Tour Overview
| Duration | 4 Days / 3 Nights |
|---|---|
| Destination | Fujian Province — Xiamen & Quanzhou Maritime Silk Road Cities (China) |
| Price From | $649 per person (twin share) |
| Tour Style | Coastal Culture & Maritime Heritage |
Itinerary Highlights
Day 1: Arrive Xiamen
Afternoon: ferry to Gulangyu Island, the piano island of colonial architecture and car-free lanes. Visit the Shuzhuang Garden and Piano Museum. Sunset from Sunlight Rock. Evening seafood dinner at Xiamen’s harbor. Overnight in Xiamen.
Day 2: Quanzhou — The Start of the Maritime Silk Road
Drive to Quanzhou, once the largest port in the world (Zayton as Marco Polo called it). Visit the Kaiyuan Temple (686 AD), the largest Buddhist temple in Fujian, with its twin pagodas — the tallest pre-modern stone structures in China (48m, built 1238-1250 without any metal fasteners). Continue to the Qingjing Mosque (1009), one of China’s oldest mosques built by Arab traders — a stunning example of the cultural fusion that defined medieval Quanzhou. Visit the Maritime Museum to see the 13th-century Song Dynasty ship excavated from Quanzhou Bay. Afternoon: visit the Luoyang Bridge (1059), China’s earliest stone-beam bridge, where oyster farming was deliberately encouraged to cement stones together — a brilliant 1,000-year-old bioengineering solution. Overnight in Xiamen.
Day 3: Hulishan Fortress & Dadeng Island
Morning: visit Hulishan Fortress, home to the world’s largest coastal cannon — a 60-ton German Krupp cannon from 1893. The fortress offers views across the strait toward Jinmen (Kinmen) Island. Continue to Dadeng Island, the closest point to Kinmen (Taiwan-controlled, just 2km offshore). The island features a Taiwan-themed market and remnants of the 1958 artillery duel between PRC and ROC forces. Afternoon: visit the South Putuo Temple and walk the Xiamen University campus, considered one of China’s most beautiful. Overnight in Xiamen.
Day 4: Xiamen & Depart
Morning walk on the Huandao Road coastal boardwalk. Visit Zengcuoan Village, a former fishing village turned artsy enclave. Transfer to airport.
Inclusions
- 3 nights Xiamen hotel with breakfast
- Gulangyu ferry + Sunlight Rock entry
- Quanzhou day trip (Kaiyuan Temple, Qingjing Mosque, Maritime Museum, Luoyang Bridge)
- Hulishan Fortress entry
- Dadeng Island tour
- All transfers + guide
