Covered arcades
The whole length.
Mstyslav Chernov — CC BY-SA 3.0 · H2v5o68z — CC0 · H2v5o68z — CC0 · Augustohai — CC BY-SA 4.0 · H2v5o68z — CC0 · xiquinhosilva — CC BY 2.0 · H2v5o68z — CC0 · Augustohai — CC BY-SA 4.0
Xiamen's best-known shopping street, running about 1.2 km inland from the waterfront facing Gulangyu in the south-west of the island; its western part was built in 1928–1929 and named after Sun Yat-sen, and it has been the city's commercial heart ever since. It is lined with arcaded buildings, their white façades, arches and ornaments reflecting the culture of overseas Chinese who came home from Southeast Asia, protected as a historic street since 2006, and the covered walkways shelter walkers from rain and sun along its length. In the evening the façades light up and the side lanes fill with stalls of local food such as satay noodles, oyster omelette and spring rolls. The street is pedestrian and free at any time, at its best in the evening, per visitor guides.
The whole length.
On the façades.
In the side lanes.
Siming District, south-west Xiamen Island, near the ferry piers for Gulangyu
Gulangyu IslandA small island off Xiamen, across a narrow strait, which became an «internationa21 minutes walk4.3
Sunlight RockGulangyu's highest point, a huge boulder more than 40 m tall atop Longtou hill, 23 minutes walk3.8
Shuzhuang GardenA seaside garden at the southern tip of Gulangyu, built in the early twentieth c24 minutes walk4.4Much of the street food contains pork, so ask about ingredients or choose seafood after checking what goes in; Xiamen has Hui Muslim restaurants under the halal sign.