The fish market at Shenjiamen on Putuo Island is one of the largest and most active in Asia, and a visit at dawn — when the night's fishing fleet unloads — is one of the most genuine experiences available in Zhoushan. The quay stretches for hundreds of metres, lined with trawlers and covered with crates of fish, crab, shrimp, and shellfish destined for wholesale markets across eastern China. This is a working commercial operation, not a tourist market, and the energy of the early hours is entirely authentic.
A night market along the waterfront opens in the evening and converts the day's catch into grilled and clay-pot preparations sold from open kitchens along the harbour. The seafood here is excellent and cheap — this is the source, not a retail intermediary — and eating here surrounded by fishermen and buyers is as close as you can get to the actual fishing economy. The stalls start setting up around 5pm; the market is busy until midnight.