Welcome to Shanghai

Welcome to Shanghai

We have compiled the most important travel information and useful tips to make your trip to China as comfortable as possible. We wish you a pleasant journey and a successful stay in Shanghai!

China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is the world's most populous country, with a population of over 1.35 billion. Covering approximately 9.6 million square kilometers, China is the world's second-largest country by land area.

China's landscape is vast and diverse, ranging from forest steppes and the Gobi and Taklamakan deserts in the arid north to subtropical forests in the wetter south. As of 2013, it is the world's second-largest economy by both nominal total GDP and purchasing power parity (PPP), and is also the world's largest exporter and importer of goods.

We have compiled important information about accommodation, climate, currency, electricity, entry requirements, etc. for you:

Shanghai, also known as “Hu” or “Shen”, is located on the west bank of the Pacific and the east coast of the Asian continent and halfway along China’s coastline, with an area of 6,340.5sq.km. It enjoys four distinct seasons, abundant sunshine and rainfall. Located at the center of the mainland's coastline, Shanghai has long been a major hub of communications, transportation, and international exchange. Shanghai is China's largest economic comprehensive industrial base, and a famous historical and cultural city. The city consistently attracts investment and is seen as an ideal venue for business gatherings. Special tourist trains run between Shanghai and the neighboring provinces of Jiangsu and Zhejiang, as well as tourist bus routes along newly-constructed expressways, offer great convenience for regional travel.

Visitors to Shanghai are not only dazzled by the modern metropolis and gateway to a developing China, but are also able to immerse themselves in the unique Shanghai culture, a combination of Chinese and Western elements. Colorful festivals and celebrations dot the yearly Shanghai activities calendar, such as the Shanghai Nanhui Peach Blossoms Festival, Shanghai International Tea Culture Festival and Shanghai China International Art Festival. Shanghai has also introduced special tour packages aimed at the different interests of visitors, such as bicycling tours, hiking tours, gourmet tours, rehabilitation and health care tours, study tours, honey moon tours, and convention and exhibition tours.

>>The Bund 

The well-known Bund is a must for visitors to Shanghai. Fifty-two buildings lining the narrow shoreline of the Huangpu River offer a living exhibition of Gothic, Baroque, Roman, Classic Revival and Renaissance architectural styles, as well as combinations of Chinese and Western styles. They are also a condensation of the recent history of the city. The wide embankment offers ample room for strolling and is used by locals for morning exercises and evening gatherings. In the evening, colorful lights illuminate the area and create a shimmering image deserving of the name Pearl of the Orient.

>>The Orient Pearl TV Tower 

The Orient Pearl TV Tower is 468 meters high, the tallest in Asia and third tallest in the world. It faces the Bund across the Huangpu River. When viewed from the Bund, the tower and the Nanpu and Yangpu bridges create a vivid imagery known as "two dragons playing with a pearl." The sphere at the top has a diameter of 45 meters and is 263 meters above ground. The observation deck in the sphere offers a sweeping view of the city. The revolving restaurant is set at 267 meters above Pudong New Area. The dance ball, piano bar and 20 karaoke rooms, at 271 meters, are also opened to the public. The penthouse, which is situated at 350 meters, has an observation deck, a meeting room and acoffee shop. The tower integrates broadcasting technologies with sightseeing, catering, shopping, amusement, and accommodations. It has become the symbol of the city and a major tourist attraction in Shanghai.

>>Jin Mao Tower

The Jin Mao Tower is an 88-story landmark skyscraper in the Lujiazui area of the Pudong district of Shanghai, People's Republic of China. It contains offices and the Shanghai Grand Hyatt hotel. Until 2007 it was the tallest building in the PRC, the fifth tallest in the world by roof height and the seventh tallest by pinnacle height. Along with the Oriental Pearl Tower, it is part of the Pudong skyline. Its height was surpassed on September 14, 2007 by the Shanghai World Financial Center which is next to the building, The Shanghai Tower, a 128-story building located next to these two buildings and now under construction, will be even taller.

>>The Yu Garden 

The Yu Garden or Yuyuan Garden is an extensive Chinese garden located beside the City God Temple in the northeast of the Old City of Shanghai, China. It abuts the Yuyuan Tourist Mart and is accessible from the Shanghai Metro's Line 10 Yuyuan Garden Station.

A centerpiece is the Exquisite Jade Rock, a porous 3.3-meter, 5-ton boulder. Rumors about its origin include the story that it was meant for the imperial palace in Beijing, but was salvaged after the boat sank off Shanghai.

The Yu Gardens are a classical landscape in the Southern Chinese style with a history of more than 400 years. Pavilions, halls, rockeries and ponds display the finest in landscaping from the Southern style as seen in the Ming and Qing dynasties. More than 40 landscapes were ingeniously separated by latticed walls, winding corridors, and lattice windows.

>>Binjiang Avenue

Binjiang Avenue (also called Riverside Promenada) is at the east bank of Huang Pu River and is almost parallel to the Bund. It is very close to the Oriental Pearl TV Tower so is very easy to get there. There are some nice restaurants here. Come in the evening, have a dinner or a cup of beer, with a perfect view of the Bund, life cannot be better!

>>Zhujiajue

Located in a suburb of Shanghai city, Zhujiajiao is an ancient water town well-known throughout the country, with a history of more than 1700 years. Covering an area of 47 square kilometers, the little fan-shaped town glimmers like a bright pearl in the landscape of lakes and mountains. Endowed with another elegant name "Pearl Stream", Zhujiajue is the best-preserved among the four ancient towns in Shanghai. Unique old bridges across bubbling streams, small rivers shaded by willow trees, and houses with courtyards attached all transport people who have been living amidst the bustle and hustle of the modern big city to a brand-new world full of antiquity, leisure and tranquillity. It is said that to visit Zhujiajaio without seeing the bridges means that you have not really been to Zhujiajiao at all! The old town is thoroughly connected by 36 delicate spans in different shapes and styles, from wooden to stone to marble.

>>Lujiazui 

Lujiazui, which literally means "Lu's Mouth", is located in the Pudong New District on the eastern bank of Huangpu River. It forms a peninsula on a bend of the Huangpu river, which turns from flowing north to flowing east. The importance of Lujiazui stems from the fact that it lies directly across the river from the Bund, the old financial and business district of Shanghai, and just south of the confluence of the Suzhou Creek with the Huangpu River. Until the 1980s, Lujiazui was a relatively low-built area, featuring residential houses, warehouses, and factories.

>>Xin Tian Di 

Located in the center of Shanghai City south of Huaihai Zhong Lu, Shanghai Xin Tian Di has become an urban tourist attraction that holds the historial and cultural legacies of the city. Shanghai Xin Tian Di is a fashionable pedestrian street composed of Shikumen and Modern architecture style.

Xin Tian Di is unique because of its concept of construction. It retains the antique walls, tilles and exterior of the Shikumen housing of old Shanghai. On the other hand, it interior embodies a totally different world of international gallery, bars, cafes, boutiques or restaurants. When you walk into Xin Tian Di, you will get the taste of both, Shanghai in the 1920’s and the sonic modern lifestyle of urbanites of the 21st certury.

>>Old Residential Long Tang

Long Tang is a type of unique civil residence in Shanghai. Apart from the customs and daily life of the people living in old Shanghai alleys. The typical Long Tang housing is also called Shikumen. Shikumen, meaning “stone gate”, is a special old form of residence in Shanghai. In many ways, it is indeed a gateway to the fascinating history of this largest coastal city of China. In the middle of the 19th century, the uprising of the “ Taiping Heavenly Kingdom” forced a large number of residents from Shanghai and its neighbouring Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces to take refuge in the city’s foreign concessions. To meet the needs of the rapidly increasing population, Shikumen houses is built along narrow alleys and features a stone gate framing a black wooden front door that leads into a small enclosed courtyard. This unique architectural setting provided residents with a feeling of security in turbulent, and as most of them were developed by foreign companies, Shikumen houses had gradually become a symbol of East meeting West in Shanghai. Besides, through Shikumen, people know about Shanghai-both its past and the present. Typical Shikumen buildings can be found in Qipu Road.