The route doesn't just cross the river, but also connects sightseeing with history and quietly reshapes how visitors experience the city.

The concept has proved popular. During the Spring Festival holiday in February, daily passenger numbers on the route exceeded 4,700 — nearly five times higher than the previous year.

The figure indicates roughly 15-20 full sailings in a single day, near the maximum operational capacity, according to the ferry operator.

For Fan, the attraction lies mostly in the river itself.

The Yangtze appears yellow-brown, carrying heavy sediment from western China. The Hanjiang River, narrower and calmer, looks greener. During flood season, the two currents flow side by side before fully blending together."Like a cocktail," Fan says with a grin.

Written in poetry

For centuries, Wuhan's identity has been inseparable from water.

The city sits at the intersection of the Yangtze and Hanjiang rivers and historically developed as three separate towns divided by waterways: Wuchang, Hankou and Hanyang. Together, they became modern Wuhan.

Here, water is geography, memory and psychology. At Yellow Crane Tower, tour guide Wu Yanan has explained this layered identity to countless visitors beneath the towering eaves for more than two years.

Originally constructed during the Three Kingdoms period (220-280), the tower began as a military watchtower. Over the centuries, however, it evolved into one of China's most celebrated literary landmarks, as generations of poets climbed its upper floors, overlooking the Yangtze.