Xiamen University (厦门大学)

Xiamen University, at 422 Siming South Road in Xiamen's Siming District, Fujian province, China, was founded in 1921 by the overseas Chinese businessman and philanthropist Tan Kah Kee, and its campus is regularly named among the most scenic in the country. The grounds sit between granite hills and the sea beside Nanputuo Temple, with buildings in a Minnan style that mixes Western columns and arches with traditional red-tiled, upswept roofs. Main sights include the Jiannan Auditorium and the group of Jianhua and Qunxian halls around the central lawn, Furong Lake with its bridges and willows, the coastal lanes along the sea wall, and the Lu Xun Memorial Museum on campus. The campus faces the sea at Baicheng Beach, and students and visitors walk the lanes down to the shoreline. A visit usually takes one and a half to two hours on foot, and the best photo angles are across Furong Lake toward the halls, along the avenue of palm trees leading to the main gate, and from the seaward terraces. The university restricts public access, so visitors must book a free slot in advance through the campus visitor-booking mini-program and present a passport at the gate; typical visitor hours run daily from about 08:00 to 17:30, although slots can be limited at weekends and during holidays and are sometimes suspended during exams or events. Crowds are heaviest at midday on weekends and public holidays, when tour groups and families fill the lakeside paths, while weekday mornings in spring or autumn offer the calmest and most comfortable walking. Because it adjoins Nanputuo Temple, the Overseas Chinese Museum and Shapowei, many visitors combine them in one half-day. It can be reached by city bus to the Xiamen University stop, with the current route best checked on Amap, or by DiDi from Zhongshan Road for about ¥15 (~$2.20). Admission is free with the reservation.