In mid-September 2025, I bought flight ticket to Xiamen via Mayflower page. I decided to visit for four nights and was happy when I found I could visit three UNESCO World Heritage Sites near Xiamen. Xiamen means door or entry to the house and indeed Xiamen or Amoy as the Westerners used to call it was one of the gateways into China. Hotel searches showed Xiamen is not a cheap place to stay in and after some hotel bookings and setting price alerts, I finally changed my hotel booking closer to the date of travel from free cancellation to a non-refundable room. So it turned out to be quite reasonable after all. I also made some tour bookings although the one to Tianluokeng Tulou was cancelled due to low demand, which I found out when I reached my hotel.
Tuesday, 6 January 2026
I left early in the morning from my sister’s place as the flight ETD was at 09:25. I managed to reach the airport in time to queue for bag drop and update my Enrich number. I expected the crowd as it was school holidays It was unusually cold on the plane but no complaints from me. Malaysia Airlines provided blankets but I decided I could stand the cold and besides, I should get used to it as it’d be cold in Xiamen. We landed around 13:20. China has since implemented online entry declaration since my visit in October so I spent some time filling up the form before joining the queue. One note: it’s funny that the instruction for visitors to place their finger prints at the immigration counter is in Malay.
After being reunited with my bag, I filled up my water bottle (that’s another great thing about China, you can find water dispensers at train stations, airports and some tourist attractions) and headed out. I stopped at the information counter and to my surprise, they spoke some English and gave me some brochures. I then followed signs to the shuttle bus to Terminal 4. The shuttle bus runs every 20 minutes except after 22:00 when it runs every 30 minutes. From Terminal 4, I followed signs to the BRT (Bus Rapid Transit). The BRT buses run on elevated bus-only roads with four lines operating. It is very fast and comfortable and there are signs in English. Fare depends on distance, usually ¥1-4 per person. It cost me only ¥2 to get to Xiamen Railway Station from the airport T4 (<RM1.20). There are also buses which run on normal roads (ground level) but that would be subject to traffic so I didn’t even bother researching.
The trip to Xiamen Railway Station took slightly over 20 minutes. I went through a mall to utilise the escalators and went to find my hotel. It is in an alley behind the mall and I was glad I chose it as the location was perfect. I checked in and the lady at the reception kindly showed me to my room. I was not very happy with the room as it was mouldy and was lucky to catch the lady outside in the corridor. I showed her photos of the room and she kindly allowed to change rooms.
I spent time in between prayers finding trips to the Fujian Tulou and finally signed up for a tour on Trip.com. After prayers, I ventured out up to Paragon/Pan Ji Zhong Xin before turning back. I wandered around and stumbled across some halal eateries, not as easily recognisable as in Yunnan. I had a big bowl of beef lamian for dinner. I stopped by a supermarket very close to the hotel called Hot Max and bought some food.
Wednesday, 7 January 2026
I left the hotel at 06:50 and walked to Rezen Huaxia Hotel, five minutes away. The bus arrived at 07:10 and then spent the next hour picking up other passengers around the city. We finally left around 08:30 and drove to the Fujian Tulou in Yongding. The journey took two hours. I’d joined a Chinese-speaking tour and some of the other passengers kindly helped to translate for me. At Yongding, we had another local guide bring us to the Tulou buildings. We walked for two hours.
After that, it was time for lunch. Alhamdulillah, there were some dishes that I was able to eat like vegetable, prawn and fish. We were all hungry after the walking around and attacked our food.
After lunch, we continued to Yunshuiyao and our guide took us around. We walked for more than two hours there. Then we boarded the bus for our journey back to Xiamen. I was the last to be dropped off with another couple at Xiamen Railway Station. I went in to buy the next morning’s train ticket to Quanzhou. I could buy it on Trip.com but there’s a fee and although the station also charged me a fee, it all worked out less than what it’d cost me on Trip.com. There was no queue at all and I got to discover the station and familiarise myself with its layout.
I had dinner at another halal eatery. This time, the noodles came in a much smaller bowl and cost a lot more. Harrumph.
Thursday, 8 January 2026
I left my room at 06:50 for the railway station. My train was at 07:21 and we reached Quanzhou at 08:10. I followed the signs for the bus and took bus number 2 to the city. I couldn’t pay off my fare despite trying several times and the driver waved me on. It took 30 minutes to reach the city centre where I alighted near the Feitian Yingbin Urban Sculpture and walked to Guan Yue Temple. Guan Yu and Yue Fei were generals so this is a warrior temple. There were many worshippers there. After walking around, I left and walked to nearby Qingjing Mosque. This is the only mosque left in Quanzhou and is over 1,000 years old. The entrance fee is ¥3. There are some pillars left standing of the ruins. I saw the imam and greeted him with Assalamualaikum and told him I was from Malaysia. He then brought me into the prayer hall which was not open to the public. Alhamdulillah for the rezeki.
After that, I walked to Kaiyuan Temple, passing Confucius Temple on the way. I stopped for a short while then continued on. Google Maps brought me to a pedestrian street which led to Xijie Street (West Street). I walked up and down the street and stopped by an eatery to have an oyster omelette pancake (something like the ones I had in Penang). Then I continued on to the nearby Kaiyuan Temple with its Eastern and Western Pagodas.
Then I walked and walked to find the bus stop for bus number 2. The bus fare was ¥1 (I paid by cash) and at the station, I quickly went to find the ticket office. The train back to Xiamen was quite full.
Back in Xiamen, I browsed the underground mall before moving on to MIXC Mall before returning to my room. I still had some bread so that was my dinner tonight.
Friday, 9 January 2026
Another early start. I left at 06:50 and walked to the metro station and took the train to Cruise Centre for the ferry to Gulangyu. I’d bought ticket on Klook (just before this trip, I checked again and the ticket cost less on Trip.com so always, always check and compare before buying). The terminal is white near the metro station. I went up to the second floor and showed my passport and received my ticket. There were a lot of local tourists with their tour guides - indeed Gulangyu is a very popular destination for the local tourists.
I wandered around Gulangyu happily. The island, although predominantly populated by Chinese, has foreign influence on its buildings and you’ll be forgiven if you think you’re somewhere in Europe when you wander its streets. Vehicles are banned here, except for golf-cart like vehicles and the locals use handcarts to transport goods. The terrain is hilly and some areas are steep. I had a great time exploring the island.
I returned to Xiamen at 14:00 and took the metro to Zhongshan Park. From there, I walked to the mosque to perform prayers. This is the only mosque in Xiamen. After prayers, I had beef soup at a halal eatery before continuing on. The road then led to Zhongshan Road Pedestrian Street. I bought some local delicacies to bring home. I also bought fried oyster pancake.
I then walked to the ferry office at Heping Wharf to get my ticket for the Lujiang River Night Cruise. The locals were sticky about me performing prayers there. Sheesh. Sure, I could perform prayers when I was back in my room but I had time before boarding the ferry and I didn’t want to wait until I reached my room to perform prayers.
The cruise lasted an hour and I took the metro back to Xiamen Railway Station. Back in the room, I started packing a bit.
Saturday, 10 January 2026
Well, it was time to bid farewell to Xiamen. I left the hotel at 11:50 and took the BRT to the airport. Reversing the process I underwent when I arrived. I had checked in online but the system couldn’t issue my boarding pass so I went to the bag drop counter to get my boarding pass and asked if I could sit at the front row. I was told that the flight was full but the lady managed to get me a window seat at row 15. It turned out to be the emergency exit row but nothing untoward happened, alhamdulillah.
We landed at KLIA at 19:50 and I rushed out to the baggage area. I performed prayers first and my bag was out shortly after that. I took the 20:52 train back.
I was very satisfied with the trip. Five days were just enough for a fulfilled trip. Alhamdulillah.
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