I am interested in taking a weekend trip to Kinmen. I understand that the flight can be quite bumpy. Any recommendations for places to stay, and/or suggestions about a weekend trip?
A bumpy trip is the least of your worries. The main thing is being able to get in and out of the place on time. This time of year, as the cold fronts come through, the airports on Jinmen and Matsu are often closed due to fog. Iām not trying to discourage you, but the main risk is flight delays that could last a day or two due to weather.
Has anyone taken a boat from Kinmen to Taiwan? Whatās it like in mid-December? I should be finishing my Singapore-Taiwan by land and sea trip by then. Iām really trying to avoid flights if I can.
Reviving this thread to note a major infrastructural change in Kinmen: the long-proposed bridge connecting Kinmen to Lieyu (aka Little Kinmen) is finally open. This bridge has been discussed, proposed, and worked on since the early 1990s. Itās a remarkable engineering feat, spanning some 5.4 km across some tricky waters and busy shipping lanes.
I have not visited this part of the ROC. What do forumosans think about this change?
Guy
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Iām planning a trip to Kinmen in January or February. Iāve been interested in ROC/Chinese Civil War history for a long time and Iāve wanted to go there for years. Iām planning on starting a YouTube channel and I want to take a video of (mainland) China from Kinmen. Can you see Xiamen from the main island or do you need to go to Dadan to see it?
Also, is it even possible to go to Dadan Island as a foreigner? Iāve read that you need a Taiwanese identification card, will an ARC work?
You can see it pretty easily from the main island. Good if thereās low pollution/humidity. Maybe the best views are from å°éé, not sure about going to dadan but the distance from Xiamen is about the same as from å°éé.
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Yes, you can see Xiamen from the main island. Dadan Island is open to ROC nationals only (You need to have an ROC ID).
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There are also free binoculars at a few of the tourist spots. Juguang Lou (čå ęØ) comes to mind, but å°é is way closer to Xiamen than čå ęØ, which is in Jincheng. If you want to trek to Shamei (ę²ē¾), 馬山 (Mashan observation tower) gets you really close to China, but youāre not going to see as much of Xiamen city. You can see into peoples apartments in Xiamen on a clear day if you use the binoculars. Creepy AF. Not sure if you can stick a camera lens into them to get a clear video (of the city, obviously donāt be creepy). But that does require a clear day. Thereās something that locals call āfogā but what any AQI monitor calls āpollutionā (caused by locals burning whatever they wanna burn, rarely from Chinese factory pollution). But the spring is peak fog time, so be aware of your timing.
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Do you think it might be possible for me to get on a boat and take a picture of this sign from the boat?
I remember seeing the sign from Shaxi Fort ļ¼ę²ęŗŖå ”ļ¼with an angleļ¼or maybe I saw a different one). To take a picture like that, you definitely need to be on a boat. Many Chinese take a boat from Xiamen to see it. Not sure if such service is available from Kinmen.
The ferry service between Kinmen and Xiamen is still not running. But there have been occasional events since the start of the pandemic that allow people to party on a yacht for a few hours and wave at China. No idea how youād find out about those unless youāre tapped into the āpeople trying to make Kinmen something other than a former military important placeā social media/events coordinators.
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Guy
I just saw this post of yours now, since another thread merged with this one.
I saw the bridge. Itās a mess. One lane in each direction with a short ācurbā separating those two lanes (for cars, scooters, trucks, buses, and bikes together) from the pedestrian ālaneā, which is plenty wide enough for a truck (there were trucks driving in the pedestrian lane ācleaning itā when I went on it). You want Taiwanese drivers to stay in their lane on a bridge while a cyclist is in front of them? Especially in Kinmen. I donāt know if there are worse drivers with less accountability than Kinmenese drivers. I anticipate many, many fatal crashes per month on this bridge. 99% caused by the terrible construction of it. Also cuz of entitled drivers who wont have a problem ramming down pedestrians so they donāt have to wait for the car in front of them (there are plenty of places for a car to enter the pedestrian lane). My guess is the first murderer will be a politician. On the flip side, Little Kinmenās residents now know what itās like to have pencil dicks creating noise pollution at all hours of the night nowā¦
On a legitimate positive note, youāre not screwed if you have a medical emergency on Small Kinmen anymore.
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Tbh Iād probably be looking into moving to Kinmen, but I like my job right now. It sounds like a nice place to live from everything Iāve read.
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I am one of those who thinks that Kinmen is more than a former military important place. The history and the culture there are distinctly different from Taiwanās. It has lots of interesting architectures, be it traditional Fujian villages or western-influenced mansions, in addition to war-related history and structures.
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Iām thinking about moving to Matsu when I retire in a few years, so I totally understand.
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Heading to Kinmen next week. I feel like the excited soyjak meme but less ugly, as Iāve wanted to go there for five years. Will tell yāall how it goes.
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I liked Kinmen on my only visit a few years back. Lot of trees and roads good for cycling, searching for the Wind Lions is fun. They publish a map where you can locate them. Also explore those old villages, lot of cool old buildings.
Not sure about the winter weather though. Probably a bit grayer than during the summer.
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And I didnāt think about this until now, will I need to provide proof of my covid shot in order to board a domestic flight? I have the proof somewhere, but I just donāt remember where.
I did my alternative military service in Kinmen. Winters are very very windy. I would sleep with 3 blankets lol
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