Голова Старого Дракона (Лаолунтоу)

Laolongtou, the Old Dragon's Head, is the point where the Ming Great Wall finally runs into the Bohai Sea, marking the eastern terminus of the wall and one of the most evocative sights in Qinhuangdao. The name comes from the image of the Great Wall as a great dragon crossing China, its body climbing over mountains and ridges for thousands of miles, ending here at the coast with its head lowered into the sea as if drinking. For travelers tracing the Great Wall from west to east, Laolongtou is the symbolic endpoint of the entire Ming line of defense.

The headland was built under the Ming general Qi Jiguang, one of the most celebrated military figures of his era, and the site is actually a layered complex of fortifications rather than a single wall. The Estuary Stone City extends the wall directly into the seawater, while the Chenghai Tower, or Sea-Viewing Tower, rises above as the highest point, a place where Qing-era emperors are said to have stood to look out over the ocean. The complex also includes the Nanhaisanguan gate, the Ninghai Fortress, and the Sea God Temple, each adding to the layered sense of a fully thought-out defensive and ceremonial site.

Walking through Laolongtou, the experience of seeing the wall meet the sea is genuinely striking, with weathered stonework standing against the waves and the broad Bohai horizon opening out beyond. The air here is fresh with sea breeze, the beach is sandy and flat, and at low tide it is possible to walk right up to the base of the seaward wall. The combination of military architecture and open ocean gives Laolongtou a character distinct from any other section of the Great Wall, a place where the great barrier feels less like a mountain rampart and more like a dock reaching into the water.

Laolongtou sits a few kilometers southeast of Shanhaiguan Pass and is most often visited together with it and the nearby First Pass Under Heaven tower, forming the core of the Shanhaiguan scenic zone. Sunrise over the sea is a particular draw, and many visitors time an early visit to catch the first light from the Chenghai Tower. As the place where the Great Wall meets the sea, Laolongtou is one of the signature sights of Qinhuangdao and a powerful symbol of the eastern end of imperial China's most famous structure.