I visited Gulangyu (Kulangsu) in 2010, during a weekend trip to Xiamen (and the Fujian tulou), flying in from Hong Kong, where I was staying for a few months. In a sense, Gulangyu delivers what Hong Kong or Shanghai only promise: the fusion of West and East in a late 19th century / early 20th century international settlement established to trade with China. Gulangyu is surprisingly big and quite well-preserved (though when I visited in 2010, a few of the mansions were in the process of being "spruced up"). Its architecture has a distinctive Western flair to it, but Chinese elements also appear here and there (and it includes at least one fully-fledged Chinese garden). A few parts, such as the giant statue of Koxinga, are of a younger age, and it's a bit strange that they have been inscribed too. As should be expected of most tourist sites in China (in particular those in the middle of a city), it is quite touristy, but (at least in 2010) still bearable. The lack of traffic is definitely a plus - one can just stroll aimlessly around the island to discover its various corners. Overall, it was a very pleasant visit, and a break from the general hubbub of modern Chinese city life.