After the lifting of martial law in Kinmen and the opening of the island to tourism, the veil of mystery that long shrouded this bastion began to be lifted. For a time, tourists poured in, their numbers further swelled by family members visiting their sons on duty on Kinmen (which had been forbidden in the past). Hotels sprang up like mushrooms after a spring rain, and there was unprecedented prosperity.
金門解嚴、開放觀光後，驟然掀起的神秘面紗，也曾經讓觀光客趨之若鶩，加上許多台灣居民到金門探望當兵的子弟，飯店如雨後春筍般蓋起來，金門市況非常風光。