Sanya First Market Night Market Guide: Shaved Ice, Seafood & Local Snacks (2026)

If daytime Sanya belongs to beaches and resort pools, nighttime belongs to First Market Night Market (第一市场夜市). This is where the city's most authentic sense of life — its yanhuo qi, or "fireworks energy" — comes alive. There are no upscale restaurants here, just the clatter of woks in seafood stalls, long queues at snack stands, and air thick with grilled squid char and sweet tropical fruit. The core zone is Binfen Siji Night Market Food Street (缤纷四季夜市美食街, branded FIRST MARKET), where locals stop after work to buy seafood and snack on street food, and visitors can sample the full spectrum of Hainan's market flavors in one stroll.

Must-Try 1: Fresh Fruit Milk Shaved Ice (15–25 yuan)

The showstopper here is fruit-and-fresh-milk shaved ice. Vendors pour freshly cut fruit and pure milk onto a −15°C freezing plate, then fold and chop it with spatulas until it turns into dense, silky ice cream-like granules. The secret is in the ingredients: fresh-cut fruit, pure milk, and zero water added. The result is far richer and creamier than ordinary shaved ice, with intense fruit aroma in every bite. Flavor options rotate with the season — mango, durian, coconut, dragon fruit, pineapple — but the mango version is the standout: Sanya mangoes are exceptionally sweet, yielding the most fragrant ice. Prefer something lighter? Go with coconut. A single portion (15–25 yuan) is generous enough for two people to share.

Must-Try 2: Coconut Milk Qingbuliang (10–15 yuan)

No visit to the night market is complete without a bowl of Hainan's legendary summer cooler, qingbuliang (清补凉). Each bowl is packed with red beans, mung beans, barley, chewy taro balls, and watermelon cubes, all drenched in thick, freshly pressed coconut milk and served ice-cold. One sip and the tropical heat melts away. The stalls here are mostly run by locals, so the portions are honest and the coconut milk is squeezed to order — at 10–15 yuan a bowl, it's a fraction of what you'd pay in tourist districts.

Must-Try 3: Long Qimei Handmade Desserts

For traditional Hainan sweets, look for Long Qimei (龙七妹) — you'll spot the sign reading "三亚第一市场夜市等你" inside the market. Everything is made by hand with no additives. The vibrant green panlan (pandan) cake carries a natural, herbal fragrance; the coconut cake is soft, chewy, and deeply coconut-forward; and the pickled mango flowers — green mango sliced into bloom shapes and tossed with sour plum powder — deliver a tangy, appetite-opening kick that locals have grown up on. Coconut cakes, pandan cakes, and scallion cakes are all available, and they make excellent take-home gifts (several boxes for a few dozen yuan).

Popular Snacks: Sizzling Squid & Spicy Braised Beef

Near the entrance of the food street, follow the aroma to the sizzling squid stall, where whole squid are pressed on a hot iron griddle until the flesh turns springy and charred at the edges, then brushed with a secret spicy-sweet sauce. Right beside it, the spicy braised beef (辣卤牛) stall simmers premium cuts in a fragrant chili-laden broth — deeply savory, with just enough heat to demand a cold beer. Both are located near the food street entrance; just follow your nose.

Binfen Siji Seafood Restaurant: The Full Spread

For a proper sit-down meal, Binfen Siji (缤纷四季) is the go-to. Signature dishes include braised sea rabbit (Braised Sea Rabbit — despite the name, a type of sea snail that turns sweet and springy when braised), abalone-sauce pork kidney slices, flower clam vermicelli pot, and ginger-scallion razor clams steamed to plump perfection. The seafood small platter for two piles various shellfish into one pot with garlic vermicelli on the bottom — the broth gets richer and more savory the longer it simmers. All seafood arrives fresh the same day and is cooked to order. Expect to spend 100–150 yuan per person for a thoroughly satisfying feast.

Practical Tips

Compare prices before buying: The same seafood can vary noticeably between stalls — ask at several before committing. Follow the locals: Join queues at stalls with long lines of local diners for the best quality-to-price ratio; skip vendors who aggressively pull you in. Avoid peak hours: 6–8 PM is the busiest window. Arrive around 5 PM to browse first, then eat. Fruit bargains: Look for thumb-sized mini watermelons (15 yuan each) and pre-cut fruit boxes (6 yuan per box) — excellent value for seasonal fruit.

Practical Info

Address: 155 Xinjian Street, Tianya District (around the First Agricultural Market, Hongqi Street Food Street).
Hours: The seafood market operates during the day; night market food stalls are liveliest from 17:00–23:00.
Transport: Take bus 2, 4, or 7 to the "First Market" stop, or simply tell a taxi driver to head to "First Market" (第一市场).
Budget: Snacks run 15–30 yuan per person; a seafood dinner costs 100–150 yuan per person.
Notes: The market gets crowded — keep an eye on your belongings. For seafood, ensure freshness and exercise caution if you have allergies. All prices are subject to change; refer to on-site posted prices.

Summary

Sanya First Market Night Market is a window into authentic local life: a bowl of water-free fruit shaved ice, an icy coconut milk qingbuliang, a few pieces of handmade pandan cake, plus a seafood feast at Binfen Siji — this is how Sanya nights are truly meant to be spent. Don't spend your entire trip inside hotels and attractions; leave one evening for First Market. It will become one of the best memories of your visit.

Note: All prices mentioned are indicative as of 2026 and subject to change at vendors' discretion.