Live Your Best Lives
Before the epidemic, three sisters who had known each other for six years rushed to Xiamen and started a wonderful photography journey.
Day 1: Hangzhou ✈️Xiamen (arrive at Swiss International Hotel Xiamen at 11pm)
Day 2: Xiamen - Botanical Garden - Lunch - Simple House Photography Base - Zhangzhou Volcanic Island
Day 3: Volcano Island (Monument Valley + Indian Well) - Nanqu B&B - Zhenhai Cape
Day 4: Nanqu B&B - Zhangzhou - Xiamen ✈️ Hangzhou
Accommodation: Rainbow Bubble House on Volcano Island is 799 yuan, wooden house is 580 yuan, Nanqu B&B is 328 yuan per room, and Swiss International Hotel Xiamen is 680 yuan.
💴Tickets: Simple House Photography Base 68 yuan per person, Monument Valley ticket 150 yuan, Botanical Garden ticket 30 yuan
Transportation: Renting a 5-seater car for 2 days costs 447 yuan, and round-trip airfare is 1K
🎈Props: Bubble machine 75 yuan
The average cost per person is about 1,100, excluding transportation costs. Overall it is still very cost-effective. Xiamen is worth a visit!
1️⃣SLR camera: Canon 5D4 lens Sigma 35 Canon 50 Canon 100
2️⃣ Ricoh camera: Ricoh GR3
3️⃣ Film camera: Contax G1 lens G28 G45 G90 Kodak film roll 5207
1️⃣ Xiamen Botanical Garden Rainforest World strongly recommends a white skirt, which is the perfect match with the green forest and the smoky white mist. It is best to choose a skirt with Japanese or French style;
2️⃣ The summer style that can be worn in the desert area of Xiamen Botanical Garden, white, blue, Huangshan's little skirt, or JK uniform are very suitable, very lively and sweet girl style;
3️⃣The volcanic island is really photogenic. Wear a white or black skirt to create a strong contrast with the bright colors. Don’t wear a skirt that is too colorful.
4️⃣The photography base is actually suitable for casual style or Japanese or Korean style. Because this base is not very good for taking pictures, it is recommended not to go there because the price is a bit expensive;
5️⃣Zhenhaijiao Beach is suitable for all kinds of long skirts and short skirts, and the colors can be brighter, but Zhenhaijiao is really like a small Kenting, so it is best to have a fresh and soft girl style, which looks very sweet when photographed;
1️⃣ Sunglasses: No one can resist wearing sunglasses. You can wear any style with sunglasses and you can never go wrong.
2️⃣ Hat: I strongly recommend a French wide-brimmed hat, preferably an exaggerated one. It is very easy to take photos. Whether you wear it or hold it in your hand, it is OK. It will not make you look lonely when taking photos.
3️⃣ Bubble machine: You can buy it or not, mainly because it is too difficult to take snapshots, but the photo effect is very good;
4️⃣ Fireworks sticks: Little fairy firework sticks, a magical tool for the seaside, the effect of the photos is really good, now they are sold on Taobao, and they are not expensive. You can directly express them to me, so don’t bring them on the high-speed rail or plane yourself;
5️⃣Others: It is best to prepare some small props, such as a camera, a doll, and it is best not to have empty hands, otherwise you will feel a little helpless when posing;
6️⃣ Accessories: Headwear, earrings, and necklaces are all important. ❗ It’s best to wear simple, textured clothes. Don’t wear more than 3 colors on your body. A black and white skirt is the safest choice. And it’s best not to wear pants. Skirts look best.
Xiamen is very hot from April to October, so we have to remind everyone to go early to take photos. The Xiamen Botanical Garden mainly photographs the pine and fir areas, rain forest areas, psammoth areas, and succulent areas. The botanical garden is really large and there is a lot of walking, so if you want to take photos, you should reserve at least 2 hours.
The spray time in the rainforest area is 9:00-11:30 in the morning and 14:30-16:30 in the afternoon, so you can take pictures in the morning and afternoon, but it is best to go in the morning, especially early in the morning, otherwise it will be very hot. In this case, you can go to the cactus area earlier. Compared with the rainforest area, the cactus area is really hotter. Try not to go there at noon, and be sure to do a good job of sun protection.
It is recommended to gather at the entrance of the Botanical Garden at 8:30, because you have to take the scenic shuttle bus when entering, which runs every 20 minutes and costs 10 yuan. If you miss it, you can only wait for the next one, which also takes 20 minutes. It is best to bring an umbrella and pay attention to sun protection.
Tips:
1. It is best to prepare 2 sets of clothes, one for the fairy style of the rainforest and one for the desert. Remember to prepare 2 pairs of matching shoes. It is strongly recommended to wear a white long skirt or a short skirt. It is really too photogenic. Do not wear pants.
2. Prepare some props yourself, such as sunglasses, hats, necklaces, transparent umbrellas, hairbands, etc.
Fee Details📜
Tickets:
The botanical garden ticket is 30 yuan, which can be purchased online by swiping your ID card to enter, or you can buy it on site. If you buy it at the window, you will receive a large hand-drawn map.
The scenic shuttle bus costs 10 yuan. If you hire a photographer to take pictures of the botanical garden, you need to pay 30 yuan for the photographer's entrance fee.
Location: Enter from the west gate of Huyuan Road. Tickets purchased online can only be entered from here.
✅Others: Be sure to bring sunscreen spray, otherwise you will get sunburned;
⛪Accommodation: It is recommended to stay in Siming District. I stayed at the Swiss International Hotel Xiamen. It takes only 10 minutes to get to the Botanical Garden by taxi, which costs about 12 yuan. The accommodation is not bad. It is very convenient to go anywhere. The service attitude of the staff is also very good. They also upgraded me to a suite for free. I like it ❤️
🌵🌴The cactus area is the place I have always wanted to take photos in, because I want to go for a college style, but I didn’t choose the right clothes, so I will look fat in the photos. I suggest that you wear a slim skirt, which will be more suitable.
It takes about 5 minutes to walk up from the rainforest area to the cactus area. If you don’t encounter the scenic bus, you can walk up directly, which is very convenient. There is a toilet at the entrance of the area, and cold drinks are sold there. You can go to the toilet to change clothes or touch up your makeup.
Cactus will produce prickly pear, which is very delicious. When you see the red fruit, you can try it. It tastes a bit like dragon fruit.
This photography base is very popular on Xiaohongshu. The photos look good. But I was actually a little disappointed when I went there. There is no elevator on the 5th floor and I can only go up by stairs. I don’t know what store is downstairs. There is a very unpleasant smell. When I went in, it was not very good to take pictures from the perspective of light and photography angle. There were not many things. I arrived at around 15 o’clock that day. There was only one group of people taking pictures. They should be from Taobao clothing stores. There were very few people. Generally speaking, the price-performance ratio is not high. Three people spent 207 yuan and took 9 photos. Each photo cost 23 yuan in total, which is really expensive. Secondly, the door to see the sunrise is actually a fake scene on the rooftop. The price-performance ratio is average.
📍Address: Room 501, No. 60, Miaodou, Aoguan Community, Haicang District, Xiamen, Fujian, China
📝Ticket price: 69 yuan per person. It costs 69 yuan to enter, no matter you take pictures or not. It is really expensive. There is no water or drinks for sale in the base. If you go there to take pictures, try to bring your own water.
If you choose to stay there, because the volcanic island can only check out at 12 o'clock, you can choose to check out. If you still want to enter the park, ask the front desk to issue you a receipt, and you can continue to enter the park and visit the remaining attractions. The scenic bus card can still be used.
Tips: If you have one more night to stay outside the scenic area, it is recommended to check out first and check in at another B&B. After a good rest, you can re-enter the park with the order from the front desk. The main reason is that the volcanic island is too hot at noon, and there is no place to rest with air conditioning. Prices: Ice cream at the Little Green Car is 8 yuan, sausage is 8 yuan, and water is 4 yuan. The cafes in Monument Valley are between 25-30 yuan.
💴Tickets: The entrance ticket to Volcano Island is 60 yuan, the ticket to Monument Valley alone is 150 yuan, the ticket to Indian Well alone is 40 yuan, and the combined ticket for Monument Valley + Indian Well is 150 yuan. It is recommended to purchase a combined ticket❗❗❗The Internet celebrity package is 250 yuan, including: Monument Valley, Castle of Love, Rainbow Mountain, Indian Well, Little Train, and Lighthouse.
🤹♀️Free photo area: Seaside geoframe, sky mirror, conch ornaments
🕒Best time to visit: May to August every year, the color of the sea is at its best at this time, and it is most suitable for taking pictures.
Tickets to the volcanic island can be easily purchased online. There are many man-made scenic spots on the island: hot air balloons, beach slides, sea reef trails, etc. Combined with the natural scenery of the island, it is like a giant outdoor landscaping studio. There is also a geological museum inside with a successful roof design. The entire geological museum is the color of the volcano, pink, and shaped like a castle, which satisfies the dreams of all girls. It is very similar to the color scheme of the Grand Budapest Hotel, cold but warm. There are also many cacti and other plants inside, so there is no problem in taking blockbuster movies.
We booked the bubble house package and the wooden house package for Volcano Island, both of which include tickets to Volcano Island. However, if you want to go to Monument Valley, you need to buy additional tickets, and the price is quite high. It would be a shame not to take more photos. Monument Valley and the Geological Museum are together, and the layout of Monument Valley is very suitable for taking pictures, but it is too hot. You must remember to apply sunscreen when going out. Even so, Jiajia and I still got sunburned. There is a sea view cafe on the 3rd floor of Monument Valley. We took a few photos and went to the cafe to have a drink and enjoy the air conditioning. Otherwise, there is no sun protection in other places and we really got sunburned. You can also buy another ticket to take a boat to the middle of the sea and board the Nanding Island of Linjin Island to see the giant organ-like lava rock group.
In addition, there are other recreational activities such as flying over the jungle, paragliding, amphibious vehicles, UTV all-terrain vehicles, archery, etc. There are also many small aircraft helipads on the island, and private planes occasionally take off and land, but because it was too hot, we did not go to play in all of them. Those who come with families or couples can play more.
📍Address: Monument Valley, Volcano Island, Zhangzhou City, Fujian Province
📝Ticket: 150 yuan (Monument Valley + Indian Well Ticket Package)
🚌Transportation: There are scenic shuttle buses on the island. The package includes 10 scenic shuttle buses. Tickets will be checked when you get on the bus. 10 trips are really enough on the island.
🍤Dining: Behind Monument Valley is a sea view restaurant with an average cost of 100 yuan per person. It is quite cost-effective and mainly serves Sichuan cuisine and Fujian seafood.
The layout and shape of the entire building of the Indian Well are similar to the famous Indian Well. The overall symmetrical structure is very suitable for taking pictures, and it has an extreme beauty in contrasting colors, and the color impact is very strong.
The ticket is a package ticket, and it takes about 5 minutes to take the scenic bus. It is located far away from the wooden house, just next to the wooden house, so it is very convenient to take pictures here when staying in the wooden house.
It took about an hour to navigate from Nanqu B&B to Zhenhai Cape. After arriving, I chose to walk in, which took about 1.5 kilometers and 20 minutes (you can also take a jeep for 20 yuan per person. Sisters who don’t want to walk can take a car) to reach the beach with a large meadow.
📍Address: Navigate to Zhenhaijiao (Since Zhenhaijiao is inside a village, it is recommended to drive or take a car)
💰Tickets: Free, but parking fee is required, about 20 yuan
🚗Jeep: When you get there, you'll see a jeep. It costs 20 yuan per person.
At dusk, watching the sunset glowing like fireworks in the setting sun, with a few good friends beside me, chatting about everything under the sun, I suddenly remembered a line of poetry: "I watch the sky in the morning and the clouds in the evening, I miss you when I walk and I miss you when I sit."
This is the only sea view restaurant on the island. The whole restaurant has glass floor-to-ceiling windows on three sides. You can see the sea level directly from the restaurant. The blue white clouds are matched with the blue sea. There are many small decorations outside the restaurant for taking pictures. It takes only 2 minutes to get there. Judging from the environment, this restaurant is still worth a visit. The cuisine includes Sichuan cuisine, Fujian cuisine and seafood, which can satisfy both people who eat spicy food and those who don’t.
The buffet breakfast of the Bubble House and the Wooden House is also eaten here. The breakfast mainly consists of corn, steamed buns, milk, and sweet potatoes, which is relatively simple. You can also purchase a hotel package, which includes a main meal for 268 yuan and an additional dish, which is enough for 4 people.
📍 Address: Next to Monument Valley
💸Price: 80 yuan per person
I highly recommend Nanqu B&B! The overall layout of the B&B is very high-end, and at only 300 yuan, it's very cost-effective.
Across from the village is the beach, with white buildings juxtaposed against the blue sky. Looking at the entire property alone, it feels like you've arrived in Santorini. There's a blue swimming pool in the courtyard, making any photo you take a great one.
There is a coffee shop inside the guesthouse, as well as classic photo booths that are sure to be there:
1️⃣ White holiday chairs under the palm trees
2️⃣Spiral staircase
3️⃣ There are two holiday chairs in the square in the middle of the swimming pool
🍟Food: The overall dining is mainly Western style simple meals, with an average cost of around 50 yuan per person, including pasta, pizza, etc., but the taste is average. The drinks are quite good.
🔺Location: No. 3-3, Jiangdong, Jiangkou Village, Qianting Town, Zhangpu County, right next to the volcanic island, about 1.5 kilometers away, a 10-minute drive
The Bubble House is above the Castle of Love. If you stay in the Bubble House, you can visit the Castle of Love for free. We bought the 799 package, which included a king-size room in the Bubble House, two breakfasts, two tickets to the scenic area, two tickets to the Castle of Love in Rainbow Mountain, 10 free tour buses, a full meal worth (268 yuan), and a box of facial mask (this mask is very good for back application).
The Bubble House is a 5-minute walk from the Seaview Restaurant and Monument Valley. If you don’t want to walk, you can just call the driver at the intersection and he will come to pick you up in about 3 minutes. It is very convenient.
The 580 yuan package includes one night in a townhouse + two breakfasts + an Indian well + the Rainbow Mountain Castle of Love + a facial mask, two ice creams + fruit. The package is really a good deal. Parking is free with accommodation, and you can enter the volcanic island multiple times during the period.
The entire volcanic island cabins are divided into single-family houses and townhouses. Each townhouse consists of 4 rooms connected together. If you go during the off-season, you can take the initiative to ask for a room with a sea view. The closer the cabin is to the sea, the more stairs there are. You can ask the security guard to help carry your luggage!
This is my second time visiting Xiamen, and I will go there a third and fourth time. I hope Fujian will get better soon so that more friends can come and experience its beauty.
