A Day in Quanzhou
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Port
Xiamen, China
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Activity Level
Strenuous
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Excursion Type
All
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Wheelchair Accessible
No
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Starting At
$109
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Minimum Age
Information Not Currently Available
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Duration
Approximately 7 Hours
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Meals Included
Meals included
Quanzhou, situated on the southeastern coast of Fujian Province, was an important harbor on the Maritime Silk Road. In history, Buddhism, Christianity, Islam and Taoism were disseminated here, so Quanzhou is often called 'the museum of world religions'.
Your first stop in Quanzhou will be the Buddhist Kaiyuan Temple, dating back to AD 686. The temple has an airy, stone-paved courtyard flanked by the impressive East and West Pagoda surrounded by Buddhist niches of both Chinese and Indian design. The main hall contains five large, gilded Buddha statues and on the ceiling above them are peculiar flying apsaras—celestial beings similar to angels. During its heyday in the Song Dynasty, it is said that more than 1,000 monks lived in it.
Spend some free time to walk on the West Street just outside the temple, a 1,700-meter historic thoroughfare in Licheng District with over 1,300 years of history. As Quanzhou’s earliest-developed street, it preserves well ancient Minnan red-brick houses, arcades, and religious structures, linking cultural relics like Kaiyuan Temple—a renowned Tang-era Buddhist site. You may also try some traditional Quanzhou treats at the street.
After a Chinese lunch at local hotel, take photos of the Qingjing Temple. Ranked one of the three oldest mosques in China, it has witnessed the history of the city for almost 1,000 years and is unique in Southeastern China for being of purely Middle Eastern in design. View some famous relics and architecture dating from the city’s golden era as the start-point of the Maritime Silk Road, and see the newly restored classical redbrick residences of South Fujian Province.
Stroll along Tumen Street, well known among local and foreign visitors as the commercial and cultural center of Quanzhou. Conclude this fascinating day out with a motor coach ride back to Xiamen.