Putuoshan Island is dedicated almost entirely to Guanyin, the bodhisattva of mercy, and the concentration of temples, shrines, and pilgrimage infrastructure on this small forested island is extraordinary. Three major monasteries — Puji Temple, Fayu Temple, and Huiji Temple — are connected by stone paths through bamboo groves, and dozens of smaller chapels and cave shrines are scattered across the hillsides between them. The largest Buddha statue, a 33-metre bronze figure of Guanyin on the island's southern cape, has become the most-photographed image of the island.
On ordinary days the island has a genuine spiritual atmosphere despite the tourist infrastructure. Festival days — particularly Guanyin's birthday in the lunar calendar — bring enormous crowds of pilgrims from across China and create a very different experience: the paths fill with people prostrating every three steps, the smell of incense is overwhelming, and the combination of religious intensity and commercial pilgrimage economy is fascinating to observe from the outside. The ferry from Shenjiamen or from Ningbo takes thirty to sixty minutes depending on the route.