Xiamen Travel Guide

Destination overview Destination sketch It is a coastal city in Fujian Province in China. It has been an important port for centuries and became one of China’s earliest Special Economic Zones in 1980. The name Xiamen means “door to the […]

Destination overview

Destination sketch

It is a coastal city in Fujian Province in China. It has been an important port for centuries and became one of China’s earliest Special Economic Zones in 1980. The name Xiamen means “door to the house”, referring to the city’s centuries-old role as a gateway to China.

Xiamen is a very vibrant, affluent and modern place, though by Chinese standards it is a small city — only 1.9 million in the city itself and 3.6 million counting suburbs. It has many non-Chinese residents and a range of restaurants, bars and stores that cater to them. It also has several universities and some areas popular for tourism.

The most important tourist area is Gulangyu, a small island close to downtown which contains some beautiful colonial buildings and is car free. It is now listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Best travel season

Xiamen is just one degree north of the Tropic of Cancer. The climate is subtropical, warm year round; even in the coldest winter months (January and February), the average nightly low is 10 °C (50 °F). Frost is extremely rare and the last time it snowed was a freak storm in 1893.

It does get hot in summer; in July and August, average daily high and low are 32 and 25 °C (~ 90 and 77 °F), and it is often humid as well. There is a fair bit of rain; average is 1350 mm (~ 53 inches) a year. October to January are the driest months.

Intercity traffic

Aircraft

Xiamen Gaoqi International Airport
Address: No. 121, Xiangyun 1st Road, Xiamen Gaoqi International Airport, Fujian, China
Tel: 0592-96363, 0592-5706078

Train

Xiamen Station
Address: 900 Xiahe Road, Siming District, Xiamen City
Arrival mode: Take bus No. 52, No. 1, No. 50, No. 130, etc., and get off at the train station Nanguangchang Station.
Phone: 0592-2038888

Xiamen North Railway Station
Address: Yannei Village, Houxi Town, Jimei District, Xiamen City
Arrival mode: 792 Road, 901 Road, 493 Road, 690 Road and other buses, get off at Xiamen North Railway Station and walk.
Phone: 0592-3828302

Long distance bus

Jimei Coach Station
Address: No. 159, Yinjiang Road, Jimei, Xiamen
Arrival method: You can take buses 658, 954, etc., and get off at Jimei District Government Station.
Tel: 0592-6068319

Ferry

A boat service operates from Xiamen’s two ferry terminals to and from Kinmen, which is under Taiwan control, hourly 08:30-19:00 every day. Tickets cost NT$750 from Kinmen and ¥160 from Xiamen.

One ferry terminal is called Dongdu on the west side of the Xiamen Island near the Marco Polo and Pan Pacific Hotels. The other is called Wutong in the northeastern corner of the island near the Xiang’an Tunnel.

Wutong is definitely the better choice because the boat ride is only about 30 minutes, and there seems to be fewer tour groups moving through this port. If you get seasick (and the waters can be rough in this area) this choice is obvious. The boat ride from Dongdu is about 55 minutes in normal weather. The only advantage this port could have is that if you are on the west side of Xiamen (where the downtown is), and want to save the ¥40 taxi ride to the other side.

There is only one port (Shuitou) on Kinmen island for mainland-bound boats, and the boat times alternate. So if you are doing a visa run and want to minimize your time in Kinmen, you can leave Xiamen from one port, and return to the other.

Attractions

Gulangyu Island

Gulangyu Island is located just southwest of Xiamen City. Visitors can reach it by steamship from Xiamen City in about 5 minutes. This scenic area is renowned for its delicate natural beauty, its ancient relics, and its varied architecture. The island is on China’s list of National Scenic Spots and also ranks at the top of the list of the ten most-scenic areas in Fujian Province. In July 2017, it was listed as a world heritage site by the UNESCO.

Sunlight Rock

Located in the south-central part of Gulangyu Island, Sunlight Rock is the island’s highest point with an altitude of 92.7 meters (304 feet). Though it may not rank with high mountain peaks, it appears superb and grand when seen from afar. The name comes from a sun-shaped formation in the granite. When the sun rises, the morning light illuminates the granite in Sunlight Temple and the rocks are bathed with sunlight.

Shuzhuang Garden

First built in 1931 on the southside of Gulangyu Island, Shuzhuang Garden was once a private villa. It became a garden park open to the public in 1955. It is divided into two parts – the Garden of Hiding the Sea (Canghaiyuan) and the Garden of Making-Up Hills (Bushanyuan). It was exquisitely designed to embody three important characteristics in gardening – hiding elements, borrowing from one’s surroundings, and combining movements.

The principle of hiding elements is embodied in the way the ocean remains hidden from view even if you walk right up to the garden gate. However, once you emerge from the bamboo forest, the seascape leaps into view. Climb the Tower of Tide-Viewing to really get a terrific look at the sea.

South Putuo Temple

This is a large Buddhist temple parts of which are over a thousand years old, mainly dedicated to the bodhisatva Guan Yin who is sometimes described as the Goddess of Mercy. Mount Putuo in Zhejiang is one of China’s greatest Buddhist temples; “Nanputuo” means “south Putuo”. Visitors can climb the mountain behind the temple for beautiful views of Xiamen and surrounding nature. The mountain is also littered with small enclaves with hundreds of Buddhist statuettes.
Address: 515 Siming S Rd, Siming District

Hulishan Fortress

Xiamen is a pretty coastal city in Fujian Province. It is characterized by a beautiful beach, ample sunshine and mild climate. Hulishan Fortress aka Hulishan Cannon Fort is one of the most exciting attractions of Xiamen. In the Scenic Spot, the Hulishan Fortress and the Rongguang Museum are the main attractions.
Hulishan Fortress lies to the south of the Xiamen Island. Construction began in 1894 during the Qing Dynasty (1644 – 1911) and ended in 1896. It covers an area of more than 70,000 square meters (about 17 acres) and is composed of barracks, a tunnel, a magazine and other fortified buildings, all surrounded by a granite wall. The ground on which the battery is built is quite solid because it is made of a mixture of ash, mud and sand with glutinous rice and brown sugar. Two large cannons once guarded the east and the south sides, but only one remains. These cannons, produced in 1886, were bought from a German arsenal at a cost of 80,000 taels of silver each. The remaining cannon is more than 13 meters (about 42.7 feet) long and weighs 50 tons. It has a range of 1,600 meters (about one mile). It is the largest and oldest 19th century breechloader in existence. Additionally, there are more than 50 iron cannons made during in the Ming (1368 – 1644) and the Qing Dynasties on the grounds. Between the eastern and the southern batteries is a tunnel in which 29 cannonballs are now on display. At the exit of the tunnel are the barracks. Hulishan Fortress was an important defensive factor during the war against Japanese aggression in 1900 and 1937.

Jimei

Jimei is located in the north of Xiamen Special Economic Zone, 17 kilometers (about 11 miles) from the city center. It is opposite to Xiamen Island and is at the foot of Tianma Mountain facing the sea on three sides. Jimei is the hometown of Mr. Tan Kah Kee (Chen Jiageng) (1874-1961), a renowned educator and leader of overseas Chinese. Nowadays, Jimei is one of the four most popular tourist sites of Xiamen City, especially for its academic atmosphere as well as pretty natural and social sights.

The most remarkable feature is without doubt the Jimei Study Village founded by Mr. Tan Kah Kee in 1913. It is the only one in China. It occupies an area of over 10 hectares (about 25 acres) on a variety of various levels and schools ranging from primary to higher education and from traditional to vocational schools. The magnificent scale of this project has no equal elsewhere in China.

Bailuzhou Park

A large park that includes hotels, bars, restaurants and shopping. Go around 8:30PM and enjoy the vendors, music, and dancing.
Arrival method: On an island in the lake, crossed by a bridge, east of the Marco Polo on the north side and of the bus station on the south.

Food

Xiamen Glass Noodles
Oyster omelet
Xiamen Fish Balls
Sea worm Jelly’s
Shacha Noodles
Shrimp Noodle Soup
Xiamen Spring Roll
Xiamen Glutinous Rice Wrap
Peanut soup
Xiamen Pot Stickers
Crab porridge
Braised Duck with Ginger
Xiamen Wonton soup

Accommodation

This lists accommodation on Xiamen Island only. Staying in Jimei instead might save a little money and could be reasonably convenient if you choose a place near a BRT stop. There is also plenty of accommodation on Gulangyu.

Shopping

An advantageous geographical location and distinct natural environment endow Xiamen with plenty of special local products including sugarcane, fruits such as olives and longans as well as various sea products such as fish, prawns, crabs, abalone and lancelets. Among such abundant special local products, the pies on Gulangyu Island, the vegetarian cakes in Nanputuo Temple, and the dried sea products and tea leaves sold along Xiaxi Road should certainly be on your shopping list.

This city has seen great advances in modern development in recent years, including many large commercial areas, huge shopping malls, supermarkets, and small stores with their own unique features. Consequently, the various choices will be sure to make your trip to Xiamen an exciting shopping experience.