泉州市

Why this place

In the Song and Yuan dynasties Quanzhou was one of the greatest ports in the world — Marco Polo and Ibn Battuta both described it, and it was where Chinese ships left for Southeast Asia and the Indian Ocean. It still has the physical remains: a mosque, Hindu carvings, Nestorian Christian stones and the oldest surviving Islamic tombs in China.

What to see

• The Qingjing Mosque, built in 1009 and the oldest surviving mosque in China
• Kaiyuan Temple with its twin pagodas, and the Hindu stone carvings reused in its pillars
• The ancient bridges — Luoyang Bridge and Anping Bridge, both medieval stone-beam masterpieces
• The maritime museum, and the Song-dynasty ship excavated from the harbour
• Quanzhou's puppet theatre and Nanyin music, both still performed

What to eat

• Quanzhou is one of the best food cities in China — Fujian coastal cooking at its source
• Oyster omelette, beef soup, and the local fish-ball tradition
• Iron Guanyin tea from the Anxi hills (tieguanyin)

How to plan

Two days: the old city and temples one day, the bridges and maritime museum the next.

Best time

March–May and October–December

Practical tips

• Quanzhou is the most historically important city most foreign visitors have never heard of — give it two days