Shanghai – China’s largest city and its principal port, located at the mouth of the Yangtze River delta. Shanghai’s heritage is very mixed given its role as a major trading city, especially as China opened up to international maritime trade in the 18th century onwards. Much of this was forced on the declining Qing Dynasty mostly in the mid-19th century by Western powers via the “Unequal Treaties,”  which remain a sensitive point to this day.  The expulsion of the various foreign occupiers in the 1949 revolution and subsequent relative isolation of the city through the 1980’s by the victorious Communist regime preserved much of this environment.

Like many large commercial cities, it’s a fascinating place to visit with plenty to see, and is an excellent base for other China travel. The main issue is that you need to obtain a China entry visa, although in certain cases you can obtain up to 24, 72 or 144-hour transit visa exemptions.

Shanghai’s main city area is centered around People’s Square, a large park that also holds some museums, with largely residential districts to the west and the business district to the east. The eastern area is bordered by Shanghai’s famous Bund waterfront on the Huangpu River, with a concentration of unspoiled Art Deco era buildings that is hard to find except in other cities that grew rapidly in the mid-20th century, such as Detroit: https://wp.me/p7Jh3P-nP

Shanghai’s layout reflects the two main 19th-20th century foreign settlements – the International Settlement (to the UK and USA) in the east along the riverfront (largely in the eastern part of the Huangpu District); and the French Concession, which runs to the southwest of People’s Square along Huaihai Middle Road and the northern part of the Xuhui District. Just south of the former International Settlement and next to the river is the old city, that was originally a walled city and which remained separate from the International Settlement to the North.

You could easily spend 3-4 days in Shanghai and find plenty to do, especially if you have never visited mainland China before. There are some pedestrian-friendly neighborhoods within the former French Concession area such as the rather upmarket Xintiandi and Tianzifang areas. The old city (start at Yuyuan Garden metro) is south and east of Renmin Road and includes some isolated archaeological remnants and gardens. Here are some ideas of in-town things to do, as well as some area side trips that I’ll write about later.

The Shanghai Museum (People’s Square – south side). If you want an introduction to Chinese history and culture, the Shanghai Museum is equivalent to a national art museum. You can get the various imperial dynasties – going back over 2,000 years – outlined in your head through the extensive watercolor, pottery, currency and other collections. I have always wondered how much of China’s historical artifacts survived the Cultural Revolution in 1966, and notably some of the material came from overseas Chinese collectors. The museum is closed Mondays and has free entry.

There is interesting transitional currency with late 19th/early 20th century bills.

The Bund and Art Deco Shanghai. Manhattan on the Yangtze: Shanghai has a high level of preservation of its buildings from the late 19th through the mid-20th century, and was a major commercial center of East Asia for the first half of the 20th century. You could be downtown in a US city that grew around that time. There are plenty of online offerings for historical tours to understand this – see below, but book ahead. China had been dealing with invasion by Japan since 1931 and Shanghai was attacked by the Japanese in 1932 and then again in 1937, being occupied until 1945.

The main business area is located northeast of People’s Square towards to the Bund, with many of the major buildings lining the Bund. If you want to pick one place to see, the Peace Hotel, originally opened as the Cathay Hotel in 1929, has an impressive Art Deco ground floor area.

Eating Around. Without getting into the usual street food obsession, Shanghai Chinese cooking works very well if you are after something light and casual, and there are plenty of formal restaurants covering the main cooking styles of China. The Shanghainese post-revolution diaspora has meant that many Shanghai specials have worked their way into the Chinese repertoire. A few key types include:

Xiao Long Bao – Soup filled dumplings, usually pork or shrimp, but vegetarian options are common.

Shengjiang Mantou – oh yeah. Soup filled dumplings with a flakier pastry shell, fried around the base.

Hongshao Rou – braised pork belly. A favorite of Chairman Mao apparently, although there are varieties nationwide.

Jiaohua Ji – beggar’s chicken. Stuffed, marinated and roasted in a paper shell. 

For the most part, restaurants catering to the local crowd often offer picture menus where the menu is in Chinese. The various city shopping malls usually have a restaurant level – these are usually quite good in Asia as they are clean, bright and air-conditioned, and not at all the usual chain debacle you get in the West. Some that are worth a visit include:

Da Hu Chun (11 Sichuan Street, Huangpu) – full range Shanghai classics.

Di Shui Dong (56 Maoming S Road, Jing’an) – Hunan specialty.

Din Tai Fung ( Jing’an) – actually a Taiwanese chain (whose founder fled China in 1948) featuring Shanghainese specials and known for it’s xiao long bao, but a good entry-level restaurant with a simple menu.

Lao Fan Dian (Fujou and Juixiaocheng Streets, Huangpu) – another Shanghai standard.

Lin Long Fang (10 Jian Guo Dong Lu or SML Center, Huangpu) – great local mini chain.

Nan Ling (1238 Yainan Middle Street, Jing’an) – more formal Shanghai classics.

Shanghai Grandmother (70 Fuzhou Road, Huangpu) – multi-level family style offering.

The French Concession. The French Concession is a more residential, retail and green area, largely north and south of Huaihai Middle Road as it heads southwest from People’s Square, which provides contrast to the more urban/shopping/office focus in the Huangpu/Bund area east of People’s Park. It is also close to the Jing’an temple, which is worth a visit. It has a more relaxed and leafy atmosphere, in part because the French built wider, tree-lined streets. As mentioned earlier, the Xintiandi (aim for the metro station of the same name) and Tianzifang (southwest of the Jianguo West and Sinan Roads intersection) areas are good walking destinations.

The Jing’an Temple. The Jing’an temple, northwest of the French concession with a metro next to it, is well with a visit, centered around a great hall with a seated Buddha. There has been a temple in the area since 247 CE, and one on the current site since 1216; it burnt down in the 1970’s and was rebuilt in the 1980’s so is quite new, although various artefacts, such as the medieval Hongwu bronze bell, date back a ways. There is a good park just south of the temple to take a break and admire the greenery.

Walking Tours. Shanghai’s sights are well distributed around the neighborhoods and there isn’t a concentration of major points, so a walking tour can be useful. Here are a few and of course Tripadvisor has a selection:

The Shanghai Historical Society focuses on the 19th and 20th century and their walking tours are here: https://www.historic-shanghai.com/events/

Shanghai Walking Tours: http://shanghaiwalkingtour.com/english/walking_tours.html

Culinary Backstreets is food focused: https://culinarybackstreets.com/culinary-walks/shanghai/

Side Trips. There are a few cities in the Yangtze delta that are worth visiting, such as Suzhou and Hangzhou, about 30 and 60 minutes away by rail, respectively. You can always look for a bus or tour service, although rail is good option, connecting into the metro at both cities. Suzhou is a compact medieval city better suited to a day trip, while Hangzhou and it’s famous lake and forested hill park are more for an overnight stay.

Closer in is the canal town of Zhujiajiao, located in the western outskirts of the city facing Lake Dianshan, at the metro stop of the same name.

Logistics. I stayed at the Mansion Hotel (Xinle and Xiangyang Roads, Jing’an) and the Jing’an Campanile (425 Wulumuqi North Road), in the French Concession and Jing’an areas, respectively. Both have proximity to the metro which is worthwhile here. The Mansion Hotel is a one of a set of smaller hotels restoring pre-war Shanghai mansions, here designed by French architects in 1932 for a Shanghai syndicate leader and opened in 2007.

Airports. Shanghai is served by two airports – Pudong (PVG), the newer principal international gateway located east of the city on the coast; and Hongqiao (SHA), the original secondary airport located west of the city. Both have Metro stations and are about 60 and 45 minutes from People’s Square respectively. Pudong is also served by a fast (300 km/h) Maglev line to the Longyang Road Station in the eastern suburbs. This may save you some time although as you will have to change to get to the center it may be simpler to just use the metro.

Metro. The Shanghai Metro is an excellent way to get around the city. You can purchase a range of passes at the airport station or at any of the station customer service centers. Apart from individual tickets, there are 1- and 3-day passes or alternatively you can just buy the Shanghai Public Transportation Card which starts at Y100 and includes a Y20 deposit refundable on return of the card. Note that the metro stations are quite large and also have a security check (including bag x-ray machine). As to cab and ride hailing alternatives, note that Uber does not operate in China – you can try the main Chinese provider, Didi Chuxing, but check online for the latest as far as obtaining an English version of the app. Logistically, note that all metro entrances have a security checkpoint (with baggage x-ray so don’t carry a bag unless necessary) before the ticket barriers.

Rail. China’s high-speed rail system is comfortable, fast, cost-effective and well worth trying. The two main issues you should factor in include the high passenger volume it manages in a country of 1.4 billion people, and the airport-style security requirements at rail stations. This means you need to plan your journey and factor in time beforehand. Many trains are 100% occupied so unless you don’t mind a “standing” ticket, you should book in advance: trip.com is a useful website. Secondly, you will need your passport to buy or pick up your ticket, after which you will go through a security check (including baggage x-ray) where you will present your ticket and passport. The ticket is scanned again when you enter the platform via the boarding gate. If you book for a certain departure time, there will be a specific departure gate that usually open about 15 minutes pre-departure. If you allow 15 minutes to buy or pick up your ticket from the ticket office queue (there are self service machines with only Chinese language access), 15 minutes to enter the station, pass security and navigate to your gate, and then assume you get in line at the gate 15 minutes pre-departure, for your first time I would allow arriving at the station at least 45 minutes pre-departure. At post-journey arrival, at the larger stations you are sent through a separated (from the departures) arrivals level and put out into a pre-security area.

Shanghai has four rail stations, the more central Shanghai Rail Station, Hongqiao (out west near the airport), the South and West stations. Note that the ticket office at the central station is in a separate building across from the main entrance. At Hongqiao, the ticket office is post-security in the main departures hall. The ticket offices are typically busy however the lines move quite fast.

Your Chinese Language Skills. Lack of Mandarin Chinese language skills is not much of an issue; all public signs are bilingual Chinese/English – even the metro ticket vending machines have an “English” button on their touchscreen displays. Since China’s schools have had English language training from about 8 years of age for some time now, English is more commonly spoken to some extent.  However, you should still either pick up a basic language guide or go to the many Mandarin Chinese language Youtube offerings in advance of the trip.

Stuck for a Gift? The First Food Hall (720 Nanjing Road East) is worth going to for a one-stop that covers Chinese products. A four-storey supermarket and food court, it has the feel of something from the Communist era and so is worth going to. Nanjing Road East is the main shopping street, pedestrianized east of People’s Square.

Craft Beer. Craft beer has reached China, or at least it’s more expat and overseas travelled populations, and it’s worth trying. Not surprisingly, the main providers are mostly in the French Concession area and you should focus on:

Boxing Cat Brewery (82 Fu Xing Road West and (under refit in July 2019) 521 Fu Xing Middle Road. My favorite I have to say, with the very floral and moderately bitter Sucker Punch pale ale, the very solid TKO west coast IPA and the excellent King Louie imperial stout.

Liquid Laundry (Kwah Centre 2/F, 1028 Huaihai Middle Road). Gastropub owned by Boxing Cat and with a solid beer menu including other beers and their own line. Good pale ales and IPAs.

Shanghai Brewing Company (15 Dongping Road). Decent craft beer selection.

Stone Brewing Tap Room (1107 Yu Yuan Road). Not entirely local as the San Diego area brewery expands globally, but worth supporting.

Visas and Visa-Free Transit. You usually require a visa to enter China, however certain cities, including Shanghai, permit visa-free entry for transit purposes (i.e. traveling between two different countries) with up to 24, 72 or 144-hour visit periods, for citizens of 53 countries. Here is a useful summary of the conditions and you should check latest conditions with the Chinese Embassy or a visa service before you go: https://www.travelchinaguide.com/tour/visa/free-transit-144-hours.htm