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Shamian Island (沙面) is a serene 900-metre-long sandbank in the Liwan District, separated from the mainland by a narrow canal. Once divided between the British and French concessions from 1861, it retains dozens of restored colonial-era buildings now hosting boutique cafés and consulates.
Ceded after the Second Opium War in 1861, the island served as a Western trading enclave for nearly a century. After 1949 the buildings fell into disrepair until a major restoration campaign in the 1990s transformed it into a heritage precinct.