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Quanzhou, a famous overseas Chinese hometown and historical city, is located in the southeast of Fujian Province, connecting Putian and Fuzhou in the north and Xiamen in the south. Quanzhou is just a 20-minute train ride from Xiamen, but cut off from the crowds and retains a quiet and primitive feature. Quanzhou is the only starting point of the Maritime Silk Road that is recognized by the United Nations, and it was once considered by Marco Polo as "The Most Prosperous City in the World". Today, although the former glory of the city has gone, it still retained the most authentic custom of Fujian Culture. Wandering around Quanzhou city, the dark red folk dwellings, romantic dovetail roofs, covered the city in deep red, will bring you back to 2,000 years ago.

Quanzhou is a treasure house of diverse cultures, which not only has strong regional cultural characteristics, but also because of 1,000 years of overseas transport history, Quanzhou embraces cultures from all over the world in an inclusive manner. You can find all the religions in the world gathered here. Dozens of religious sites dot the city. Visitors may find Guandi Temple (关帝庙), Qingjing Mosque (清净寺), Confucian Temple (府文庙) and western churches at less than 100 meters long - Tumen Street (涂门街).

Why Visit Quanzhou, Fujian, China?
1. Harmony Hodgepodge of Religions - Well-known ancient author and thinker - Zhu Xi once commented Quanzhou as "In ancient times, it was once called the Buddhist country, saints and scholars were all over the streets." The most unique feature of this "religious museum" - Quanzhou is that it can accommodate different religious cultures on the same street. Strolling at Tumen Street, you can meet Buddhism, Islam, Taoism, Christianity at the same time. It’s really a culture shock that you might not be able to absorb all at once, but the city has managed to blend them together perfectly, without conflict, and develop together.
2. Most Famous Hometown of Overseas Chinese - There are over 7.5 million overseas Chinese, and over 760,000 Hong Kong and Macao compatriots are from Quanzhou. They are distributed in 129 countries and regions around the world. Over 2.5 million returned overseas Chinese and relatives of overseas Chinese live in Quanzhou. In Taiwan, 44.8% of the Han nationality (about 9 million) is originally from Quanzhou. You may pay a visit to the Museum of Fujian-Taiwan Kinship and learn more about the cultural history of the two sides of the Taiwan Strait.
3. Over 2000-year-old History Blend into Local People’s Life - Quanzhou, described by Marco Polo as "the largest port in the East ", can hardly show you how glorious it was in ancient days, how many years Anping Bridge stands staunchly against the wind and rain, how many ancient ruins are hidden in the old lanes and how many centuries have passed since Nanyin was sung. But the history here is not quietly buried in the ground. Living in harmony with cultural relics day and night is the daily life of Quanzhou people.
4. Unique Folk Houses - Oyster-covered Folk Fishing Houses and Red-brick Dwellings - Visitors can meet the oyster-shell houses at Xunpu Village called Kekecuo, with oyster shells stacked into silver walls and against the bottom red bricks in a contrasting color. The unique house might be common to locals, but for visitors, you would be surprised when you see them. The ancient house group of Cai Family is one of the typical traditional characteristics of Red-brick civil buildings in South Fujian.

How to Get to Quanzhou
Quanzhou Flight
Quanzhou Jinjiang International Airport

Location: Xiaxin Street, Jinjaing City, Quanzhou (泉州晋江市霞新街)

Quanzhou Jinjiang International Airport (泉州晋江国际机场) is the only airport in Quanzhou, about 12 kilometers away from Quanzhou City Center. Quanzhou airport has airlines to major aviation hubs in China, such as Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Kunming, Chongqing, etc. And direct flights to Hong Kong, Taiwan and Southeast Asia are also available. Visitors may take cars, taxis and public buses to transfer between the airport and Quanzhou city.

Quanzhou Train
Quanzhou Railway Station

Location: Yunfeng Road, Fengze District, Quanzhou (泉州市丰泽区云峰路)

Quanzhou Railway Station is the only train station in Quanzhou, and there are only bullet trains. You can reach Quanzhou by bullet trains from Chongqing in the west, Shenzhen in the south, Shanghai in the east and Changchun in the north. Taking a bullet train is also the quickest way to travel from Xiamen to Quanzhou. There are over 70 D/G trains running between Xiamen (Xiamen Railway Station / Xiamen North Railway Station) and Quanzhou (Quanzhou Railway Station) from 7:15 - 22:40 every day, only takes 20-30 minutes to arrive. Check more detailed information at Xiamen to Quanzhou Bullet Train, Private Car and Bus 2024 >>

Quanzhou Bus
There are two frequently used bus stations in Quanzhou, which are New Quanzhou Bus Station and Quanzhou Bus Terminal. There are direct buses to Suzhou, Shenzhen, etc.

Time Zone
Time Zone: GMT plus 8 hours

Useful Numbers:
Telephone country code: +86
Telephone area code: 592
Police: 110
Fire Department: 119
Ambulance: 120
Local directory assistance: 114 (service in Chinese only)

Currency and Bank Information:
The RMB (Renminbi) is the official currency, also called Chinese Yuan. Only RMB can be used when you are in China. Major credit cards including VISA, MasterCard, and American Express are accepted at some hotels, department stores and restaurants.
The universal Currency Converter: http://www.xe.com/ucc/
Currency exchange service is available at the airport Office of the Bank of China. Bank of China, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, Construction Bank of China, and Guangda Bank also provide ATM service in the terminal.

Tipping
Tipping is not a part of Chinese custom. A 10% to 15% service charge may be added to your bill at some tourist hotels thus no tipping is expected unless you are provided with extra service. It is not necessary to tip a taxi driver unless he/she assists with luggage or provides extra service.

Electricity
The standard domestic power supply in China is 220 V AC at 50 Hz. The standard sockets are two parallel lines
and three lines as shown on the right photo.

Insurance
No responsibility can be assured for any kind of personal accidents, sickness, theft, or property damage suffered by conference participants. Participants are advised to arrange whatever insurance they consider it necessary.

Weather
Quanzhou city is located at a low latitude close to the sea. It has a subtropical maritime monsoon climate, and the weather conditions here are superior. The annual average temperature in most parts of Quanzhou is 19.5 - 21.0 ℃, the average temperature in the hottest month (July) is 26 - 29 ℃, and the coldest month (January) is 9 - 13 ℃. The sunlight hours are 1800-2200 hours per year and with a short frost period. The annual precipitation in Quanzhou is 1000-1800mm. 80% of rainfall is from March to September in the wet season, and October to February is the dry season, only 20% of rain falls during these months. Yahoo’s 5-day Xiamen weather report: https://www.yahoo.com/news/weather/china/fujian/quanzhou-2139965?location-picker=quanzhou