Xiamen Gaoqi Airport (XMN): the arrival guide
Arrival essentials · Verified 2026-09-28 · Rules change — confirm entry specifics with the National Immigration Administration before you fly
The short answer
One of China's rare on-island airports, 20-30 minutes from the old town: metro Line 3 serves the terminals, a 10-yuan airport bus drops at the Gulangyu ferry piers, and a new airport across the bay is slated to take over around the end of 2026.
What happens at immigration?
International arrivals use Terminal 3 (Xiamen Air and China Southern use it for domestic flights too; most other domestic carriers use T4, a short walk or free shuttle away). Visa-free and transit checks are unhurried at this scale, with complete English signage and arrival-card kiosks. The official entry, visa-free and 240-hour transit lists live at the National Immigration Administration — check your nationality against our visa checker before you book.
How do you get connected and paid on landing?
Operator counters in the arrivals halls register tourist SIMs against your passport; hours cover the evening banks. A pre-activated eSIM stays the zero-queue option. For the full comparison of eSIM vs roaming (and what stays blocked), see our internet & eSIM guide. Alipay/WeChat Pay with a foreign card work across both terminals including metro gates; ATMs sit near baggage claim. The complete playbook, including what to do when verification fails, is in payments in China and our rescue cards.
What is the best way into town?
Metro Line 3 serves the airport - a rarity for an on-island China airport - and reaches the island core in 20-30 minutes. (Guides from 2024-2025 still claiming 'Xiamen airport has no metro' are out of date; the metro stations sit on the T4 side of the footprint, with a free shuttle or walkway across from T3.) The Konggang Express airport bus runs a 10-yuan ferry-pier line (about 30 minutes) to the Dongdu cruise terminal - the jump-off for Gulangyu ferries - plus city lines toward Zhongshan Road. Metered taxi or ride-hail to Zhongshan Road: 20-30 minutes and 35-45 yuan. Heads-up: the new Xiang'an airport across the bay is slated to take over flights around the end of 2026, keeping the XMN code - check which airport your ticket shows before booking transfers.
Landing late? Where should you sleep?
The island is compact, so late landings stay easy - the taxi run to the old town is short at any hour. Like anywhere in China, finish metro rides well before midnight; the airport bus and ride-hail cover the rest. Airport-adjacent rooms trade convenience for distance from the sights — right call after 23:00, wrong call otherwise.
Where should you spend the first night?
Zhongshan Road / Old Town - ferry piers and food streets on foot; the airport taxi stays short and cheap. Zengcuo'an on the island ring road is the beach-day base; Station/Lianban is the transport-first pick for very late arrivals.
Two scenario bases, editor-researched with honest trade-offs: