Located in Fujian province on China’s southeast coast, Xiamen’s appeal to visitors has as much to do with its proximity to the sea as with its century-old colonial architecture. The city has been one of the country’s major seaports for hundreds of years and features a deep water port that is open year-round due to the favourable climate. The name 'Xiamen' mean 'Gate to China’.

One of the places that paved the way for China’s special economic zone concept, Xiamen comprises Xiamen Island, the northern bank of the Jiulong River, Tong’an county and Gulangyu Island. It’s linked to the Chinese mainland by the Xiamen Bridge and the Gaoji seawall. Xiamen is also known as Egret Island due to the hundreds of thousands of egret birds that make their home here.

The city enjoys mild weather throughout the year, except during the typhoon season when the rains can be quite heavy. The attractions of interest to tourists include numerous islands, mountains, parks and temples. Gulangyu Island is the most popular site, and Nanputuo Temple also draws large numbers of visitors, as do Jimei and Wanshiyan. Boats are available for tours that take in the lovely scenery of the countless small islands in the area.

Xiamen is easily reached by air, train, bus and ship, and local public transport options are very good. Accommodation options range from family-style hotels to four- and five-star resort facilities. The area also boasts local produce and bounty from the sea that appear on the city’s restaurant menus. Tea, sugarcane, longan, olives, abalone, crab, prawn and fish are just some of the many local ingredients used.

The city is the hometown of many Chinese who have moved overseas, but who have maintained their connections here. Many of the people have contributed to the development of the local economy and the preservation of its important cultural and historical treasures as well. Xiamen, with its unique Asian culture and its colourful colonial history, is a popular destination for Chinese tourists and foreign visitors from all over the world.

Relative to the history of China, Xiamen is relatively young, with its recorded history dating to the Song dynasty (960 to 1279). During this dynasty the community’s population numbered around 4,000, with all residents engaged in subsistence farming.

It wasn’t until the late 14^th century that rulers of the Ming dynasty took notice of Xiamen’s advantageous coastal location and deep natural harbour. This led to the growth of importance of the city in the front line of defence against both pirates and the expansionist Japanese.

In the early 17^th century, Xiamen developed trading relations with Portugal and later with Spain and Holland. The Dutch in particular saw the potential of this area and attempted to colonise it. Around this time a local poet and warrior named Zheng Chenggong, more commonly known as Koxinga, began to rise in prominence. He had assisted the Ming dynasty in stopping the Qings, or Manchurians, from seizing control of the country. He then turned his attentions to the Dutch in Xiamen.

In 1661, Koxinga assembled a fleet comprising 7,000 junks and nearly 300,000 men, including elite forces as well as pirates. He was successful in evicting the Dutch in a campaign that is said to have been conducted from Sunlight Rock on Gulangyu Island. An enormous statue of Koxinga stands on this site today.

Unfortunately, Koxinga’s success led to his eventual downfall. In an attempt to increase his power base, he mounted attacks on the Philippines. He and his army began to suffer defeats, and his response to this was to blame his cousin and uncle who he ordered to be executed. Koxinga’s failures led to him taking his own life in 1662, in Taiwan.

Peace was restored to the area and trading with Europe resumed. The relationship remained friendly until the first of the Opium Wars with Britain (1839 to 1842), which led to China’s defeat. The resulting Treaty of Nanjing gave Britain the right to residency in Xiamen, which was one of the ‘Five Treaty Ports’ named in the document. Not long afterward, France, Germany and the US entered into similar arrangements, evidenced to this day by the colonial-style architecture on Gulangyu Island.

The British maintained a presence in Xiamen until the Japanese invasion in 1939. The Japanese were expelled at the end of WWII, but the area didn’t remain peaceful for long. In 1949, the People's Republic of China was established and Xiamen's proximity to Jinmen Island, controlled by the Taiwanese, brought it to the forefront of the cross-Straits conflict. The islands have continued to fire shells at each other over the years.

In the mid-1950s, a causeway was built to link Xiamen to the mainland, but much of the rest of the area surrounding Xiamen was neglected during the regime of Mao Zedong. Fujian became one of the poorest provinces in the country. In 1980, Xiamen’s fortune changed dramatically with its selection as one of the country’s first Special Economic Zones. This opened the doors to foreign investment, and within a decade Xiamen has become an economic powerhouse, fuelled by electronics, pharmaceuticals and textiles.

The city also began to recognise the potential economic importance of tourism. During the 1990s, the city’s mayor focused on a clean up of the city, Yundang Lake and the beaches. Vehicular traffic on Gulangyu Island was outlawed, making this area much more appealing to visitors. Xiamen is not only China’s cleanest city, it is one of the most popular with tourists.

Situated in a maritime subtropical zone, Xiamen enjoys a pleasant spring-like climate throughout most of the year. The average annual temperature is approximately 21˚C, with no extremes of heat during the summer or of cold during the winter months. The average annual rainfall for the city is around 1,200mm, occurring mainly from May to August.

The air currents that create typhoon conditions in this part of China three to four times every year arise from temperature differences in the Pacific Ocean. The typhoon season runs from July to September. Xiamen’s lush foliage, colourful flowers, gentle breezes and plentiful sunshine can be enjoyed year-round. The combination of a clean environment, picturesque scenery and near-ideal climate conditions has led to Xiamen ranking in the top 10 of China’s most habitable cities.