China Correspondent: A delegation of 30 Italian teachers and students has arrived in Sanya, marking the return leg of a rapidly developing cultural and educational exchange between Hainan Province and Italy, just six weeks after a Hainan children’s choir performed in Rome.

The 2026 Hainan International (Italy) Youth Exchange Delegation, comprising 27 students aged 13 to 18 and three teachers, officially commenced its two-week program on July 2 at the Shanghai International Studies University`s Sanya Affiliated Middle School. The initiative is guided by the Hainan Provincial Foreign Affairs Office and jointly organized by the school and the Hainan branch of China News Service (Beijing) International Communication Group.

The arrival completes a swift two-way exchange. In May, the Wuzhishan Rainforest Children’s Choir traveled from Hainan to Italy, performing at prominent venues including the UN Food and Agriculture Organization headquarters in Rome, Visconti High School, and the Chinese Embassy.

The educational link builds on a longer-standing municipal relationship. Sanya and Viareggio—a Tuscan city renowned as a yachting hub—formalized their sister-city agreement in November 2015, a partnership that originated from a 2013 Sino-Italian joint venture for yacht refits in Sanya, illustrating how commerce paves the way for cultural ties.

The school exchange program has become a vibrant part of that relationship. The same Sanya school previously hosted 60 Italian students and teachers from Arezzo in April 2024 for an identical two-week program, making this current cohort the second such visit in three years.

Italy is one node in a broader international outreach strategy. Over the past year, Hainan has run comparable youth delegations from the United States, South Korea, and Malaysia, all under the same provincial foreign affairs framework.

According to an internal activity diary reviewed by TropicalHainan, the Italian students` first full day followed a structured classroom schedule, including a campus tour, a safety briefing, and a student handbook review; introductory classes on Chinese culture and Hainan`s geography; and an afternoon ink painting session in which students practiced painting cherries.

Student Giulia Scardova, visiting Sanya for the first time, told China News Service that she hopes to make Chinese friends during her fortnight there.

The program`s upcoming activities are designed to immerse the delegation in both traditional and modern Chinese culture. Planned highlights include martial arts classes, calligraphy workshops, visits to Li and Miao ethnic minority villages, tours of local science parks, and a high-speed rail journey connecting Haikou, Sanya, and Wuzhishan.

The Italian delegation is scheduled to remain in Hainan until mid-July.