Landlocked. That’s the first word that hits you. Sichuan is over 1,000 kilometers from the nearest ocean, tucked away in the mountainous heart of Southwest China. Yet, if you drive through the rural Daying County, past the rolling hills and local farmland, a massive steel ghost rises from the Qi River. It is a one-to-one scale reconstruction of the RMS Titanic. It’s huge. It’s expensive. And it’s been sitting there, unfinished, for a long, long time.
People often confuse this with the "Titanic II" project—the one proposed by Australian billionaire Clive Palmer. That’s a different beast entirely. That one was meant to sail. This version, the Titanic replica Sichuan China project, was never designed to taste saltwater. It’s a permanent tourist attraction, part of the Romandisea Seven Star International Cultural Tourism Resort. It’s basically a high-stakes bet on nostalgia, tragedy, and engineering.
The Massive Ambition Behind the Steel
Su Shaojun, the investor behind the project and CEO of the Seven Star Energy Investment Group, didn't want a "theme park" version of the ship. He wanted the real thing. Or at least, the realest thing possible without an actual iceberg. He’s spent over a billion yuan (roughly $150 million USD) trying to recreate the 269-meter-long vessel.
The attention to detail is actually kind of insane. They aren't just slapping together a ship-shaped building. They used the original blueprints from the Harland and Wolff shipyard. Think about that for a second. Engineers in rural China were pouring over century-old British technical drawings to figure out the exact curvature of the hull and the placement of the Turkish baths.
The project aims for total immersion. We’re talking about a grand staircase that looks exactly like the one Thomas Andrews designed. They’ve planned for period-accurate ballrooms, theaters, and even a swimming pool. The idea was to let guests stay overnight in first-class cabins and eat menus identical to those served on April 14, 1912. It’s a weird mix of luxury and a somewhat macabre historical tribute.
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Why the Sichuan Titanic Became a Ghost Ship
Construction started in late 2016. At the time, the media went wild. You probably saw the aerial photos of the keel being laid in a dry dock. It looked like it was moving fast. But then, things got quiet. Really quiet. If you visit the site today, or look at recent satellite imagery, the ship looks like a rust-colored skeleton.
Money is the obvious culprit. Building a full-scale ocean liner in the middle of a landlocked province is a logistical nightmare. Every single piece of steel had to be transported by road or rail. Then there’s the controversy. Originally, the developers planned a "high-tech" simulation where 6D technology would mimic the ship hitting the iceberg. They wanted people to feel the "crash."
Predictably, the families of the victims and survivors weren't thrilled. They called it tasteless. The backlash was significant enough that the developers eventually scrapped the "crash" simulation. They pivoted to focusing on the "spirit" of the Titanic and the stories of the passengers. But the delays piled up. Financial pressures, combined with the global pandemic and shifting Chinese real estate regulations, slowed progress to a crawl.
It’s not dead, though. Not exactly. Su Shaojun has insisted in various interviews that the project will be finished, even if it takes much longer than the original 2017 or 2019 deadlines. He’s basically pot-committed at this point. You don't just walk away from a billion-yuan pile of steel.
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What it Feels Like on the Ground
If you actually go to Daying County, the vibe is strange. It’s a rural area that was promised a world-class tourism boom. Some parts of the Romandisea resort are functional, like the water park, but the Titanic itself looms over everything like a monument to stalled dreams.
When you stand next to it, the scale is genuinely overwhelming. It’s 53 meters high. That’s roughly the height of an 11-story building. Seeing that much metal in a riverbed is surreal. It’s a testament to human ego and the enduring power of the Titanic’s story. People in China have a specific obsession with the Titanic, largely fueled by the 1997 James Cameron film, which was a massive cultural touchstone in the country. To many locals, this isn't just a ship; it’s a piece of Hollywood history brought to life.
Breaking Down the Specs (The Real Numbers)
- Length: 269.06 meters (exactly like the original).
- Width: 28.19 meters.
- Total Steel Used: Upwards of 23,000 tons.
- Project Cost: Estimated at 1 billion CNY.
- Interior Features: Grand staircase, boiler room, engine room, and the bridge.
Is it a Tourist Trap or a Masterpiece?
That’s the big question. Critics argue that a landlocked replica is the ultimate "white elephant"—a useless possession that costs a fortune to maintain. They point to the fact that it can’t move, it’s located in a relatively obscure part of China, and it capitalizes on a tragedy.
On the flip side, supporters see it as an educational tool. There are plans to include a museum that tells the stories of the Chinese passengers on board the Titanic, a detail often left out of Western accounts. There were eight Chinese passengers on the original ship; six survived. Highlighting their journey adds a layer of local relevance that makes the Titanic replica Sichuan China feel a bit less like a random import and more like a bridge between East and West history.
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Getting There and Seeing It
Honestly, if you're planning to visit, manage your expectations. This is not a polished Disney experience. Not yet.
- Fly into Chengdu: This is your closest major hub.
- Take the High-Speed Rail: You can get to Daying East station in about an hour.
- Local Transport: Grab a Didi (China’s Uber) to the Romandisea area.
You can see the hull from the road, and sometimes they allow visitors closer to the construction site, though access to the interior is strictly limited while work is "ongoing." It’s a great spot for photographers who love "liminal spaces" or industrial photography. The sight of the rusted bow against the green Sichuan hills is hauntingly beautiful in a way the developers probably didn't intend.
The Reality of 2026 and Beyond
As of now, the ship remains a work in progress. It is a symbol of the "build it and they will come" era of Chinese development. Whether it ever opens its doors to overnight guests remains to be seen. The structural work is largely done, but the interior fit-out—the part that actually makes it the Titanic—is incredibly expensive and time-consuming.
Su Shaojun’s dream is still alive, but it’s on life support. The ship has become a landmark regardless of whether it’s finished. It’s a destination for "ruin explorers" and curious travelers who want to see what happens when massive wealth meets a singular, perhaps slightly crazy, vision.
Actionable Steps for the Curious
If you’re fascinated by the Titanic replica Sichuan China, don’t just wait for a grand opening announcement that might never come.
- Check Chinese Social Media: Use apps like Xiaohongshu (Little Red Book) or Weibo. Search for "大英泰坦尼克号" (Daying Titanic). This is where you’ll find the most recent "boots on the ground" photos from local travelers.
- Look for the Chinese Survivors' Documentary: Before you go, watch The Six, a documentary produced by James Cameron and directed by Arthur Jones. It gives incredible context to why the Titanic matters so much in China.
- Verify the Resort Status: If you plan to stay nearby, check if the Romandisea Mediterranean Heart hotel is actually taking bookings. The resort area is large, and some peripheral facilities fluctuate in and out of operation.
- Combine the Trip: Don’t go just for the ship. Sichuan has some of the best food on the planet. Use Daying as a quirky side-trip while exploring the Sichuan opera and tea houses of Chengdu or the "Dead Sea of China" salt mines nearby.
The Sichuan Titanic is a strange, beautiful, and slightly tragic project. It’s a piece of history recreated in a place it was never meant to be. Even in its unfinished state, it demands your attention. It’s a reminder that even a century later, we’re still trying to reach the deck of the world’s most famous ship.