Gulangyu

Understand

After the British victory in the First Opium War, Xiamen (then known as Amoy) became one of five "treaty ports" established by the Treaty of Nanjing in 1842, and Gulangyu became the main residential area for foreigners.

As in other International Settlements in China, the population was always predominantly Chinese but the police, the legal system, quite a few residents, and much of the architecture were foreign. All thirteen of the foreign consulates were on Gulangyu, along with houses, churches, schools, parks and a hospital. Both foreign traders and wealthy Chinese built mansions, often with large gardens, and many commercial buildings were built as well. Today the island is a major tourist area; many of the old colonial-era buildings have become restaurants or guesthouses, and there are many shops geared towards tourists. Gulangyu is sometimes called "Piano Island" and one of its attractions is music; there have been pianos on the island since the first foreign residents arrived in the 1840s. It is quite common to hear piano music (usually recorded and usually classical) in the streets as you walk about. There has been a Piano Museum for over a century, and later an Organ Museum was built as well. Both have many instruments, some dating back to the 19th century, and both have recitals for the tourists. See also the UNESCO listing and a guide site.

Read Some readers may know the place from Neal Stephenson's novel ReamDe ISBN 9780062191496; part of the story takes place in Xiamen and one character, the female British spy, has an apartment on Gulangyu. Those who do not know the novel might consider picking up a copy for on-the-road reading when heading for Xiamen.

Getting there

Ferries open to visitors arrive in Gulangyu at either of two harbors: the more popular 1 Sanqiutian ferry terminal (三丘田 Sānqiūtián) in the east and the slightly more out-of-the-way 2 Neicuo'ao ferry terminal (内厝澳 Nèicuò'ào) in the west. During the daytime, direct ferries are limited to Xiamen residents only and visitors must purchase tourist tickets, which are also more expensive at ¥35 (regular ferry) or ¥80 (deluxe ferry) return. It's strongly recommended to buy your tickets in advance online; however, this is effectively impossible without Chinese ID, meaning you'll need to enlist a local friend or go through a travel agency. If you arrive mid morning without having already purchased a ticket, it's possible you'll have to wait a few hours for a boat that has tickets available, especially during busy holiday seasons or the weekend. There's also a cap of 65,000 visitors per day, so if you really luck out, you may not be able to visit at all. You must have your passport with you when buying tickets and boarding the ferry. Tourists can travel from 3 docks to the island, depending on the time of day: 1. During daytime: Ferry from Youlun Matou (邮轮码头), confusingly also known as 3 Xiagu Matou (厦鼓码头), Dongdu Matou (东渡码头) and the Xiamen International Cruise Terminal (厦门国际游轮中心). Ferries leave multiple times per hour and the crossing takes about 20 minutes. Ferry operating times are 07:10 until 17:30 (winter) or 18:30 (summer) to Gulangyu, and 07:20 until 17:40 (winter) or 18:40 (summer) from Gulangyu back to Youlun Matou. The terminal is located several kilometers from the center of Xiamen/main tourist area and has shops and restaurants both before and after security if you end up waiting. It's served by Metro Line 2, but to get there from downtown/Zhongshan area/Lundu Matou, you can take bus b1 or the special Lundu Matou tourist bus (邮轮码头旅游快线). 2. At night: tourists can take the ferry directly from 4 Lundu Matou Terminal 2 (轮渡码头2号厅). This is the quickest option, yet stil

Getting around

Cars, motorcycles and bicycles are banned, but the island is small enough to walk around as long as one is physically able. It is, however, quite hilly. Walking about, there is quite a bit of nice colonial architecture to see, much of it tucked away on back streets. The Longshan Cave (龙山洞), near the Sanqiutian ferry terminal, is actually a bomb shelter repurposed as a 400m tunnel that provides a handy shortcut under one of the larger hills. There are golfcart-type battery-powered vehicles that run on a fixed route circumnavigating the island. Riding one of those around to the back (west side) of the island can be a good escape when the main tourist areas are crowded. Fare starting from the ferry terminal is a flat ¥10 for any distance. If you board elsewhere, then ¥10 gets you anywhere before the ferry terminal; to go beyond it you would need to pay again. You can also hire a boat — on the Xiamen side, on Gulangyu at the docks near where the ferry comes in, or at another dock a bit north of that — for a ride around the island. This takes about an hour. Starting from the ferry stop, most travellers either jump on a golfcart-bus for a tour or turn left onto Dragon Head Road (Longtou Lu), which is one of the main shopping streets and leads to the sights around Dragon Head Hill. An alternative is to walk straight ahead, heading inland; this gets you to a large map of the island, then to the local tourist information office (which has a left luggage service), to one of the few banks on the island, and to another shopping area. Off to the left as you walk inland are a set of steps which lead up into a pleasant area with several guesthouses and a number of restaurants.

See

A combo ticket can be bought on the island for ¥110 (2019), which gives entry to Bright Moon Garden, Shuzhuang Garden, Sunlight Rock (including cable car ride), the Piano Museum, the Organ Museum and the International Calligraphic Carving Art Gallery.

Museums and monuments

Art museums and galleries 1 Celebrity World Wax Museum & 3D Art Museum (世界名人蜡像·3D艺术馆), 111 Lujiao Road (鹿礁路111号), ☏ +86 592 2064908. Daily 08:30-18:30. Includes waxworks of famous people from around the world. ¥60. 2 Gulangyu International Calligraphic Carving Art Gallery (鼓浪屿国际刻字艺术馆), 7 Gangzihou Road (港仔后路7号), ☏ +86 592 2068251. 08:15-17:45 (winter), 08:15-18:15 (summer). A small gallery of carved calligraphy from Chinese, Japanese, and Korean artists. Entrance near the main gate of Shuzhuang Garden. Admission normally ¥10. 3 Oriental Fishbone Gallery (东方鱼骨艺术馆, Xiamen Eastern Fishbone Gallery), No 27 Guxin Road (鼓新路27号), ☏ +86 592 2571269, [email protected]. 09:00-17:00. Includes personalized explanations of every art-piece and autograph of the artist. ¥60. 4 Red Carpet Wax Museum (红地毯趣味蜡像馆), 2nd Floor, Bank of China building, 3 Longtou Road (龙头路3号中国银行2层), ☏ +86 592 2064733. 09:00-22:30. ¥60.

History and culture museums 5 China Records Museum (中国唱片博物馆), 32 Fujian Road (福建路32号), ☏ +86 592 6883070, [email protected]. 09:00-17:30. ¥78. (updated Feb 2019) 6 Gulangyu 100 Years Museum (百年鼓浪屿博物馆), 62 Fujian Road (福建路62号) (Inland and uphill from the ferry stop), ☏ +86 18659236520. 08:00-18:00. A museum focusing on the colonial-era foreign residents of Gulangyu, in a building that was once a villa belonging to th