Where to Stay Near Xiamen University & Zengcuo'an?
8 South-Coast Beach Hotels — Street Food, Beach + the Coastal Cycle Path

We open the list with the most on-theme pick — the Atour design chain that's right in Zengcuo'an village. Atour Hotel Zengcuo'an scores 9.6/10 from around 864 real guest reviews. It's an Atour (亚朵) four-star chain hotel on the south coastal road (环岛南路), opened in 2025. What guests single out again and again is the location by the Zengcuo'an beach village (曾厝垵), a ~10-minute walk to the beach, near Xiamen University and Nanputuo Temple, making it the most on-theme south-side base on the list, plus new, clean Atour design-chain rooms and the coffee corner / library that are this chain's signature, and it books easily through international OTAs. The honest catch: it's newly opened, so the review sample is still thin (~864), it's a value-focused four-star chain rather than a sea-view resort, and this zone is mainly bus / taxi / DiDi (the metro isn't at the door).

The most-reviewed five-star in this zone, with the edge on sea views and pools — Xiamen International Conference Center Hotel scores 9.5/10 from around 5,695 real guest reviews. It's a big 520-room hotel on the east coastal road (环岛路) by the Xiamen International Conference Center, with two sea-view pools. What guests rave about most is the sea-view rooms where you open the curtains to sunrise over the strait, and being a big hotel that suits families; the south side puts Xiamen University, Nanputuo Temple and Hulishan Fort within a short drive, making it the five-star sea-view base for the south-coast zone. The honest catch: it's a large conference hotel, so the lobby gets busy during events / tour groups; the city / garden-view rooms are cheaper but miss the sea view (specify a sea-view room when you book); and it's on the coastal road, a hop from the metro.

The anchor of the south-coast beach zone — a garden resort on Huangcuo Beach with the edge on a relaxing atmosphere and a free water park. Seaview Resort Xiamen scores 9.4/10 from around 9,055 real guest reviews. It's a garden resort on the Huandao coastal road (环岛路) by Huangcuo Beach (黄厝) on the south of the island, with a million-sqm garden and a free water park. What guests single out again and again is the Villa Sea-View rooms, which many reviews call the best sea-view room they've ever stayed in, and being a resort that suits a family stay where the kids can swim, near Hulishan Fort, with Xiamen University and Nanputuo Temple a ~10–15 minute drive. The honest catch: the garden-view rooms in the main building are older and miss the sea view (the newest, best-view rooms are the Villa building), it's fairly far from the city centre so you need a ride, and it's a long-established resort where some parts aren't as new as recent openings.

A village-boutique option for anyone who wants the full Zengcuo'an feel — MisooHi Secret World Hotel scores 9.6/10 from around 1,122 real guest reviews on Trip.com. It's a small design hotel in the Zengcuo'an beach village (曾厝垵) on the south Huandao road. What guests single out again and again is being right in the village, where you step out the door to the street-food lanes and the beach, with photogenic themed rooms, at a price noticeably lighter than the big hotels in this zone — great for couples / relaxed travellers who want to soak up seaside-village life. The honest catch: it's a small village hotel, so it doesn't have the facilities of a resort, the village is busy and lively by day and into the evening (it can be noisy), and rates spike in the summer holidays · scores and reviews are from Trip.com — it's a local property, so foreign travellers should confirm passport check-in with the property before booking.

The most-reviewed pick in the OTA group, and the most foreigner-friendly — Madison Hotel, Huangcuo Beach branch, scores 9.4/10 from around 3,455 real guest reviews on Trip.com. It's a four-star hotel on the south Huandao road by Huangcuo Beach. What guests single out again and again is the location that walks to Huangcuo Beach, near Xiamen University, Nanputuo Temple, Hulishan Fort and Zengcuo'an village, rooms that many reviews call clean and spacious with a helpful front desk, and — important for foreign travellers — that it accepts foreign-passport check-in and books easily through international OTAs, making it a reassuring four-star pick in this zone. The honest catch: it's a value four-star rather than a full-facility resort, the city-view rooms are cheaper but miss the sea view, and the metro isn't at the door in this zone · scores and reviews are from Trip.com.

An easy-to-book, foreigner-friendly chain at a light price, for anyone who wants to be near Xiamen University — Vienna International Hotel, Xiamen University branch, scores 9.2/10 from around 2,357 real guest reviews on Trip.com. It's a Vienna International (维也纳国际) chain hotel ~1.8km from Xiamen University and ~1km from Zengcuo'an village. What guests single out again and again is being a chain with spacious rooms, bright public areas, a garden and a pool, renovated in 2020, at a light price, making it a budget-friendly base for the south zone, with the beach reachable on foot and easy booking through international OTAs. The honest catch: it's a value chain rather than a sea-view resort, it's set back a little from the beach (close, but not right on it like the Huandao-road hotels), and the metro isn't at the door in this zone · scores and reviews are from Trip.com.

Another village-boutique option, this one at a lighter price — MisoHi Flower Hideaway Hotel scores 9.4/10 from around 1,216 real guest reviews on Trip.com. It's a small design hotel in the Zengcuo'an beach village (曾厝垵). What guests single out again and again is the photogenic themed rooms at a very light price, and being in the village within walking distance of the street-food lanes and the beach — great for couples or photographers who want the seaside-village feel on a budget, near Xiamen University. The honest catch: it's a small village hotel with basic rooms and facilities, the village is busy by day and into the evening (it can be noisy), and rates spike in the summer holidays · scores and reviews are from Trip.com — it's a local property, so foreign travellers should confirm passport check-in with the property before booking.

We close the list with the cheapest pick that still gets you a sea view — One Dream Seaview Homestay scores 9.4/10 from around 644 real guest reviews on Trip.com. It's a homestay in the Zengcuo'an beach village (曾厝垵). What guests single out again and again is having sea-view rooms at a very light price, and being in the village within walking distance of the street-food lanes and the beach — the cheapest pick on the list for budget travellers who still want to wake up to a sea view and the village atmosphere, near Xiamen University. The honest catch: it's a small homestay with basic facilities, the cheapest rooms usually miss the view (specify a sea-view room), the village is busy by day / into the evening, and rates spike in summer · scores and reviews are from Trip.com — it's a local property, so foreign travellers should confirm passport check-in with the property before booking.