Business will take me to Shanghai next week. I will be there for a week and a weekend. I will be working during the days during the week and then I have the weekend free before moving on to Taiwan.
What are some of the “must sees” in that part of China?
Should I try to go somewhere else on the weekend like Beijing?
I have spent lots of time in Asia in my life but this will be my first time in mainland China.
TIA,
Haj
Places to see:
The Bund - great view at night
Pudong (Lujiazui) - Oriental Pearl TV Tower, Jin Mao, Super Brand Mall, Pudong World Carnival
Shangyang Market - clothes, fake designer brands, dvds
Yu Yuan Gardens - antiques
Xu Jia Hui - department stores
Nanjing Road Pedestrian’s Walk - shops, great view at night
On the weekend, why not visit some cities right outside Shanghai, like Suzhou or Hangzhou? 2 days might not be enough time to visit all the places in Beijing.
Check out That’s Shanghai for restaurants, bars, clubs etc.
An actual Doper in Shanghai! How cool is that? I was just hoping for someone who had visited there in the last couple of years. I’ll be staying right by the Bund so I should be well located.
I will stay local on the weekend. What’s the best day trip?
Shia shia,
Haj
I recently travelled to China as well. I went to most of these places mentioned.
Maybe herwono can help me with the name, but there was a buddhist temple I visited while in Shanghai that was wonderful. It had a giant jade buddha. Very beautiful.
Have fun hajario!
I lived near Shanghai for a few years. My favorite part of Shanghai was Yu Yuan garden, but I think I maybe just liked it for the cool souvenirs.
If you go to the Xiang Yang Market, watch your bags very carefully. There are lots of pickpockets around. A friend of ours actually got knifed there before they moved all the shops to a new less crowded location.
Hangzhou is 252 km from Shanghai and has a beautiful lake.
Suzhou is only 84 km from Shanghai, but I wasn’t as crazy about it, but then, I’m a lake person rather than a garden person. I thought that Zhouzuang, a town on a water, which is between Shanghai and Suzhou, was much more interesting.
You could do Zhouzhuang and Suzhou on one day, and Hangzhou on another day.
If you stay overnight in Hangzhou, I recommend the Shangri-La hotel, which is a beautiful hotel with beautiful gardens, and is right across from West Lake.
I’ve lived in Shanghaifor the past 5 years. Not a great tourist city as not so much to see. Great city to wander.
If you like temples, go to Hangzhou and see the big one there. Shanghai’s temples are nothing special.
I would highly reccomend an all day trip to one of the canal cities. Zhouzhuang, Tongli or Zhujiajiao (closest to Shanghai but least impressive). Everyone loves going to one of these places. I’ve heard there is a Zhouzhuang to Tongli boat tour, which would be cool.
Another place that you’d probably like is Xintiandi, which is a “new” restored pre-liberation nightlife area. It’s pretty cool actually to check out the architecture.
Hard to recommend more without knowing what you like. Definately one of the river cities and maybe Hangzhou or Suzhou.
Please remember that it will be hot as well.
If you just want to see a temple, then the Jade Buddha is alright. Personally I’ve seen enough temples to last a lifetime.
If you are really into temples, then you really should go to Hangzhou and the Lingyun Temple. Here’s a link: http://www.travelchinaguide.com/attraction/zhejiang/hangzhou/lingyin.htm
This temple was untouched by the cultural revolution under the personal seal of Zhou En-lai. I could be mistaken, but I think it was not damaged during the previous 200 years of unrest in China either. It is considered one of the top 10 temples in China.
I would also highly suggest that one of your colleagues takes you for a blind person massage. Holy sweet jesus. It’s about $5 for an hour of serious massage. You can also get a foot job while you’re at it. If you haven’t had a theruputic chinese massage, then you don’t know what you’re missing. Just so there is no misunderstanding, these a legit massages and not a sleezy sex joint (you can find those too…).
Ah yes, foot massages are great. You should definitely try that in Shanghai.
I second the Lingyun Temple in Hangzhou. There is a good train connection between Shanghai and Hangzhou (advice: take first class).
The ‘water village’ Zhouzuang is nice but very touristic. Tongli is similar, but less crowded.
The Bund (day and night) is a must.
The ‘old town’ is touristic, but has a more (what we think) Chinese flavour than most of the town.