Sanya Dadonghai Urban Renewal Conceptual Planning and Design International Competition

UPDATE!!

Addendum and Q&A have been released on the homepage. (Feb. 11, 2026) 

Important updates on deadlines: The official registration (email registration) for this competition will be closed at 17:00 (UTC+8) on March 5, 2026. The submission for application document is due at 17:00 (UTC+8) on March 12, 2026.

Please visit the competition homepage to obtain competition documents, including the Pre-qualification Document and related attachments, the Design Brief for the pre-qualification phase and related attachments, as well as site photos: 

dadonghai.archiposition.com 

1 Competition Background

Dadonghai is the first scenic destination where domestic and international visitors encounter Sanya.

Located in the southeastern part of Sanya's central urban district, Dadonghai Area is the city's earliest developed coastal resort. It features approximately 3 kilometers of continuous high-quality coastline. Since the 1990s, Dadonghai has been a key destination for domestic and international tourists to experience Sanya's tropical coastal charm. Owing to its fully open beaches and close connection to the old downtown, Dadonghai also stands as one of the most vibrant coastal spaces for the city's public life.

As the Hainan Free Trade Port advances and Sanya accelerates its development into a world-renowned modern coastal city ideal for living, visiting, and working, the Dadonghai Area must leverage urban renewal as a key driver, to transform from a traditional seaside resort into a high-quality, international, and mixed-use urban coastal destination.

How can a coastal landmark, matured over 30 years, transform itself for a new era?

The Dadonghai Area is included in the renewal scope of The Sanya City Urban Renewal Special Plan (2024 Edition). Guided by the vision of creating "a distinctive, experience-driven living harbor with unique regional charm" and "the most vibrant urban coastal resort", the area will enhance its spatial quality and industrial capacity through a systematic approach combining renovation, new construction and other interventions on different scales.

Under the above context, International Competition for Conceptual Planning and Design of Sanya Dadonghai Urban Renewal is now officially open for application.

This international competition is organized by Sanya Transportation Investment Industrial Development Co., Ltd., and co-organized by Shenzhen Position Architecture Co., Ltd.

2 Design Scope

The competition comprises two work scopes: "the conceptual planning and design for area renewal", and "the conceptual design for key renewal nodes".

The conceptual planning and design scope for area renewal is bounded by the mountain boundary to the north, the coastline to the south, Luneng Shanhaitian Residential Community to the west, and No.1 Harbour City to the east, covering a site area of approximately 126.8 hectares.

The conceptual design scope for key renewal nodes covers a site area of approximately 15.52 hectares, specifically including: 1) Dadonghai Plaza and Ruihai Shopping Mall plots, covering a site area of approximately 9.76 hectares; 2) Mingyue Plaza and surrounding plots, covering a site area of approximately 5.76 hectares.

3 Design Principles

This competition seeks to bring together leading expertise and advanced thinking in urban renewal and cultural-tourism upgrading. Based on a thorough understanding of the area's current situation and preliminary research, participating teams are encouraged to propose visionary renewal plans that combine international perspectives with local distinctiveness. The goal is to formulate practical renewal strategies and conceptual planning schemes tailored for the future of Dadonghai.

Key design principles are detailed on the project homepage: dadonghai.archiposition.com

4 Design Contents

1. Conceptual Planning and Design Scope for Area Renewal

Adopt a systematic approach that integrates comprehensive renewal with targeted renovation intervention. This approach should be grounded in a thorough analysis of the "Luhuitou-Dadonghai" tourism cluster and its urban context.

1) Define the area's future vision and overall positioning. Develop a thematic and branded tourism district with a "slow travel, immersive experience" approach. Elevate the area's industries and business types based on available renewal resources.

2) Propose a land-use and programming plan. Optimize supporting facilities regarding municipal infrastructure, public services, and tourism. Define key technical and economic indicators, along with strategies for overall regional coordination and financial balance. Propose adjustment on land-use indicators based on the existing detailed regulatory plan.

3) In coordination with the regional transportation network of the Dadonghai–Xiayangtian area, study the traffic circulation, static parking, and underground space development of the Dadonghai Area. Propose a traffic and pedestrian system enhancement plan to improve connectivity and walkability, including improvement solutions for the intersection of Luling Road and Haiyun Road.

4) Enhance the area's spatial identity. Based on holistic street design and "cool city" principles, propose detailed design schemes for key areas such as coastal streetscapes, commercial streets, and small-scale public spaces.

5) Conduct an economic feasibility analysis for the area renewal and propose funding balance strategies. For different intervention types such as preservation, renovation, adaptive reuse, and new construction, provide corresponding implementation strategies and phased development recommendations.

2. Conceptual Design Scope for Key Renewal Nodes

The conceptual design scope for key renewal nodes shall focus on two sites: "the Dadonghai Plaza and Ruihai Shopping Mall plots" and "the Mingyue Plaza and surrounding plots". The conceptual design scope for key renewal nodes shall focus on two sites: "the Dadonghai Plaza and Ruihai Shopping Mall plots" and "the Mingyue Plaza and surrounding plots". The design shall be based on a comprehensive analysis of existing conditions, commercial programs, and tourism-living functions. For each node, a clear design concept and renewal strategy shall be proposed, addressing the following components: site master plan, land use, functional programming, spatial form, traffic organization, public spaces, and key technical indicators. Based on the urban renewal design scheme, propose relevant adjustment to the existing detailed regulatory plan.

1) Dadonghai Plaza and Ruihai Shopping Mall plots: propose an integrated renewal scheme. Address key issues such as developing underground space, creating seamless connections to the beachfront, upgrading supporting facilities and alleviating parking shortages. The Ruihai Shopping Mall plot may accommodate revenue-generating programs (e.g. hotel, residential) to support financial balance, while also creating a landmark architectural node and high-quality open space for the area.

2) Mingyue Plaza and surrounding plots: in coordination with regional tourism facilities and the introduction of new programs, the proposal shall enhance tourism services and parking facilities through integrated planning of aboveground and underground spaces. Consider adding revenue-generating uses such as cultural and sports facilities, commercial services, hotels and apartments to support financial balance, and establish a multifunctional, mixed-use destination for tourism and extended stay.

5 Competition Rules

This competition adopts the form of "open procedure", which is conducted in three phases: pre-qualification, design competition, and design integration. 

Note: the drafting of the relevant statutory plans for this area will be organized separately by the organizer and legally entrusted to a qualified entity.

6 Competition Prizes

The shortlisted applicants, whose design scheme submissions meet the competition requirements determined by the Design Evaluation Panel, will receive corresponding prize money. The total prize money is RMB 4.3 million (tax inclusive). The prizes and prize money are set as follows:

7 Application Requirements

1. There is no design qualification requirement.

2. A company could apply alone as an applicant, or form a consortium applicant (hereinafter referred to as consortium) with another company.

3. The domestic applicant should be an independent legal entity (except for a design studio legally established according to The Partnership Enterprise Law of the People's Republic of China) with a valid business license. The overseas (including Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan) applicant should be a legal company or institution with a valid business registration certificate. Application from an individual or a group of individuals is not accepted.

4. Two or more legal entities with the same legal representative (business partner), a parent company and its wholly-owned subsidiaries, and companies that have a holding or management relationship are not allowed to apply as different applicants at the same time.

5. The applicant must designate one chief designer. The chief designer must take full responsibility for the project, and lead the entire competition work process. The chief designer is required to attend the site visit and technical briefing session, mid-term presentation (online meeting), and design evaluation meeting. The chief designer should deliver the presentation speech. Overseas design companies must ensure that their overseas chief designers actually participate in the design work.

6. The consortium should meet the following requirements:

1) One consortium consists of no more than two members (including the leading member). Each member of the consortium should not apply alone or participate in another consortium;

2) The consortium members should sign a legalConsortium Agreement, to specify the leading member, work distribution in each design phase, equity share, etc;

3) The chief designer should be personnel from the leading member company.

7. Applicants are encouraged to form multidisciplinary teams comprising professionals in city planning, architectural design, landscape design, cultural and tourism planning, transportation planning, etc.

Note: The chief designers proposed for the competition must be registered personnel of the design company. To ensure an accurate understanding of the competition requirements, at least one of the main design team members should be a native Chinese speaker. The organizer reserves the right to disqualify any applicant if it is found that the actual chief designer does not match the person in the document submitted.

8 Schedule

The schedule is based on Beijing time (UTC+8); Please check the latest version of schedule on the project homepage.

Please visit the competition homepage to obtain competition documents, including the Pre-qualification Document and related attachments, the Design Brief for the pre-qualification phase and related attachments, as well as site photos: 

dadonghai.archiposition.com 

The addendum and Q&A will be updated on this project homepage. It is recommended to bookmark this website and check it regularly.