Xiamen Voyage Tips and guide

Xiamen (厦门; Ē-mn̂g in Minnan, Xiàmén in Mandarin, former English name: Amoy) is a coastal city in Fujian Province in China. It is a very vibrant, affluent and modern place, though by Chinese standards it is a small city — only 5.1 million counting suburbs (2020). It has many non-Chinese residents and a range of restaurants, bars and stores that cater to them. The city 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.

The name Xiamen means "door to the house", referring to the city's centuries-old role as a gateway to China. Xiamen has been an important port for centuries, going back at least to the days of the Maritime Silk Road. It became one of China's earliest Special Economic Zones in 1980 and, like all those zones, has developed rapidly since then.

Much of the city is heavily built up, but it also has a lot of parkland and plenty of trees and flowers; this is a bustling modern city with distinct overtones of tropical paradise. Also, the mainland suburbs still have quite a bit of farmland, and everywhere much of the terrain is hilly with many hills still covered with forest.

The core of the city is on Xiamen island. The term "Xiamen" is somewhat ambiguous since it can refer to the island, to the city on it, or to the whole urban area (a "prefecture-level city" in the Chinese administrative system) including suburbs not on the island. This article gives an overview for the whole city; see links below for specific areas.

On the map, Xiamen Island is the pink (Huli District) and green (Siming District) approximately circular area near the bottom. It is about 13 km (8 miles) in diameter. Gulangyu, a UNESCO World Heritage Site which is important for tourism and has its own article, is the green dot next to the larger island.

The areas on the mainland that are administratively part of Xiamen are Haicang in yellow, Jimei in blue, Tong'an in dark green and Xiang'an in orange. A few decades back these were largely rural areas, but all now have populations of several hundred thousand and are growing quickly; the city is expanding beyond the island.

As a travel guide, Wikivoyage divides the city a little differently than the administrative divisions. We do have articles for each of the four administrative districts which are mainland suburbs:

• Haicang
• Jimei
• Tong'an
• Xiang'an

However we do not have separate articles for the Huli and Siming districts. Instead we have two articles:

• Xiamen Island covering all of Huli and most of Siming districts
• Gulangyu gets its own article here. It is a major tourist destination and a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and it is a ferry ride away from the rest of the city.

Xiamen Island is connected to Jimei by several bridges (road, rail and rapid transit), to Haicang by one bridge, and to Xiang'an by a tunnel. There are BRT (Bus Rapid Transit) or metro connections to all these areas except Gulangyu which can be reached only by boat.

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 remanent 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 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 it and the seashore, is Haiwan Park which has a half-dozen bars/restaurants right on the seashore, all with large patios overlooking the water. Like the ones on the lake, these mostly offer Western food and are popular with Xiamen's large expatriate community.

Xiamen's container port, on the west side of town north of the lake, is among the 20 busiest on Earth. From the main road up the west side of the island, you can look out over hundreds of stacked containers and some enormous cranes for moving them. In the photo of Haicang Bridge on the right, some red cranes are visible beyond the bridge.

The tourist bureau has several information offices around town:

• at the airport, in the domestic arrivals area ☏ +86 592 570-8273
• at the side of the railway station, near the car booking area ☏ +86 592 393-0058
• on Gulangyu, on the left side of the road that runs uphill from the ferry dock
• 1st floor of the Hall of the People, 76 Hubin North Road ☏ +86 592 512-3128
• opposite the Brahma Temple in Tong'an ☏ +86 592 736-8357

They also have an administrative office for each district, but few visitors will need to interact with them. If you think you need to — for example to file an official complaint about a scamming business — ask for directions at one of the information offices.

The municipal government site has mainly information for foreign companies or for international students coming to Xiamen University, but there is some information for tourists.

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.

Xiamen has cleaner air than many Chinese cities; it is right on the sea, there is not much heavy industry and almost no domestic heating with coal, and the city government is generally strict about pollution since it might drive away investment. Xiamen got an international award in a contest for most livable and environmentally aware cities in 2002; neighboring Quanzhou won the following year.

There is a risk of typhoons, mainly July to September, but Xiamen is partly sheltered from them. Typhoons come in off the Pacific; most of them cross Taiwan before reaching Xiamen, use up much of their power smashing up Taiwan, and are significantly less nasty by the time they hit Xiamen.

Overall, the climate is usually very pleasant year round.

The region has been inhabited since prehistoric times and Xiamen Island is mentioned in Han Dynasty records around the time of Christ. There has been a town in the area at least since the Song Dynasty, a thousand years ago. For most of that time, it was administratively a district of Quanzhou, which was historically the richest and most important city in Fujian. In the past couple of centuries, however, Xiamen has grown a great deal; now it is administered separately and is much more than just an appendage of Quanzhou.

Until 1842, the Chinese Empire allowed Western "barbarians" to trade only in Guangzhou (then known as Canton), and only under strict controls. After China lost the First Opium War, Britain took Hong Kong and China was forced to open five Treaty Ports — Canton, Xiamen (then known as Amoy), Fuzhou, Ningbo and Shanghai — to foreign trade, and to eliminate some of their restrictions. Trade boomed and these port cities developed very quickly.

In Xiamen, the island Gulangyu became a foreign enclave with consulates and luxurious homes. Today it is a quiet area (no cars or motorcycles), five minutes by ferry from downtown, and remarkably scenic.

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Fujian was a focus of missionary activity and there are many historic churches in the region. China's oldest Protestant church, the Xinjie Church, is in downtown Xiamen near the Ximing Road & Zhongshan Road intersection.

Some of the history of the China trade is darker; key commodities were tea, silk and ceramics plus "pigs and poison" — indentured labourers and opium. Some labourers were very badly treated, almost slaves, and opium caused major problems in China. Xiamen had its share of the dark side as well as the more positive side; one company there was prosecuted by the British for kidnapping potential workers.

Many overseas Chinese around the world can trace their ancestry to Fujian, often to the Minnan-speaking region around Xiamen. In particular, much of the Chinese immigration to Southeast Asia has been from Fujian, as was nearly all immigration to Taiwan before 1949. Examples of Southeast Asian cities with Minnan-speaking majorities among the Chinese community include Penang, Medan, Klang, Kuching and Manila. Some overseas Chinese maintain connections to the "old country", especially Xiamen. Tan Kah Kee, after making his fortune in Malayan rubber, started Xiamen University, an Overseas Chinese Museum nearby, and a technical college in neighboring Jimei. The Filipino chain store SM first entered the Chinese market with a store in Xiamen, the company founder's birthplace. Overseas Chinese often visit the region, some donate to various good causes in the area, and Xiamen University has many overseas Chinese students, including a large contingent from Indonesia.

In the 1980s, Xiamen was one of the first cities to become a Special Economic Zone to encourage development and open mainland China to the outside world; like other SEZs it has been booming ever since. While only Xiamen Island and Gulyangyu are in the SEZ, the whole region is flourishing. Xiamen has more Taiwanese investment than any other mainland city, partly because Taiwanese is a dialect of Minnan (Southern Min), the local language of southern Fujian. There is also a major influx of other foreign investment; among the foreign companies with large factories in Xiamen are Lifetime Products, Dell and Kodak.

Xiamen also has five large industrial development zones set up for various types of development, two in Haicang and one each in Jimei, Xiang'an and on Xiamen Island. Details on Wikipedia.

The main local language is called Minnan Hua (Southern Min speech) in Chinese, and in China usually just Minnan in English. It is also widespread in Southeast Asia, where it is known as Hokkien, and in Taiwan where it is called Taiwanese. All these variants are mutually intelligible and the Xiamen version is the standard, so Xiamen is an excellent place to learn Minnan. Minnan is not mutually intelligible with Mandarin, Cantonese or even with other Min (Fujian) dialects, though it is partially mutually intelligible with Teochew, which is spoken across the border in the Chaoshan region of Guangdong province.

As with anywhere else in China, Mandarin is almost universally spoken, at least by educated people, since it has been the main language used in education, government and most media since the 1950s. However, locals often have a strong accent when speaking Mandarin, which is very similar to a Taiwanese accent. Like other prosperous coastal cities, Xiamen has many migrants from other parts of China, most of whom speak Mandarin but not Minnan.

Foreigners staying in Xiamen long term generally choose to learn Mandarin instead of (occasionally, as well as) Minnan because Mandarin is so much more broadly useful. Go a hundred miles from Xiamen in any direction, except across the Taiwan Strait, and no-one will speak Minnan; the local language will be something completely different. Go anywhere in China, though, and most people you meet will speak Mandarin. That being said, attempts to speak Minnan are most certainly appreciated by locals, and might even be essential for breaking into local social circles.

English is not widely spoken. You can expect reasonable-to-excellent English from staff in higher end hotels, tourist shops, and the many restaurants and bars that cater to expatriates. Elsewhere the range is likely to be none-to-limited, with the occasional exception. This is a Chinese-speaking city with some English facilities, not somewhere like Amsterdam or even Hong Kong where an English-only traveller can expect to cope quite easily.

You can survive and have a good time in Xiamen speaking only English more easily than in most Chinese cities, but there will be difficulties. You will need some help from Chinese friends or hotel staff — things like writing down a destination in Chinese or giving directions by cell phone — because the cab drivers generally speak no English. English is OK for high-end restaurants, but if you want to eat more cheaply or more adventurously then you need to learn some Chinese or bring along a translator.

Learning some Mandarin opens up most of the city to you. The only areas where knowing some Minnan, or bringing along a local guide, are likely to be essential is if you want to get out into the countryside, shop in a farmers' market, or buy from fishermen at the docks.

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

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.

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Xiamen (including metro line extensions that have not yet opened)

• 24.535118.1281 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.  
• 24.553611118.3533332 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 but domestic routes use Hongqiao Airport, on the other side of the city. Connecting via Beijing is also possible, but Beijing is a long way from Xiamen.

Direct international flights to Xiamen are becoming more common, and may offer better options for many fliers. Xiamen also became a popular transfer airports for flights to/from Asia.

From Taiwan, there are numerous flights on multiple airlines from both Songshan and Taoyuan airports in Taipei to Xiamen, as well as several flights form Kaohsiung. However, these take a circuitous routing and can be rather expensive; consider flying into Kinmen and taking a ferry to Xiamen instead.

From Southeast Asia, there are flights direct to Xiamen from Singapore, Kuala Lumpur. Jakarta, Bangkok, Manila and Cebu. See Discount airlines in Asia.

From North America, there are direct flights on Xiamen Airlines from Los Angeles and New York but several two-hop possibilities are available from the US, Canada or Mexico. Korean Air have direct flights to Xiamen from Seoul. They sometimes offer good discounts and Incheon International Airport is very user-friendly with free Internet and nice free lounges with couches to stretch out on. Also, unlike many other countries, Korea allows sterile transit; if you are just changing planes, then you do not have to go through Customs or Immigration and do not need a Korean visa. Japan Airlines have direct flights to Xiamen from Tokyo and Osaka, Philippine Airlines and Cebu Pacific have direct flights from Manila and Cebu Pacific also have flights from Cebu.

Xiamen Airlines offers direct flights between Amsterdam and Xiamen, creating the first direct link to Europe for Xiamen. Flights are scheduled three times per week: Amsterdam-Xiamen on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, and Xiamen-Amsterdam on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays.

Buses from the airport include #18 to Xiamen University and #27 to the harbour, both with stops at the train station. #37 just goes to the train station, #41 to the SM Mall area, 91 to the Exhibition Center. #105 goes north into the suburbs, to Tong'an via Jimei. A very convenient way of public transportation into the city is by BRT (use the "T4" = Terminal 4 station and not the "Gaoji Airport" station).

Xiamen is well connected to China's high-speed rail network; it is on a major line that runs along the South China coast from just across the border from Hong Kong all the way to Shanghai.

There are two high speed railway stations:

• 24.4705118.1113 Xiamen Station (厦门站 Xiamen zhan). Xiamen Railway Station is located downtown, in Siming District. It is the terminal of the Yingxia Railway which runs inland to Jiangxi province. After an expansion project, the South Station House and South Square were put into operation in 2015. The station is not only an important transportation hub in Fujian Province, but also one of the hubs connecting the Yangtze River Delta and the Pearl River Delta Express Railroad.  (updated Sep 2024)
• 24.6388118.0694 Xiamen North railway station (厦门北站 Xiamen beizhan) (Metro Line 1). Serves high-speed trains along the busy Hangzhou-Fuzhou-Shenzhen corridor that do not terminate at Xiamen station.  

More high speed trains run from the latter which can be reached by metro from downtown.

From Xiamen, the routes are:

• Northeast to Fuzhou (¥85, 100 minutes), Wenzhou, Ningbo, Hangzhou and Shanghai (around ¥400 and eight hours).
• Southwest, to Zhangzhou and Longyan in southwestern Fujian, and on to places in the next province, Guangdong like Chaoshan for Chaozhou and Shantou. The line runs via Shanwei and Huizhou all the way to Shenzhen (¥150, 3½ hours). From Shenzhen, one can cross to Hong Kong, change trains for Guangzhou, or take a ferry to Zhuhai. There also direct trains from Xiamen to Hong Kong, taking a bit more than 4 hours.

Another high-speed line goes inland from Putian (north of Xiamen on the Fujian coast) to Nanchang in Jiangxi (an inland province West of Fujian). Xiamen-Nanchang time is about five hours.

There is also service on regular trains from Xiamen to various destinations in Fujian and to major cities throughout China's interior. It is inexpensive, but slow (e.g., about 20 hours to Wuhan) since the railroads travel a circuitous route through mountains.

• Quanzhou, ¥35, 1½ hours.
• Fuzhou, ¥70-90, 4 hours.
• Hong Kong, Guangzhou, or Zhuhai, around ¥200-300, overnight sleeper bus. There is a bus direct to Xiamen from Hong Kong airport. From Hong Kong, there are some buses that go all the way and somewhere you have to change buses at the Hong Kong-China border.
• From Hong Kong via Shenzhen: take the metro to Lo Wu border station, cross the border on foot (usually fast and easy if your visa is in order). There are small shops selling bus tickets within the border complex, with pickup nearby, or you can walk a block to the main bus station. A number of bus operators are available and bus service is frequent. A trip from Lo Wu (China side) to Xiamen will take 9 hours and cost ¥250-300. Night sleeping coaches are also available.
• Shenzhen, ¥200-300, 8 hours. Buses leave for Xiamen from the Qiaoshe long-distance bus station (侨社客运站) daily at 09:10, 09:40, 11:00, 11:40, 12:30, 20:00, 20:30, 21:00, 21:30, 22:00 and 22:20. Tickets can be purchased at the Shenzhen Tourism Group (深圳市旅游股份有限公司) counter at Qiaoshe bus station. They take credit card or cash.

A boat service operates from Xiamen's Wutong ferry terminal (五通客运码头) to and from Kinmen's Shuitou port, which is under Taiwanese control, hourly 08:30-19:00 every day. Tickets cost NT$750 from Kinmen and ¥160 from Xiamen. The boat ride takes about 30 minutes. No visa-on-arrival is available, so make sure your Chinese visa is in order. Travelling from Xiamen to Kinmen is considered to be departing China, so make sure you have a multiple entry visa if you want to return to Xiamen after visiting Kinmen.

• MV COSCO Star, ☏ +86 592 601-1758, +86 592 261-6735, [email protected]. Provides ferry service from Taiwanese ports Taichung and Keelung to Chinese ports Xiamen, and Damaiyu, Taizhou.  (updated Feb 2020)

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 back to Xiamen; the ferry ride takes about 20 minutes.

To go around by bicycle is a great way to explore Xiamen, except Gulangyu where bikes are forbidden. Try the Island Ring Road (Huándǎo Lù) which has an extra path for bicycles along much of its length. Start at Xiamen University Beach and go up until the International Exhibition Center. There are various rental stations on the Huándǎo Road, starting at ¥30 per day. Enjoy the sunshine while cruising next to the sea. If you leave the bicycle path, be cautious about the traffic.

Motorcycles are forbidden everywhere on Xiamen Island and enforcement is quite strict in the central areas (e.g. Yundang Lake, Zhongshan Road, etc.). In other areas, enforcement is more relaxed and some people do ride, but this risks a fine or even police seizure of the bike. Motorcycles are allowed in the mainland suburbs (Jimei, Tong'an, Haicang or Xiang'an), but see Driving in China for some cautions.

On Gulangyu cars, motorcycles and even bicycles are forbidden, making it quieter and safer than almost anywhere else in any Chinese city.

• Ride Hailing Apps. Ride-hailing services are widely used in Xiamen. Didi 滴滴出行 is the dominant app and works much like Uber. An English interface is available, fares are generally affordable compared to taxis and the pricing is upfront. It is recommended to download and set up the app before arrival, and payments can be made through common mobile payment methods. International phone numbers are supported. The app can also be used within WeChat as a mini program. In rural areas, ride availability may be more limited so you can book ahead for expect longer wait times. There are also other ride hailing apps like Meituan Taxi (美团打车), Gaode Map/AutoNavi (高德地图). (updated Jan 2026)

Xiamen is host to many influential trade shows. A majority of the Xiamen exhibitions are located at the Xiamen International Conference & Exhibition Center (XICEC).

• The China Xiamen Machinery and Electronics Exhibition (CXMEE), also called the Straits Fair since it is run as a joint venture with a Taiwan organisation, is downtown (on Hubin Bei Lu) in the Spring.
• The China International Fair for Investment and Trade (CIFIT) is held at XICEC.
• The annual China International Garden and Flower Exposition takes place in a different city each year. It was in Xiamen in 2007, and a large Water Garden Expo Park was built to host it (details at Jimei#See); presumably it will return there sometime.
• There is an annual Xiamen International Stone Fair at the XICEC from March 6–9 and reserved for industry professionals.
• The biannual Xiamen Buddhist Fair is held in the Spring and Autumn. Is generally open to the public, but is oriented towards industry professionals.
• An annual Xiamen Tea Fair takes place in October and is open to the public for retail purchases of tea products. It is the world's largest of its kind. See Chinese cuisine#Tea for background.

Xiamen is home to Xiamen University (厦门大学 Ē-mn̂g Toā-o̍h in Minnan, Xiàmén Dàxué in Mandarin), one of China's premier universities and the most prestigious one in Fujian. There are opportunities for international students to enroll at the university, as well as for students at foreign universities to study here on exchange programs. Xiamen University is one of the Double First-Class University in China.

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

• 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.