museum, a museum of red wine, a museum dedicated to the Wu family name and the Historical Exhibition Hall of Shenzhen and Hong Kong during World War II.

The street, which is 250 meters in length, has a population of 6,160, including 3,313 Hong Kong residents. It has two factories and 127 stores selling everything from gold to milk powder to medicine.