As the busiest commercial pedestrian street, Xiamen Zhongshan Road is centrally located just opposite to the sea. Just like New York's Manhattan, Tokyo's Ginza, Hong Kong's Central, Shanghai's Nanjing Road, Zhongshan Road is a must-see site with a high reputation, which represents the prosperity of the historic city on the sea. There are rows of brands of stores in shopping malls, restaurants, and theaters on the street attracting and dazzling visitors with unique well-preserved architectures.
With a total length of 1198 meters, the road was firstly built in 1925. The road starts from the Ferry Terminal on Lujiang Avenue and extends to Xinhua Road. It is the one and only commercial street heading to the sea: one end connects the hotels and building accommodating the travelers from everywhere; the other end connects to the marvelous sea-facing Gulangyu Island. The road has been the commercial leader and center of the Xiamen since open.
One highlight of the Zhongshan Road is the Qi-style architecture on the street most of which were built by the oversea Chinese in the 1920s. Qi-style building represents the culture of Xiamen architecture. Qi-style building or the overhanging building is a classic modern commercial and residential structure originated from southeast Asia in India, Singapore, and Malaysia. In the night the road is shined by numerous colorful LED lights from the buildings along the street.
The motor vehicles are banned on the street and it is a No-Smoking pedestrian street. Walk on the wide street, breath the fresh air with a salty sea breeze. Visitors would always be impressed by vital and vigorous of the stores on the street. Many stores promote a series of service projects to win the trust and flavor from the visitors. Smiling shop assistances are seen everywhere on the street. You could fin a mix of western food, cafes, century-old traditional dining as well as street food. Many travelers choose to spend the rest time freely at Zhongshan Road after returning from Gulangyu Island in the daytime.