Xiamen

Understand

The core of the city is on Xiamen Island. The mainland suburbs Jimei, Tong'an, Xiang'an, and Haicang, as well as the small island of Gulangyu, are separate, but all these areas are administered as parts of Xiamen. Until 1840, Western "barbarians" were only allowed to conduct trade in Guangzhou under strict restrictions. After China's defeat in the First Opium War, the British seized Hong Kong, and China was forced to open five treaty ports: Guangzhou, Xiamen, Fuzhou, Ningbo, and Shanghai. Gulangyu became a concession administered by foreign powers, hosting consulates and luxurious residences. Today, Gulangyu is just a five-minute ferry ride from the main urban area and remains a picturesque and peaceful (car-free) destination. During the early days of Cold War, Xiamen was a battlefront between the Communists and Nationalists — propaganda broadcast, frogman infiltration, as well as shelling across Xiamen and the neighbouring island of Kinmen were the norm. The giant slogan that promotes Mainland China's "One Country, Two Systems" policy towards reunification (in contrast of the opposing slogan on Kinmen that advocates the Three Principles of the People) is a remnant from that period of prolonged conflict. In 1980, Xiamen became one of China’s first Special Economic Zones, aimed at encouraging development and opening up the country. Since then, Xiamen has flourished. It has received more Taiwanese investment than any other Chinese city, partly because both southern Fujian and Taiwan share the Minnan dialect. Xiamen has also attracted significant foreign investment from other countries and regions, with notable investors including Lafarge, Dell, and Kodak. The main train station, long-distance bus stations, and ferry terminals are all on Xiamen Island, though there are less important stations in other areas. The airport is also on the island, up on the north side, but it is due to be replaced by a new airport in Xiang'an in late 2026. The bus rapid transit system (BRT) has one line running east-west across the island and another that runs north, crosses a bridge and then forks to run through parts of Jimei and Tong'an. Other districts do not yet have BRT service. See Get around below for more on BRT and on the metro trains.

Somewhat north of downtown on the west side of the island, there is a long, narrow lake running east-west near the map's pink-green border. Its name can be romanised as either Yundang Lake or Yuandang Lake; we use Yundang here because it is closer to the sound in Chinese, but both forms are in widespread use. West of the lake, between i

Getting there

Xiamen has a major airport and good road and rail connections; it is easily reached from anywhere in China and many places beyond.

Visas

If you are a citizen of Albania, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Brunei, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Croatia, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Mexico, Monaco, Montenegro, the Netherlands, New Zealand, North Macedonia, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Serbia, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Monaco, Russia, Ukraine, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, or the United States, you may be eligible to obtain a visa exemption to visit Xiamen only for up to 144 hours (6 days) if you are in transit to a third country (Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan count as separate countries with regard to this scheme). You must enter and exit mainland China through Xiamen Gaoqi International Airport or the Xiamen Port, and must present an onward ticket to a country other than the one you arrived from to immigration on arrival. You are also not permitted to travel beyond Xiamen city boundaries for the duration of your stay.

By plane

1 Xiamen Gaoqi International Airport (厦门高崎国际机场 XMN IATA). The airport is on Xiamen island and close to downtown, ¥30-40 and 20 minutes by taxi. It is among the dozen busiest airports in China by several different measures — passengers, freight volume or number of flights. 2 Xiamen Xiang'an International Airport (厦门翔安国际机场 XMN IATA). New airport under construction on the mainland about 15 km north of Xiamen Island. Will take over all flights from the current airport when it opens; it is expected to do so in late 2026. An extension of Metro Line 3 will connect it to the city center, while Line 4 will connect to Xiamen North railway station. Xiamen Airlines use XMN as their main hub. They have connections all over China, international flights to many Asian destinations, and a few beyond Asia such as Amsterdam and Sydney. Most other Chinese airlines also fly to Xiamen and there are connections to almost any major Chinese city. Probably the most common way to fly into Xiamen from overseas is to connect through Hong Kong. Flying via Guangzhou or Shanghai is also common; both are major international hubs, have good connections to Xiamen, and are reasonably nearby. Shanghai, however, generally requires a somewhat inconvenient change of airports; most international flights come in to Pudong Airport b

Getting around

Local public transit is easiest to pay for with the Xiamen public transit mini-app on Alipay or WeChat. If you are planning on staying in Xiamen for a significant amount of time, you can also get an eKatong (e卡通) stored value card. It can be used in different forms of public transport not only in Xiamen, but also in the neighbouring cities of Quanzhou and Zhangzhou. The local bus system is very good, but the normal bus routes are listed in Chinese and do not have English on the signs. Signs in the BRT and Metro are bilingual in Chinese and English, while announcements are trilingual in Mandarin, Minnan and English.

Xiamen BRT (Bus Rapid Transit). This uses buses on elevated bus-only roads with 4 lines operating. The BRT is very fast and comfortable and does have signs in English. Fare depends on distance, usually ¥1–4 per person. Line 1 connects the northern high speed railway station, Terminal 4 of the airport and downtown/Siming.

Xiamen Metro. As of March 2024, the Metro network consists of three lines. Line 1 runs north to south mostly connecting the Xiamen North railway station with downtown, while Line 2 mostly runs east to west, connecting the northeast of the island through downtown, and ending in Haicang on the mainland. Line 3 connects Xiamen railway station with points north and east including Xiang'an. Existing lines are being extended and more lines are under construction. Eventually there may be 11 lines. You can pay for the metro with an eKatong card, with the public transit mini-app on Alipay or WeChat, or with tokens sold by machines at the stations. Taxis are cheap, starting at ¥8 (plus ¥3 fuel tax – so ¥11) for the first 3 km. After the first 3 km, the meter charge will go up based on distance. Although the meter may read with a decimal, most taxi drivers will round up. On the other hand, as anywhere in China, tipping is not expected. During the day time, you should be able to get anywhere on Xiamen island, including the airport, for under ¥40. But be wary that some taxi drivers might take advantage of you if they know that you are not a local and might take the longer route to your destination. For example, if the driver says "Huándǎo Lù" after you tell him where you want to go, say bù (no), because that is the ring road that circles the entire island and although it is scenic, it is likely the most expensive way to go.

There is a frequent ferry service to/from Gulangyu. Non-Xiamen residents have to take the ferry from Dongdu Wharf, accessible via taxi or bus #51. Tickets are ¥35 for the trip to Gulangyu, and ¥18 for the trip ba

Eat

For restaurant listings, see the district articles. Here we list some local specialties that may be worth looking for.

Shacha noodles (沙茶面 shāchá miàn) — Likely the most famous dish in Xiamen, the Minnan reading sa-te mi hints at their origin: the peanutty broth originates from the Malay satay. Oyster omelette (海蛎煎 hǎilìjiān in Mandarin, 蚵仔煎 ô-á-chian in Minnan) - Small oysters, eggs, sweet potato starch and garlic shoots fried together. For umami lovers. If you've visited Taiwan before, don't be fooled by the name, as the Xiamen version of the dish is quite different from the Taiwanese version. Sea worm jelly (土笋冻 tǔsǔndòng) — Surely Xiamen's most infamous dish, it's just what it says on the tin: marine worms served in aspic with a little soy sauce and chilli to wash it down. The worms are basically tasteless but the texture is distinctly chewy. Xiamen Vermicelli Noodles in Thick Broth 面线糊 miànxiàn hú Xiamen Fish Balls 厦门鱼丸 xiàmén yúwán Shrimp Noodle Soup 虾面 xiāmiàn Xiamen Spring Roll 春卷 chūnjuǎn Xiamen Glutinous Rice Wrap 厦门烧肉粽 xiàmén shāoròu zòng Peanut Soup 花生汤 huāshēng tāng Xiamen Chive Pockets 韭菜盒 jiǔcài hé Crab Porridge 蟹米粥 xièmǐ zhōu Braised Duck with Ginger 姜母鸭 jiāngmǔyā Xiamen Wonton Soup 扁食汤 biǎnshítāng Xiamen Grass Jelly 烧仙草 shāo xiān cǎo Xiamen Four Fruit Soup 四果汤 sì guǒ tāng

Go next

Hakka Tulou – 3–5 hours west of Xiamen are these large earthen structures where a number of residences are built inside a single fortified compound, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Kinmen – Islands controlled by Taiwan have charming villages with traditional Fujianese architecture and interesting cold war defenses. One-hour ferry ride from Dongdu Wharf, or 30 minutes from Shuitou Wharf. Going to Kinmen is considered to be leaving China and will use up a single-entry visa. Quanzhou – This ancient city has come down in the world a bit since Marco Polo sailed home from there around 1290 and described it as one of the two busiest ports on Earth and incredibly rich. However, it is still well worth a visit. The old fortress town of Chongwu is located farther east, and has direct buses from Xiamen. Liu'ao – a windswept peninsula with long beaches and strange rock formations, south of Xiamen. Chaozhou – Just across the border in Guangdong province, main center of Teochew culture, and whose Teochew dialect is closely related to Minnan.