The Port of Qingdao (also spelled Tsingtao) rests at the entrance to Jiaozhou Bay on the south coast of Shadong Peninsula overlooking the Yellow Sea in eastern China. The Port of Qingdao is located some 94 nautical miles northeast of the Port of Liayungang and about 300 nautical miles west-southwest of the Port of Incheon in South Korea. Offering one of northern China's best natural harbors, the bay is open year-round for large vessels. The Port of Qingdao is an important cultural center with several important universities. It is also a major center for marine sciences and technology. In 2007, over 2.8 million people lived in the urban area surrounding the Port of Qingdao.

In 1984, the government of the People's Republic of China named part of Qingdao a Special Economic and Technology Development Zone, supporting the city's growth with secondary and tertiary industries. As one of China's fourteen open cities, the Port of Qingdao supports a local economy that thrives on international trade and foreign investments. Japan and South Korea have made significant investments in the city, and about 80 thousand South Korean citizens live there. The hinterlands of the Port of Qingdao contain more than 20 hectares of arable land, so agriculture is an important part of the regional economy. Marine resources like fish, shrimp, and other ocean products are also important to the economy. Minerals mines and paper mills also contribute. The Port of Qingdao is home to three industrial zones: Qingdao Economic and Technological Development Area, Qingdao Free Trade Zone, and Qingdao High-tech Industrial Zone.

Humans have lived in the area of the Port of Qingdao for at least six thousand years. One of China's first peoples, the Dongyi, lived here and established the Dongyeshi, Longshan, and Dawenkou cultures. Before the 17th Century, the Port of Qingdao was little more than a small fishing village. Under the Qing Dynasty (1891), the Port of Qingdao was called Jiao-ao.

In 1891, the Qing Dynasty government began to improve the fortifications at the Port of Qingdao, making it a defensive base against possible naval attacks. Unfortunately, the German navy overcame these defenses, and Jiaozhou Bay was ceded to Germany in 1898.

The German occupiers transformed the poor fishing village into an important port and based their Far East Squadron in the Port of Qingdao where their ships could operate throughout the Pacific region. They made the Port of Qingdao a free port in 1899. The German government built the first streets and infrastructure for the city and introduced electricity, a sewer system, and a supply for healthy drinking water. German merchants established the Tsingtao Brewery and many other commercial ventures throughout the province.

Before World War I began, German naval vessels gathered in the Marianas to return to Germany before they could be trapped by the Allies. After Japan declared war on Germany as part of the Anglo-Japanese Alliance (and to take the Port of Qingdao), the Japanese occupied the Port of Qingdao and surrounding area during the Siege of Tsingtao and held it until 1922.

The Port of Qingdao returned to Chinese rule in 1922 as part of the Republic of China, and it became a directly-controlled municipality under the national government in 1929. In 1938, the Japanese again occupied the Port of Qingdao as it invaded the Republic of China at the beginning of World War II. During Japanese occupation, new industries were developed. The Japanese established cotton mills, train works, engineering shops, repair facilities, and factories manufacturing chemicals, matches, rubber, beer, and dyestuffs.

When World War II ended, the Chinese Nationalist Party allowed the US Navy's Western Pacific Fleet to use the Port of Qingdao as its headquarters; however, the Red Army entered the city in 1949, and the Port of Qingdao has been under the control of the People's Republic of China since then, and it has become a center for heavy industries like iron and steel.

In 1984, China began its open-door policy and named the Port of Qingdao as one of its 14 open cities, opening the door to foreign investment and trade and locating its own navy's northern fleet there. In 1984, three US Navy ships visited the Port of Qingdao, making the first US port call to China in over 37 years.

Today, the Port of Qingdao is an important manufacturing center. The city is undergoing a period of rapid growth, with a new central business district added to the older business district. A large industrial zone is located outside the Port of Qingdao's city center. The industrial zone includes facilities that process chemicals and manufacture rubber and heavy machinery. There is also a blossoming high-tech industry in the industrial zone.

Governed by the Qingdao Port Authority, the Port of Qingdao has trade relations with more than 450 ports in over 130 countries around the world. With a natural deep-water silt-free harbor, the Port of Qingdao is an important center for international trade and ocean-going transportation.

The Port of Qingdao contains three major areas: the Old Port, Huangdao Oil Port, and Qianwan New Port. The Port of Qingdao is equipped to handle a wide range of general, bulk, and project cargoes. The major cargoes handled by the Port of Qingdao include containers, iron ore, coal, crude oil, and grain. Other cargoes include aluminum, fertilizer, sodium carbonate, cement, rubber, sodium carbonate, wood pulp, cotton, lumber, and ironware.

In 2007, the Port of Qingdao handled a record 265 million tons of cargo, including 190 million tons of foreign cargo and 9.5 million TEUs of containerized cargo, making it the second busiest port in mainland China. In that year, the Port of Qingdao opened a new liquid chemical wharf and a new container terminal and launched the largest cold store in China. In the first half of 2008, the Port of Qingdao had already handled over 150 million tons of cargo.

The Qingdao-Jinan Expressway and the Jiaozhou-Jinan Railway both start in the Port of Qingdao, offering fast and convenient transport of goods into the interior. The Port of Qingdao has 70 working berths, including 24 deep-water berths that can accommodate vessels over 10 thousand DWT. The Port of Qingdao is also a busy fishing port.

The Port of Qingdao contains the world's largest container dock and world-class docks handling crude oil, coal, iron ore, and bulk grains. It also boasts the largest EDI information center in mainland China and is home to China's only state-class center for technology research and post-doctoral science and research.

The Port of Qingdao's Qianwan Container Terminal Company, Limited (QQCT) is a common-user international container terminal with alongside depth of 14.5 meters that can accommodate 5th- and 6th-generation container vessels. The stacking yard covers 225 hectares, and the terminal offers over three thousand reefer plugs. The total berth length is 2400 meters, and the approach channel can accommodate vessels with draft of 15 meters. The Container Freight Station also offers 5.5 thousand square meters of covered storage for general cargo.

In 2003, the Port of Qingdao's world-class container terminal was opened under a joint venture involving the Port of Qingdao, COSCO, Maersk, and P&O. By 2004, container throughput was already over 5.1 million TEUs. The berths at the terminal total three thousand meters in length with alongside depth of 17.5 meters, and the terminal includes a 1.5 square kilometer container yard. The new container terminal boasts the world's best container loading/unloading efficiency (474 boxes per vessel per hour). With China's biggest intermodal railway station, the Port of Qingdao can automatically transfer containers from vessel to rail for shipment to major inland cities. The new terminal can accommodate the world's biggest container vessels.

Created in 1992, the Qingdao Free Trade Zone has a total area of 250 hectares and contains more than two thousand projects from investors from more than 40 countries, including 21 global projects. The Free Trade Zone contains 26.8 thousand square meters of construction areas, 22.8 thousand square meters of warehousing areas, and 23.4 thousand square meters of building base areas.

The City of Qingdao is one of China's cleanest, most beautiful cities. The name "Qingdao" means "The blue/green island." The Port of Qingdao offers many interesting and entertaining attractions for visitors. In addition to several nice (but crowded) beaches, there are several popular attractions that visitors will want to check out.

The Port of Qingdao's climate is a humid subtropical climate influenced by monsoons. Summers are usually humid and hot, but there are seldom extremely hot days. Winters are cool and cold, and there is occasional snowfall. Spring and autumn are comfortable beautiful seasons. Temperatures average from a high of 28 °C (83 °F) in August to a low of -3.7 °C (25 °C) in January.

Tsingtao Beer is known around the world, and the Tsingtao Brewery is one of the most popular tourist attractions in the Port of Qingdao. Founded in 1903 by German colonists, it has always been the most popular beer in China, and it has long been the best-selling Chinese beer in the United States. Visitors can visit the brewery's museum and sample their outstanding products.

Xiaoyu Hill is the Port of Qingdao's old town. Boasting many stone houses, villas, and German-build buildings, the Qingdao Guest House (or the German Governor's Residence) is the most popular place to visit. Well-maintained and in wonderful condition, the Guest House contains beautiful antiques, including an antique ivory piano, and marvelous ornaments. The house has hosted many famous visitors, including Chairman Mao.

The Qingdao Underwater World (Chinese) is China's first public aquarium. Opened in 1932, the aquarium has four major areas that line both sides of the street and are connected by an underground tunnel. A moving platform takes visitors through a tunnel that passes through the aquarium and offers a 360 ° view, and there is a popular mermaid show each day.

Polar Ocean World (Chinese) is an aquarium that features polar animals like polar bears and penguins. More modern than the Underwater World, it also has a Beluga whale show. Located in the Shilaoren National Tourism Resort area, visitors can observe a range of rare polar animals and marine fish. Popular shows include dolphin performances, the Joy Theater performance with funny trained sea lions and walruses and clown acrobats, the Mermaid Performance, and the feeding performance in the zoological exhibition.

Travelers who want to visit the Port of Qingdao by sea can find a list of scheduled cruises on the Cruise Compete website.