Must-see attractions in Shanghai

  • Top Choice
    Yuyuan Gardens & Bazaar

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

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    The Bund

    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…

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    Jade Buddha Temple

    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…

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    Shanghai Tower

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

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    Tianzifang

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

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    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…

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    Shanghai Museum

    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…

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    M50

    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…

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    Jing'an Temple

    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…

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    Oriental Pearl TV Tower

    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…

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    Shanghai Natural History Museum

    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…

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    Shanghai History Museum

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

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    Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Hall

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

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    Shanghai Museum of Public Security

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

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    Rockbund Art Museum

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

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    Propaganda Poster Art Centre

    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…

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    Aurora Museum

    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…

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    Shanghai Disneyland

    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…

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    island6

    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…

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    Qībǎo

    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…