Wang Hai Yuan Hotel and Café (望海苑)

This simple establishment has one of the most enviable locations in Kulangsu: right on Gang Zai Hou beach, the island’s largest and most frequented, but on a calmer side of it, not far from Guan Hai Yuan Harbor. The café on the ground floor is worthy place for an air-conditioned beach break, whether it’s for […]

Yanwei Hill Time Cannon (Yan Wei Shan Sheng Tai Gong Yuan 燕尾山生态公园)

The Yanwei Hill Time Cannon Emplacement was set up by Xiamen Customs toward the end of the nineteenth century. The cannon used to fire once at twelve noon every Saturday so customs officers and passing vessels could synchronize their timepieces. The time cannon adopted the standard time in accordance with the clock on the Xiamen […]

Sunlight Rock Temple (Ri Guang Yan Si 日光岩寺)

Sunlight Rock Temple, originally named “Lotus Nunnery”, was rebuilt in the 14th Year of the Wanli Reign of the Ming Dynasty (AD 1586). The main hall, General Funds Hall (Yuan Tong Bao Dian), is a huge cave carved into a rock at the hill’s peak and supported by stone columns and crosspieces, hence the nickname […]

The One Place In The Life Bar (Yi Xi 一席)

This recently opened bar and restaurant took over a large swath of the island’s Xiamen-facing outdoor-bar territory between the Lun Du ferry port and the San Qiu Tian tourist ferry terminal, along the Xiamen-facing boardwalk. If you turn left as you’re stepping out of the San Qiu Tian tourist ferry terminal, it’ll be the biggest bar garden in […]

Miryam Hotel (Lao Bie Shu Lu Guan 老别墅旅馆)

One of the most gracious properties on the island, overlooking gardens and the sea beyond, houses the Miryam, which is advertised as “boutique” but feels more like a grand dame clinging to the cliffs of Italy’s Amalfi Coast. The Continental feel extends to the furnishing of the clean, airy, well-lit rooms, some with claw-foot tubs. Ask for […]