Hainan’s harvest on showcase: Lychee-themed shopping and culture take over Haikou Airport

CHINA. Sino-Singapore (Hainan) Airport Commercial Management Co (CAMC) has rolled out a promotional campaign at Haikou Meilan International Airport to celebrate the Lychee Culture Festival.

In the run-up to the Dragon Boat Festival, the ‘Meilan adventure, all in for lychees’ carnival celebrates Hainan Island’s lychee harvest with a farmers’ market, duty-free shopping promotions and cultural performances to drive consumption.

Themed around the island’s popular fruit, the event combines local flavour with international elements to further position Hainan’s Free Trade Port as a world-class tourism and shopping destination.

Showcased as a flagship product of Hainan, the Xiuying Volcanic Lychee is being featured in a special ‘fresh upon landing’ airport service, with arriving travellers at Terminal 2 receiving complimentary samples of the premium fruit at exit gates.

The festivities extend to VIP lounges, airport hotels and select retail outlets, where travellers could enjoy limited-time lychee specials.

The experience is enhanced by interactive entertainment, including magic flash mobs, live violin improvisations and a dedicated lychee-themed photo zone.

Adding to the festive atmosphere, participants in the ‘Lychee Feeding’ game receive traditional mugwort flower gifts from the airport’s cultural store. Local specialities, including Ding’an black pork zongzi, salt-baked chicken and qingbuliang – a traditional chilled dessert, are also being served.

To boost passenger spend, CAMC – a partnership between Haikou Meilan International Airport (HNA Holdings) and Changi Airports International – launched various shopping promotions across the airport.

As part of the festivities, China Duty Free Group is offering limited-edition cocktails, blending global spirits with fresh Xiuying Volcanic lychees.

At the same time, the annual Global Shopping Festival being held by the retailer offers a -25% discount on cosmetics with a three-item minimum purchase, bringing total savings to as much as -60% off mainland prices. Early Bird perks include a CNY60 (US$8) voucher, CNY500 (US$70) gift package and CNY500 discount coupon for travellers arriving two hours before departure.

Local brands have joined the celebrations with exclusive offers, including Hainan Gifts Dida Guo shop, which features Dragon Boat Festival-themed pandan coconut pastries (one of the best-selling Hainan specialities) with a CNY30 (US$4) discount on purchases over CNY200 (US$28).

Another confectionery store, Coconut Deer, is offering tropical fruit pastries in a buy-four-get-one-free deal, and coconut candies with a buy-two-get-one-free promotion.

Dining offers extend to Starbucks in Terminal 2, which is running spend-and-redeem deals, while Terminal 1 eateries, such as Mei Zhilian, Coconut Talk and Chen Xiang Gui, are offering complimentary handmade zongzi with a minimum spend of CNY58 (US$8).

Finishing today (2 June), the market event features duty-free offers that extend until the end of the month. A spokesperson from Sino-Singapore (Hainan) Airport Commercial Management Co highlighted plans to merge Changi Airport’s expertise with local innovation to enhance Hainan’s ‘tourism + retail + service’ strategy. Read More