Had your fill of culture? Why not sweep a perfect tee shot down a manicured fairway. Golf may have been banned in China as recently as 25 years ago, but today the country is obsessed with the sport and nowhere more so than Hainan which is bidding to become a golfing paradise. Case in point? Last October, Hollywood heavyweights Christian Slater, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Hugh Grant and Matthew McConaughey all made their way to Hainan for the Mission Hills 'Star Trophy' tournament - the first major celebrity golf pro-am event to be held in China.

Throw into the mix the weather (when the leaves are falling in Beijing, in Hainan it's hot), a warren of restaurants serving up delicious dishes like Hainanese chicken and the fact that the island doesn't require a string of vaccinations to get to - and you've got a dream destination. Ironic really, given that Hainan was once hailed as the "gate of hell" in honor of it being a place to banish rebel officers.

And now is the time to go! At some point we've all gone green with envy listening to a lucky so and so regale us with tales about what a place was like back in the day. Well Hainan is still in the early morning of its day and, as yet, hasn't registered on the travel radar. So whether you're here for the sunshine, the fresh seafood or the forest now is your chance to be the one who got there first. Explore and enjoy, before word gets out that Hainan is open for business.

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