Must see attractions in Shanghai

Although trumped by the adjacent Shanghai Tower as the city’s most stratospheric building, the awe-inspiring 492m-high Shanghai World Financial Center is…

Originally built by the Russian Ashkenazi Jewish community in 1928, this synagogue lies in the heart of the 1940s Jewish ghetto. In 2007 it was restored…

Shanghai's oldest and largest monastery is named after the pipal tree (lónghuá) under which Buddha achieved enlightenment. Trees are decorated with red…

The hulking monolith of the Shanghai Exhibition Centre was built in 1955 as the Sino-Soviet Friendship Mansion – a friendship that soon turned sour and…

The neoclassical Custom House, established at this site in 1857 and rebuilt in 1927, is one of the most important buildings on the Bund. Capping it is Big…

The attractive Jing'an Sculpture Park contains a mix of permanent and temporary pieces created by mainly international artists. The sculptures are…

Adjacent to the Custom House, the Hongkong & Shanghai Bank Building was constructed in 1923. The bank was first established in Hong Kong in 1864 and in…

Like a smaller, more condensed version of the Bund, the pedestrianised, cobblestone Yuanmingyuan Rd is lined with a mishmash of colonial architecture…

The original British Consulate was one of the first foreign buildings to go up in Shanghai in 1852, though it was destroyed in a fire and replaced with…

A huge development for Shanghai's contemporary art scene, this enormous gallery is housed in the former hangar of Longhua Airport and sprawls over 9000 sq…

This pleasantly restored but sleepy street of fine old houses, just off North Sichuan Rd, was once home to several of China’s most famous writers (as well…

The spacious 200 acres of gardens here offer an escape from Shanghai’s synthetic cityscape. The floral displays are truly impressive, especially during…

Particularly photogenic in spring and summer when the trees are in blossom, Lu Xun Park is one of the city’s most pleasant green spaces. It was originally…

Writer Lu Xun's final residence was this three-floor domicile on lovely Shanyin Rd, where an excellent English-speaking guide can fill you in on his life…

Resembling an art deco take on a pagoda, this crystalline edifice is a beauty. It’s essentially an office block with the high-altitude Grand Hyatt renting…

The impressive Liu Haisu gallery exhibits works of the eponymous painter (one of China's earliest modern artists) and displays international contemporary…

This enormous archaeological park is built around the ancient relics of Songjiang and spans nearly three miles. You'll need a day to properly experience…

An excellent museum, this modern hall charts the life and creative output of author Lu Xun with photographs, first editions, videos and waxworks. Detailed…

Sheltering a community of dark-brown-clothed monks from the Chenhai (Sea of Dust) – what Buddhists call the mortal world, but which could equally refer to…

Linking the Bund with People’s Square is East Nanjing Rd, once known as Nanking Rd. The first department stores in China opened here in the 1920s, when…