Beidaihe from Mao to the masses

Beidaihe, 280 km east of Beijing, on the Bohai Gulf, is visited every summer by some 5 million people. The town is a mix of resorts that echoes european seaside towns and new hotels, restaurants, shops, fun palaces for the masses. Originally patronized by European diplomats, Beidaihe reached the top of his popularity in the 70's as the summer retreat for the Communist Party leadership. The town has boomed since Deng Xioaping economic reforms and today most of Beidaide visitors are middleclass...
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Beidaihe, 280 km east of Beijing, on the Bohai Gulf, is visited every summer by some 5 million people. The town is a mix of resorts that echoes european seaside towns and new hotels, restaurants, shops, fun palaces for the masses. Originally patronized by European diplomats, Beidaihe reached the top of his popularity in the 70's as the summer retreat for the Communist Party leadership. The town has boomed since Deng Xioaping economic reforms and today most of Beidaide visitors are middleclass chinese tourists and russians that come here from towns near the Manchurian border on a two-day train ride. But some of the finest villas, heavely guarded, are still the domain of party officials who also enjoy the exclusivity of private beaches..Chinese tourists on a beachfront road.
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