Xiamen Travel Guide: Gulangyu, Tulou, Airport Move

Xiamen is a coastal port city in Fujian that Chinese travellers like for easy walking. It has Gulangyu (Kulangsu), a car-free World Heritage island, the Zhongshan Road pedestrian street, Nanputuo Temple, beaches and a ring road along the sea, and it is the base for the Fujian Tulou, another World Heritage site. Allow 3 to 4 days. For the 30-day visa-free list, the arrival card, payments and internet limits, see the China hub. What we could not check against official sources, such as current Gulangyu attraction fees, tulou entry fees and nonstop flights, is stated in each section. Everything below was checked on 17 October 2026.

Who Xiamen suits

It suits people who like walking a city, photographing old buildings, eating seafood and local snacks, and want a trip without the long journeys of inland China. Wikivoyage describes Xiamen as modern and small by Chinese standards, with a subtropical climate. Gulangyu is the main sight and is only a ferry ride from the city centre. If you want quiet, note that Wikivoyage says Gulangyu draws many Chinese visitors and advises avoiding long public holidays.

The city in words

• Xiamen Island is the core of the city, about 13 km across. The railway station, ferry piers, long-distance bus station and the current airport are all on it (Wikivoyage). Bridges and tunnels link it to Jimei, Haicang and Xiang'an.
• Zhongshan Road and the Lujiang waterfront lie in the south-west of the island, facing Gulangyu. The Zhongshan Road pedestrian street starts on Lujiang Road near the pier. Wikivoyage gives typical hours of 9:00 to 22:00.
• Xiamen University and Nanputuo Temple are in the south, about a 20-minute walk from the pier area (Wikivoyage), with a student shopping street at the university gate and the Zengcuoan village of cafes and bars by the sea.
• Huandao Road, the ring road runs from the university along the east coast to the airport, with several beaches. Wikivoyage says a bike lane runs alongside and bike rental starts at around CNY 30 a day.
• Yundang Lake is on the west side and has several large hotels. See the area table on where to stay.
• Wuyuan Bay in the north-east has newer upscale hotels and is near the current airport.

The main sights

Gulangyu (Kulangsu). A small island with no cars or bicycles, colonial-era villas, gardens, a piano museum and viewpoints. Wikipedia says UNESCO listed it as a World Heritage site on 8 July 2017. You cross by ferry, and ferry tickets are sold against your identity. Our Gulangyu page covers piers, fares, how to buy and the sources that disagree.

Zhongshan Road pedestrian street. An old shopping street in the pier district. Wikivoyage says the buildings on both sides mix European and Chinese architecture and that it is generally open 9:00 to 22:00. It suits an evening walk and snacks before or after Gulangyu. The hours are Wikivoyage's, not an official site's.

Nanputuo Temple. A large Buddhist temple in the south of the island. Its official site says it was founded between the late Tang and the Five Dynasties and gives the address as 515 Siming South Road. Hours, fees and cautions are on the Nanputuo Temple page.

Xiamen University. Wikivoyage describes old Chinese-western buildings, gardens, a small lake and a small anthropology museum. It says the main gate can be restricted during long holidays and suggests a small gate on the Baicheng beach side. We found no official visiting rule from the university, so we do not say whether you need to book. Ask your hotel or read the notice at the gate.

Zengcuoan, the beach and Huandao Road. Wikivoyage describes Zengcuoan as a former village that became a district of cheap shops, bars and barbecue near the university. The ring road has beaches and some large hotels, such as the Novotel Xiamen International Convention Center, which its site says is a walk from Guanyinshan beach. We found no checked official information on Huangcuo beach, so we say nothing about it.

Hulishan Fortress. A late-Qing artillery fort that Wikivoyage says was built in 1894, with an entry fee of CNY 25 (no update year given). It is near the south end of the ring road.

Fujian Tulou: a day trip or an overnight

The tulou are rammed-earth buildings, round or square, built by the Hakka. UNESCO listed 46 of them in 2008 (Wikipedia). The groups most visitors go to are in Yongding and Nanjing counties, 3 to 5 hours from Xiamen according to Wikivoyage, which makes a day trip very long. Our Fujian Tulou page covers the main groups, the old fee figures and transport options.

Getting to Xiamen from abroad

We could not confirm nonstop flights from Bangkok or other cities to Xiamen (XMN) on an airline or airport site on 17 October 2026. The Gaoqi airport site has a flight search form with a long list of overseas cities and airlines, but it is a menu, not a timetable, so it does not show that a nonstop runs on your date. Wikivoyage says there is a direct flight from Bangkok, but it is not an official source and gives no date.

The route that always works is a connection. Wikivoyage says the most common one from abroad is via Hong Kong, then Guangzhou or Shanghai; if you connect in Shanghai, remember that Pudong and Hongqiao are far apart. Check flights for your exact date in an airline app before you book.

From the airport and the train station

The current airport is Gaoqi, in the north of Xiamen Island. Wikivoyage gives a taxi fare of CNY 30 to 40 and about 20 minutes into the city, and says to use BRT station T4 rather than "Gaoji Airport". Several hotels write their own drive times from Gaoqi, such as Pan Pacific 25 minutes, Marco Polo 20 minutes and ibis Xiamen Kaiyuan 25 minutes.

On the new airport, Xinhua reported on 21 January 2026 that Xiang'an was in acceptance checks and test flights with opening planned for the end of 2026, and the Xiamen Airport Group announced on 30 September 2026 that Gaoqi would close at the same time. We found no official notice with an exact date. Wikipedia gives an expected opening of 25 December 2026, but that is an unofficial projection. If you travel from late November 2026, check which airport is on your ticket and check the journey time again, since all the hotel pages quote times from Gaoqi. Wikivoyage says Xiang'an is on the mainland about 15 km from Xiamen Island and that Metro Lines 3 and 4 are planned to reach it (plans, not confirmed).

Season and typhoons

Wikivoyage says Xiamen lies just above the tropics with a warm subtropical climate all year, that October to January is the driest period, that July and August are hot and humid, and that typhoons threaten mainly July to September, though the island is fairly sheltered by Taiwan. The monthly averages in the table come from Wikivoyage's chart.

Reading the table, October to December has low rain and comfortable temperatures (our view). Wikivoyage says the Gulangyu ferries may be limited or rescheduled in a typhoon or strong wind, so check ferry notices before you go.

How many days

Our suggestion, not official: on day one walk the pier district and Zhongshan Road and see the waterfront lit at night. On day two spend the whole day on Gulangyu, because waiting for ferries takes time. On day three see Nanputuo Temple, the university, Zengcuoan and Huandao Road. With another day or two, an overnight trip to the tulou is less tiring than a day trip.

Where to stay

We checked 10 hotels against their own sites, spread across Zhongshan, Yundang Lake, the east ring road, Wuyuan Bay and the railway station, with an area table, on where to stay in Xiamen. We have not checked hotels on Gulangyu.

Onward in China

For other cities, see the Guangzhou and Shenzhen guide, the Chengdu guide, the Beijing guide and the Xi'an guide.

Hand-picked places to stay

Examples of established Xiamen hotels, spread across areas and budget bands. Every fact below was checked against the hotel's own website or a reputable source on 2026-10-16 and links to that source. We have not stayed at these places and give no ratings; we show no prices because rates change daily. The band is the property class (hostel or guesthouse, mid-range, upscale), not a live price.

Frequently asked questions

How this compares

We opened China Highlights' Xiamen guide, its Gulangyu article and its Xiamen transport page, and Lonely Planet's Xiamen page. China Highlights describes the sights well and, in its Gulangyu article, tells international travellers to board at the Dongdu cruise terminal and book through a mini-program that it says only opens when you are in China, with CNY 35 for the regular ferry and CNY 80 for the boutique ferry. That agrees with the Xiamen Daily and the management committee on the pier and the CNY 35 fare. Its transport page describes Gaoqi airport, and the pages we read do not mention the move to Xiang'an. Lonely Planet's Xiamen page is a hub of stories without practical figures. This page adds the dated airport-move reports and the sources' disagreements on ticket buying, and says where our figures are old or unofficial.

Links on this page and our earnings

The hotel search buttons open the providers' own search pages. As of 17 October 2026 we have no registered affiliate link for Xiamen and earn nothing from them yet. We have not compared prices. Our disclosure page explains how affiliate links work and what we never do.

See also

• Where to stay in Xiamen: areas and 10 hotels checked
• Gulangyu: ferry, tickets and how to get there
• Fujian Tulou from Xiamen: fees, transport and groups
• Nanputuo Temple, Xiamen
• China travel guide for foreigners

Prices, schedules and entry rules change. Figures here are approximate as of 2026; always confirm on the official or operator page before you book. Spotted something out of date? Tell us.