Xiamen Island, Xiamen: neighborhood guide

Xiamen Island is the central, most built-up part of Xiamen and the part most visitors never leave. The old downtown sits on the southwest coast, facing Gulangyu across the water. Three parallel streets organise it: Lujiang Road along the shore, Siming Road a block inland, and Zhongshan Road, a pedestrian shopping street, cutting across them. Xiamen University and Nanputuo Temple are at the southern end of this downtown strip.

North of downtown, on the west side, a long narrow lake runs east–west. It is romanised as Yundang Lake or Yuandang Lake; both spellings are in use. Roads ring it on all four sides and are named for the side they are on. Hubin Beilu (Lakeside North Street) is the restaurant, bar and upmarket-hotel zone, with a lakeside walkway and park. Hubin Nanlu (Lakeside South Street) is more shops and offices.

Further south, Xiahe Lu is the spine of the newer city: banks, offices, big shopping centres and the train station, with the east–west BRT running along it. Huandao Lu, the ring road, runs from the university up the east coast to the airport on the north edge of the island, with beaches along the way.

Stay on Xiamen Island if this is your first trip to Xiamen. The ferry to Gulangyu, the university, Nanputuo Temple, the lake restaurants and the main rail station are all here, so you spend your days sightseeing rather than commuting. Choose Zhongshan Road or Lujiang Road if you want to walk to the ferry and the old streets; choose Hubin Beilu if evenings out matter more than mornings.

Look elsewhere if your trip is built around a specific suburb: Jimei for the school village and its own sights, Haicang for the west-bank industrial and residential side, Tong'an for the old town and hot springs, or Xiang'an for the newer eastern district and university campus. These are separate districts across water or well north of downtown, and staying there means a bridge or metro ride for anything on this list.

One practical note: the airport is on the north edge of the island, so a downtown base is still a 30–40 minute ride away (check). If you have a very early flight, a hotel near the airport can be the better call.

The north side of Yundang Lake is the densest eating and drinking zone: a long row of restaurants and bars, upmarket places along the water and cheaper ones in the back streets behind. Bailuzhou Park, on its own island in the lake reached by a bridge, holds restaurants, bars and shopping, and gets busy in the evening with vendors, music and dancing.

Near Xiamen University, Xiada Street runs off the main gate — a short, packed lane of shops, stalls and cheap student restaurants, with a few side streets. Prices here are low and bargaining is normal. Nanputuo Temple nearby is known for its vegetarian canteen (check hours).

Fujian coastal cooking is the local style: seafood, oysters, crab and shellfish, often steamed or in soup, plus peanut soup, satay noodles and shacha sauce. If you have a shellfish allergy, say so clearly — fish sauce and shrimp paste turn up in dishes that do not look like seafood.

Xiamen Gaoqi International Airport (XMN) is on the north edge of Xiamen Island, so you do not cross water to reach downtown; allow roughly 30–40 minutes by taxi or metro depending on traffic (check). Xiamen Railway Station is on Xiahe Lu in the newer part of town, with the BRT line running along the same street.

Within the island, the metro and BRT cover the main corridors, buses fill the gaps, and taxis are cheap by US or European standards. Buses to the university main gate include routes 1, 15, 18, 21, 29, 71 and 82; routes 2 and 22 serve other parts of the campus. Walking is realistic downtown: about 20 minutes south from the ferry area to the university along Lujiang Road or Siming Road.

For Gulangyu, ferries leave from the Zhongshan Road / Lujiang Road ferry area. Tourist sailings can sell out in peak season, so book ahead and carry your passport (check). Huandao Lu is the road to use for the east-coast beaches and the conference centre halfway up the coast.