Yantai

About Yantai

Smoke signals gave Yantai its name: in 1398 Ming-dynasty guards built beacon towers on the coast here to warn of pirate raids, and the words for smoke and tower stuck. Today this port on the northern shore of the Shandong Peninsula governs more than seven million people across seaside districts, wine country and offshore islands, with around three million in the built-up city.

In 1861 the harbor opened to foreign trade under the name Chefoo, and consulates, churches and merchant houses rose on Yantai Hill. Three decades later, in 1892, the Changyu winery was founded here, making Yantai the cradle of Chinese grape wine. Moon Bay and the long beaches east of the center draw crowds every summer.

Beyond the city, Penglai Pavilion stands above the sea where the Eight Immortals are said to have set out across the waves, while Kunyu Mountain shelters Taoist temples and pine forest. Yangma Island, the Changdao archipelago and the grand Mou family manor at Qixia make easy day trips.