It was termed as a high-profile holiday programme but the venue and presence of Vice-President Xi Jingping could mean it was also the start of meetings leading to the once-in-decade leadership change that the Communist Party of China is gearing up for later this year.
Beidaihe, a resort town to the east of Beijing, has a long sandy coastline; it has also served as the venue for secretive high-level political meetings of the CPC where top leaders gather to thrash out strategies behind closed doors.
Over the last weekend, Xi — expected to take over from Hu Jintao as China's next President — had meetings with several experts and urged them to work more for the country’s developments.
"Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping on Sunday greeted a group of renowned experts and grassroots talents and encouraged them to contribute more to the country’s development," state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
The news agency termed the meetings as both routine and high-profile.
"Those experts were invited by the central authority to a routine high-profile holiday program in Beidaihe, a popular northern seaside resort close to the Chinese capital, as a form of recognition and reward for their works," the report said.