Must-see attractions in Shanghai

With its shaded alcoves, glittering pools churning with fish, plus pavilions, pines sprouting wistfully from rockeries, and roving packs of Japanese…

Symbolic of concession-era Shanghai, the Bund was the city’s Wall Street, a place of feverish trading and fortunes made and lost. Originally a towpath for…

One of Shanghai’s few active Buddhist monasteries, this temple was built between 1918 and 1928. The highlight is a transcendent Buddha crafted from pure…

China’s tallest building dramatically twists skywards from its footing in Lujiazui. The 121-storey, 632m-tall, Gensler-designed Shanghai Tower topped out…

Tianzifang and Xintiandi are based on a similar idea – an entertainment complex housed within a warren of lòngtáng (弄堂, alleyways). Unlike Xintiandi,…

With its own namesake metro station, Xintiandi has been a Shanghai icon for over a decade. An upmarket entertainment and shopping complex modelled on…

This must-see museum escorts you through the craft of millennia and the pages of Chinese history. It's home to one of the most impressive collections in…

Shanghai may be known for its glitz and glamour, but it's got an edgy subculture too. The industrial M50 art complex is one prime example, where galleries…

With the original temple dating back to AD 1216, the much-restored Jing'an Temple was here well before all the audacious skyscrapers and glitzy shopping…

This 468m-tall globe-on-a-tripod tower is the most iconic contemporary building in the city, and its image is omnipresent around town – from postcards to…

It's not quite on the same scale as Washington, DC's Smithsonian, but this sleek space is nevertheless as comprehensive as it is entertaining and…

Originally opened as the Shanghai Race Club in 1934, and having undergone several incarnations since, this iconic building now houses the Shanghai History…

Set over five levels, this modern museum covers Shanghai's urban planning history, tracing its development from swampy fishing village to modern-day…

This offbeat and macabre museum over three floors details how the Chinese authorities keep control. Display cases depict the illicit activities local cops…

Housed in the magnificent former Royal Asiatic Society building (1932) – once Shanghai's first museum – this world-class gallery behind the Bund focuses…

Design junkies and history buffs will love this vast collection of original posters from 1950s, ’60s and ’70s China, stored in the basement of a…

Designed by renowned Japanese architect Ando Tadao, the Aurora Museum is set over six floors of the Aurora building and houses a stunning collection of…

Disney has magicked-up a spectacular theme park in Shanghai, offering a subtly Chinese take on Mickey and Co. Six themed areas encircle Disney’s biggest…

One of the M50 art precinct's most creative, thought-provoking, interactive and engaging galleries is island6. Artist Liu Dao showcases his work and that…

If you tire of Shanghai's incessant quest for modernity, this tiny town is only a hop, skip and metro ride away. An ancient settlement that prospered…