Once home to 2,000 people, a fishing village in remote China now stands completely empty after its residents started to leave one by one. Now reclaimed by nature, the eerie village looks like a fairytale book where vines have taken over after being left to their own devices since 2002, when it was officially deemed desolate.
Without adequate connections to the mainland from Shengsan Island, as those who use the maze of transport to visit will discover, locals began leaving Houtouwan village in search of better education and job opportunities. Previously, residents had to commute excessively long hours to and from the archipelago for work, which placed such a demand on them that they couldn’t even enjoy the beauty of their hometown.
Slowly the population of 2,000 diminished to zero, and the village which is around four hours east of Shanghaihas been left empty ever since.
Nature has completely taken over, leaving locals’ homes engulfed in winding vines, shrubs and vegetation so that barely a centimetre of original stonework is visible.
Vines have worked their way inside the houses after forcing entry through windows and doors, and now lush green blankets of vegetation sit atop roofs and drape a canopy over the village.
In 2015, pictures of Houtouwan went viral, and since then it has become a point of fascination for hundreds of tourists who make the trip from Shanghai.
A viewing platform opened in 2017 for visitors to safely take in the sights, and hiking routes have since followed where travellers can venture through narrow paths among nature.
Getting there involves taking a bus and a ferry from Shanghai to Gouqi, which is connected to Shenshan island by a bridge, so the final leg can be done by taxi.
