Local Life &

Tourism

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Tourism is reshaping everyday life on Kulangsu.

Island in Transition

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Kulangsu is not simply a tourist destination or a collection of historic buildings. It is also a lived-in island shaped by residents, schools, markets, small shops, churches, music, and everyday routes. Fieldwork revealed a clear spatial contrast: popular sites such as Ling Tow Road, Sunlight Rock, and “The Most Beautiful Corner” remain crowded, while backstreets and residential areas are markedly quieter. The issue is therefore not simply whether Kulangsu has too many or too few visitors, but how visitor flows and attention are distributed across the island.

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Population and Community Change

Kulangsu Subdistrict’s permanent population fell from 14,242 in 2010 to 10,792 in 2020, a decline of about 24.2%. Recent reporting indicates that approximately 12,000 permanent residents remain, with around 30% aged over 65. This change cannot be attributed to tourism alone: employment, education, housing, family structure, and ageing also influence whether residents can remain on the island. Yet the decline raises a central heritage question: can Kulangsu continue as a stable residential community as its population and daily support systems contract?

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The public-service and local-life maps

Everyday services are the basis of island life. According to relevant research, there used to be many hospitals, primary schools and community organizations on Gulangyu Island. In contrast, schools, medical services, wet markets, pharmacies, repair shops, and retail stores today are noticeably smaller in scale than what is necessary for a complete residential community. During fieldwork, souvenir shops, cafes, and tourist-oriented restaurants were easy to find, while wet markets, pharmacies, repair shops, schools, and other resident-serving facilities appeared smaller in scale and less evenly available. These spaces are not secondary to heritage: they make long-term residence, neighbourly support, and intergenerational memory possible.

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Ferry Tickets and Visitor Timing

The tourism script is collectively shaped by ferry schedules, fare structures, official routes, and social media content. Visitors have already learned where to enter, when to set off, which route to take, where to take photos, and which places are worth visiting. In other words, they already have a “mental map” showing what they should see.

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Travel Narratives Over Time

Twenty Qunar travel reviews reveal a significant shift in travel narratives. Earlier reviews from 2012 to 2016 more often referred to “nostalgia,” “old times,” “slow travel,” “Minnan style,” “church architecture,” and “historical memories.” Recent reviews from 2024 to 2026 are more often dominated by “one-day trip,” “city walk,” “ferry ticket guides,” “photogenic spots,” and “the most beautiful corner.” Terms related to “routes, guides, and efficiency” appeared in 1 of the 10 earlier reviews, but in 9 of the 10 recent reviews.

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Source: Field observations, interviews, population census data, People’s Daily. "The Fast and the Slow of Gulangyu.", ferry-ticket observations, analysis of Qunar.com, and huyi Xie, Li,et al. "Echoes of Italian Lessons on the Typo-Morphological Approach: A Planning Proposal for Gulangyu Island, China." Habitat International, vol. 69, 2017, pp. 1–17. 

Kulangsu Ferry Ticket Availability Heatmap

Observed availability patterns for ordinary ferry tickets during the August 10–16 sample week.

Kulangsu Travelogue Narratives Over Time

Frequency of narrative themes in old and recent travelogues.

People of Kulangsu

Residents and visitors share the island in different ways.

Morning Ticket Pressure

Early ordinary tickets around 07:10-09:10 often appear sold out, showing concentrated morning arrivals.

Afternoon Surplus

Afternoon and evening departures around 15:50-18:10 often retain 200-400+ seats.

Weekend Pressure is Stronger

On weekend or rest-day dates such as August 15 and August 16, early ordinary tickets show stronger pressure.

Sell-outs Expand Closer to Departure

As the travel date approaches, more early ordinary departures sell out, suggesting that pressure on popular morning time slots continues to increase.

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Question: How does the ferry ticket system organize when tourists enter Kulangsu? 

Source: Ferry ticket screenshots and observation notes from August 10-16. 

Note: Cells summarize observed availability patterns rather than exact remaining-ticket counts.