Gulangyu Island: ferries, tickets and a walking visit
Plan Gulangyu: which ferry terminal and ticket to use (CNY 35 or CNY 80), booking with a passport, return rules, Sunlight Rock, museums and where to stay.
Photo: toter yau / Pexels
Contents
Gulangyu is Xiamen's car-free island of lanes, colonial villas and sea views, a short ferry ride from the city. Go for the streets and the architecture, not to tick off every paid sight. A day trip keeps your hotel in Xiamen and suits a tight schedule. Staying overnight gives you the island after the day-trippers leave, but adds a hotel and your luggage to the logistics. Plan around three things: the ferry terminal, the sights you want and your way back.
Choose your visit
UNESCO lists the island as Kulangsu, a Historic International Settlement. Xiamen opened as a commercial port in 1843 and the island became an international settlement in 1903. Traditional Southern Fujian, Western Classical Revival and Veranda Colonial styles mix here, and together they gave rise to the Amoy Deco style, a blend of early 20th-century Modernism and Art Deco. The island was never linked to Xiamen by a road and can only be reached by ferry.[1] Look at the streets and buildings as a whole: many a historic facade hides a private home or an interior that is closed to visitors.
Things to Do
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GetYourGuide partner offers. GoAsia may earn a commission if you book through these offers. Check whether tickets or transfers are included, and follow the attraction's official booking and admission rules.
Book the correct ferry
Visitor ferries use different piers than the residents' ferries. In the daytime, take a boat from Dongdu Passenger Terminal to Sanqiutian Pier or Neicuoao Pier: the normal service costs CNY 35 and the premium service CNY 80. Another option is the First Pier of the ferry company, with a visitor ticket to Neicuoao Pier for CNY 80. At night, visitors board at the Xiamen Ferry Terminal opposite Zhongshan Road, hall 2, which is open to visitors from 17:50 to 06:30 (from 18:50 in summer, June to September) at CNY 35.[2] Check the origin pier, the arrival pier and the sailing on your ticket before you head for the water.
Foreign visitors book in the ferry company's Yujian Xiamen mini-program, logging in with a real-name verified Alipay account. Add a passenger, choose another document type and enter your passport number. Tickets go on sale up to 15 days ahead including the current day, and the tickets for the 15th day open at 09:00 each morning. Some passports need verification and ticket collection at the manual ticket office.[3] A valid passport is an accepted document for ferry tickets.[2]
Identity checks and your return
Bring the original document you used for the booking. If you bought with a passport number, print the boarding credential from the booking and show it together with the passport at the gate: person, document and credential must match. Ticket checks open 20 minutes before departure and close 10 minutes before, so arrive early for the queue.[4]
A visitor ticket includes one free return trip within 20 days on presentation of a valid boarding credential. The outward trip is tied to the date and sailing you booked, and the return boat type varies.[2] After midnight the island empties through Piano Pier: overnight boats leave from 01:00 to 05:00 on the hour, and tickets for the return to Xiamen island are bought at the self-service machines in the Piano Pier hall.[4] Decide on your return pier before you wander off.
Choose attractions, not a compulsory checklist
Sunlight Rock is Gulangyu's best-known sight: from the top you look out over Gulangyu and across the water to Xiamen.[5] Shuzhuang Garden houses the Piano Museum, and the Bagua Building has its own museum of organs. Combine one or two of them with a walk through the heritage lanes. These sights are open 08:30-17:30 from 1 October to 31 May and 08:30-18:00 from 1 June to 30 September, and the grounds are cleared at closing time, so arrive well before.[6][5][7]
Budget for the ferry separately from the attraction tickets. For ticket enquiries the tourism centre answers at 0592-2062868, and once you have booked, you enter the sights by showing the reserved ID or the QR code of your order at the entrance.[8]
Walking, weather and access
The lanes fill up during the day, so do not count on quiet streets. Wear comfortable shoes, carry water and download an offline map, and leave time to reach your pier. The island has steps and slopes, so ask your guesthouse about the route if you travel with luggage or have mobility needs. Check weather warnings and ferry notices before you leave, since rough weather affects the crossings.
Plan costs and accommodation
For an overnight stay, ask the guesthouse how to get there from your arrival pier, whether there are steps, whether they help with luggage and how noisy the street is. A day visit saves an extra check-in and leaves time for one or two sights. Compare menus and displayed prices before you sit down, because side streets are not automatically cheaper. Keep time in the evening for your way back to Xiamen.
Sources and background
Numbers in the text such as [1] refer to these sources.
- [1] UNESCO World Heritage Centre: Kulangsu: international settlement, architecture and ferry-only access. Retrieved October 22, 2026.
- [2] Xiamen Ferry Co., Ltd.: Visitor fares, daytime and night terminals, accepted documents and return validity. Retrieved October 22, 2026.
- [3] Xiamen Ferry Co., Ltd.: Online ticket FAQ: foreign passports, verified Alipay registration and 15-day booking window. Retrieved October 22, 2026.
- [4] Xiamen Ferry Co., Ltd.: Boarding FAQ: identity checks, 10-minute cutoff and changing night return piers. Retrieved October 22, 2026.
- [5] Xiamen Gulangyu Culture and Tourism Development Center: Sunlight Rock and Qinyuan: seasonal hours and named attractions. Retrieved October 26, 2026.
- [6] Xiamen Gulangyu Culture and Tourism Development Center: Shuzhuang Garden and Piano Museum: location and seasonal clearing times. Retrieved October 22, 2026.
- [7] Xiamen Gulangyu Culture and Tourism Development Center: Bagua Building and Organ Museum: distinct musical attraction and seasonal hours. Retrieved October 22, 2026.
- [8] Xiamen Gulangyu Culture and Tourism Development Center: Official attraction-ticket consultation and reserved-document or order-QR checks. Retrieved October 22, 2026.
Frequently Asked Questions
A day trip keeps your hotel in Xiamen and suits a tight schedule. Staying overnight gives you the island after the day-trippers leave, but adds a hotel and your luggage to the logistics. Plan around the ferry terminal, the sights you want and your way back.
The ferry is the fixed cost: CNY 35 for the normal daytime service from Dongdu Passenger Terminal and CNY 80 for the premium service, and a visitor ticket includes one free return within 20 days. Attractions are ticketed separately, so budget for them on top, and ask the tourism centre at 0592-2062868 before you pay for a bundle. Wandering the lanes costs nothing.
In the daytime, take a boat from Dongdu Passenger Terminal to Sanqiutian or Neicuoao pier. From the ferry company's First Pier, a visitor ticket to Neicuoao costs CNY 80. At night, visitors board at the Xiamen Ferry Terminal opposite Zhongshan Road for CNY 35, and overnight boats back leave from Piano Pier from 01:00 to 05:00 on the hour. Check the origin pier, arrival pier and sailing on your ticket.
Use the ferry company's Yujian Xiamen mini-program with a real-name verified Alipay account, add a passenger with another document type and enter your passport number. Tickets go on sale up to 15 days ahead including the current day. Print the boarding credential and show it with the passport at the gate, 20 to 10 minutes before departure. Some passports need verification and ticket collection at the manual ticket office.
No, the lanes fill up during the day, and the island has steps and slopes. Wear comfortable shoes, carry water and download an offline map. Ask your guesthouse about the route if you travel with luggage or have mobility needs, and check weather warnings and ferry notices before you leave.
Sunlight Rock for the view over Gulangyu and Xiamen, Shuzhuang Garden with the Piano Museum, and the Bagua Building with its organ museum. Pick one or two and walk the heritage lanes between them. They are open 08:30-17:30 from 1 October to 31 May and 08:30-18:00 from 1 June to 30 September.
