The recently concluded National Day and Mid-Autumn Festival holiday saw parks emerge as the top choice for leisure. Fushan Forest Park in the coastal city of Qingdao, Shandong province, was dotted with colorful tents and lively gatherings, while Xiaomai Island Park buzzed with romantic photoshoots. At Xiao Yushan Park, visitors enjoyed panoramic views of the city's iconic "blue sea, azure sky, red tiles, and green trees".

This vibrant park life unfolds against a remarkable backdrop: Qingdao now boasts 1,031 parks, cementing its status as a city of a thousand parks. This extensive network includes 330 urban parks, 687 pocket parks, and 14 forest parks.

These green spaces are woven deep into the city's fabric, serving not only as recreational hubs but also as the city's green lungs, cultural venues, and vibrant community stages. From central parks like Taiping Mountain to the convenience of neighborhood pocket parks, each space is integrated with its surroundings, reshaping the city's green infrastructure.

Qingdao is actively merging these parks with daily life through innovative "park plus" models — adding services, experiences, cultural tourism, and sports. This transforms parks into all-in-one destinations: open-air gyms for seniors, playgrounds for families, and recharge stations for young people.

By seamlessly blending nature with urban living, Qingdao is not just creating more parks — it's crafting a greener, healthier, and more sustainable future for all its residents.

Qingdao now boasts 1,031 parks, cementing its status as a city of a thousand parks. [Photo by Liu Dong/Guanhai News]

Qingdao's parks integrate urban, pocket, and forest types to reshape the city's green map. [Photo by Liang Chao/Guanhai News]

These diverse parks in Qingdao provide tangible green benefits for all residents. [Photo/Guanhai News]