West Shanghai

Sights

Eating

Drinking & Nightlife

Entertainment

Shopping

Sports & Activities

West Shanghai

Neighbourhood Top Five

1Squeeze into the narrow alleyways of old Qibao for flavours of traditional China.

2Take in a modern-art exhibit at the often overlooked Minsheng Art Museum.

3Rock out at Yuyintang, one of Shanghai’s premier music venues.

4Get lost in the park-like expanse of the Shanghai Zoo.

5Sample countless varieties of tea at Tianshan Tea City.

Explore: West Shanghai

West Shanghai is far more a residential and business zone than a tourist drawcard, though that’s not to say you should immediately scratch it from your itinerary. Enveloping a huge swathe of land, it’s divided into two main districts (Changning and Minhang) and is the site of the Hongqiao airport and Hongqiao Railway Station (Shanghai’s high-speed rail link), as well as the ancient waterside town of Qibao.

Minhang runs along the southern and western borders of Changning district, which includes well-known neighbourhoods such as the middle-class and expat enclave of Gubei and Hongqiao airport. West Shanghai was once countryside and a playground for the rich to retreat to at weekends, and some of the city’s largest parks are found here. The old Sassoon country estate is now the Cypress Hotel, while the Shanghai Zoo sits on what was once the British Golf Club.

Parents with kids should investigate the entertainment options here: in addition to the zoo and other pockets of green space, you’ll also find an aquarium and fun-filled water park.

Local Life

ASnacks From stinky tofu and squid on a stick to sweet black-sesame-paste dumplings, Qibao has you – and the rest of Shanghai – covered.

AGreen space Escape the relentless concrete sprawl in Zhongshan Park, the Song Qingling Mausoleum or Shanghai Zoo.

AModern art Stop by Red Town for private art galleries and one of the city’s top art museums.

Getting There & Away

AMetro Lines 2 and 10 run east–west through the area (line 10 is more central), converging at Hongqiao airport (Terminal 2) and Hongqiao Railway Station. Lines 3 and 4 mirror each other, running north–south. Line 9 is to the south, passing through Qibao and terminating at Songjiang.

Lonely Planet’s Top Tip

Come weekends, the main sights – Qibao and the Shanghai Zoo – are absolutely teeming with people, so unless you enjoy crowds and sharp elbows, try to plan your visit for a weekday.

Best Places to Eat

A1221

ABainian Longpao

AHongmei Road Entertainment Street

ABellagio Cafe

ACarrefour

Best Shopping

ATianshan Tea City

AHenry Antique Warehouse

AHongqiao International Pearl City

Best Sports & Activities

AMingwu International Kungfu Club

ADino Beach

AMandarine City

TOP SIGHT

Qibao

FENG WEI PHOTOGRAPHY / GETTY IMAGES ©

When you tire of Shanghai’s incessantly urban overture, tiny Qibao is a mere hop, skip and metro ride away. An ancient settlement that prospered during the Ming and Qing dynasties, it’s littered with historic traditional architecture, threaded by small, busy alleyways and cut through by a picturesque canal. If you can tolerate crowds, Qibao brings you the flavours of old China along with doses of entertainment and some fantastic snacking opportunities. Avoid weekends, when the narrow lanes are gridlocked.

Don’t Miss

ACotton Textile Mill

ABei Dajie souvenirs

ANan Dajie snacks

Practicalities

A

A GOOGLE MAP

A2 Minzhu Rd, Minhang district; 2

Aadmission high/low season ¥45/30

Ahsights 8.30am- 4.30pm

AmQibao

Sights

Nine sights are included in the through ticket, or you can skip the ticket and pay ¥5 to ¥10 per sight instead. The best include the Cotton Textile Mill, Old Trades House (a waxworks museum) and the Shadow Puppet Museum, where you can catch performances from 1pm to 3pm Wednesdays and Sundays. Half-hour boat rides (per person ¥10) slowly ferry passengers from Number One Bridge to Dongtangtan and back, from 8.30am to 5pm. The 1866 Catholic Church ( 50 Nanjie), adjacent to a convent off Qibao Nanjie, is south of the canal.

Shopping & Snacking

Wander along Bei Dajie north of the canal, for small shops selling fans, jewellery and wooden handicrafts. Excellent crab dumplings await at Bainian Longpao (look for the queue) by the main bridge. South of the canal, Nan Dajie has every Chinese snack under the Shanghai sun: No 26 cooks up sweet tang yuan dumplings, which steam from bowls, and No 9 is a traditional teahouse with Chinese storytelling performances (admission plus pot of tea ¥2; from 12.30pm to 2.30pm). Beggar's chicken (¥28) can be found at several spots, including No 12. Also look out for candy floss, glazed strawberries on a stick, jujubes, chestnuts, white rabbit sweets and Qibao spirits (0.5L should set you back ¥22).

1Sights

1Changning & Gubei

Minsheng Art MuseumMUSEUM

(Minsheng Xiandai Meishuguan MAP GOOGLE MAP ; www.minshengart.com; 570 West Huaihai Rd; 570 admission ¥20; h10am-6pm Tue-Sun; mHongqiao Rd)

Although sponsored mainly by the Minsheng Bank, this edgy art space also counts the Tate, Centre Pompidou, MoMA and Guggenheim among its partners, so it should come as no surprise that the exhibits (about three per year) are generally excellent. Adding to its street cred is artistic director Zhou Tiehai, one of Shanghai’s most well known artists.

Red TownGALLERY

(Hong Fang MAP GOOGLE MAP ; www.redtown570.com; 570 West Huaihai Rd; 570 h10am-5pm Tue-Sun; mHongqiao Rd)F

The No 10 Steel Factory has come to life again with an enormous display of large-scale sculpture pieces dotting the lawn, offices and studios of this creative cluster. While the majority of the premises is taken over by the so-so Shanghai Sculpture Space, there are a couple of other private galleries here, as well as Red Town’s main highlight, the Minsheng Art Museum.

Song Qingling MausoleumMAUSOLEUM

(Song Qingling Lingyuan MAP GOOGLE MAP ; %6474 7183; 21 Songyuan Rd; 21 adult/student ¥20/10; h9am-5pm, last entry 4.30pm; mSongyuan Rd)

Despite the hard-edged communist layout, this green park is good for a stroll. Song Qingling, wife of Dr Sun Yatsen (co-founder of the Republic of China), is interred in a low-key tomb here. She is memorialised in the Song Qingling Exhibition Hall (Song Qingling Chenlieguan) straight ahead from the main entrance, which resembles a Chinese imperial tomb. Among the displays of Song memorabilia (including her black qipao or Chinese-style dress) is a photograph of Marxist Westerners reading from Mao’s Little Red Book back in the day when it was cool.

The international cemetery (MAP GOOGLE MAP ; cnr Hongqiao & Songyuan Rds) here also contains a host of foreign gravestones, including those of Jewish, Vietnamese and Western settlers of Shanghai.

Zhongshan ParkPARK

(Zhongshan Gongyuan GOOGLE MAP ; 780 Changning Rd; 780 h6am-6pm; c; mZhongshan Park)

Called Jessfield Park by the British and today named after 'Father of the Nation' Sun Zhongshan (Sun Yatsen), this interesting park is located in the northeast, in the former ‘Badlands’ area of 1930s Shanghai.

Liu Haisu Art GalleryMUSEUM

(Liu Haisu Meishuguan MAP GOOGLE MAP ; %6270 1018; 1660 Hongqiao Rd; 1660 h9am-4pm Tue-Sun; mShuicheng Rd)F

This hulking gallery exhibits works of the eponymous painter, and also hosts visiting exhibitions.

Changfeng Ocean WorldAQUARIUM

(Changfeng Haidi Shijie GOOGLE MAP ; %6233 8888; www.oceanworld.com.cn; Gate No 4, Changfeng Park, 451 Daduhe Rd; 4514 adult/child ¥160/110; h9am-5pm; c; mLoushanguan Rd, then taxi)

Adults may find this subterranean aquarium dank, dingy and dear, but the little people will adore the clownfish and shark tunnel. There are performances every half-hour.

1Hongqiao Airport Area

Qibao

Shanghai ZooZOO

(Shanghai Dongwuyuan MAP GOOGLE MAP ; %6268 7775; www.shanghaizoo.cn; 2381 Hongqiao Rd; 2381 adult/child ¥40/20, tour buggy trips ¥15; h6.30am-6pm Apr-Sep, to 5pm Oct-Mar; c; mShanghai Zoo)

On the grounds of a former golf course, this is one of China's greenest and most pleasant zoos, and makes for a great day with the kids, especially if the sun's out. There’s a decent selection of animals – from woolly twin-humped Bactrian camels to spindly legged giraffes, lots of different monkeys and giant pandas – but some of their enclosures are a bit grim. Shanghai folk flock here for one of the city’s best-tended acreages of grass.

Picnic-goers dive onto the lawns for a spot of sun, while electric tour buggies whirr along shaded paths every 10 to 15 minutes. The whole menagerie is navigable on foot with a map from the information kiosk at the entrance or by following the signs.

Not far from the zoo, in the grounds of the Cypress Hotel, is the former Sassoon Mansion, now building 1. You can take a peek at the exterior, but there’s not much left to see.

1 Eating

Changning & Gubei

Bi Feng TangDIM SUM

( MAP GOOGLE MAP ; %6208 6388; 37 South Shuicheng Rd; 37 dim sum ¥17-22; mShuicheng Rd)

This popular branch of the bustling chain is an excellent choice for consistently good Cantonese and dim sum dishes.

CarrefourSUPERMARKET

(Jialefu MAP GOOGLE MAP ; %6278 1944; www.carrefour.com.cn; 268 South Shuicheng Rd; 268 h7.30am-10pm; mShuicheng Rd)

This French supermarket chain is the epicentre of Gubei, and you can find everything from wine and cheese to cheap bikes and crockery. Also here is a popular food court, with a bakery and branches of Wagas and Food Republic.

o1221SHANGHAINESE

(Yi Er Er Yi; MAP GOOGLE MAP ; %6213 6585; 1221 West Yan’an Rd; 1221 dishes from ¥26)

No one has a bad thing to say about this dapper expat favourite, and rightly so: it has never let its standards dip over the years. Meat dishes start at ¥50 for the beef and dough strips (youtiao), and the plentiful eel, shrimp and squid dishes cost around twice that. Other tempting fare includes the roast duck and braised pork.

Things are backed up by a four-page vegetarian menu, including the sweet-and-sour vegetarian spare ribs, which are out of this world. The pan-fried sticky rice and sweet bean paste (from the dim-sum menu) makes a good dessert. It’s also worth ordering the eight-fragrance tea just to watch it served in spectacular fashion out of 60cm-long spouts. The setting (tucked away in an alley) is white table cloths, cream walls and brown leatherette furniture. Service is fantastic. Reserve. There's no nearby public transport; take a taxi.

Bellagio CafeCHINESE

(Lugang Xiaozhen MAP GOOGLE MAP ; %6270 6866; 101 South Shuicheng Rd; 101 dishes ¥29-69; h11.30am-2am; mShuicheng Rd)

This popular branch of the Taiwanese restaurant draws crowds of Taiwan expats for its sanbeiji (three-cup chicken), fried bean curd and shaved-ice desserts.

Hongqiao Airport Area

oBainian LongpaoDUMPLINGS

( 15 Bei Daijie, Qibao; 15 dumplings from ¥15; h6.30am-8.30pm; mQibao)

This tiny spot at the foot of Qibao’s main bridge has as many dumpling makers in the kitchen as it does seats. But pay no mind to the cramped premises, as these are by far and away the best xiaolongbao (little steamer buns) on the block. Dumpling fillings include crab, shrimp and pork. For takeaway, the slow-moving queue heads out of the door.

City ShopSUPERMARKET

(Chengshi Chaoshi MAP GOOGLE MAP ; %400 811 1797; www.cityshop.com.cn; 3211 Hongmei Rd; 3211 h8am-10pm; mLongxi Rd)

For all those imported goodies you just can’t get anywhere else – at a price. Goods can be delivered, too.

Hongmei Road Entertainment StreetFOOD STREET

(Laowai Jie MAP GOOGLE MAP ; Lane 3338, Hongmei Rd; 3338 mLongxi Rd)

This popular strip has a selection of Asian and Western restaurants and bars for those who don’t want to head into town. In addition to tapas, Indian and Iranian options, there are also branches of Shanghai Brewery, Big Bamboo and Simply Thai here.

6Drinking & Nightlife

C'sBAR

(MAP GOOGLE MAP ; 685 Dingxi Rd; 685 h7.30pm-late; mWest Yan'an Rd)

The king of all Shanghai dives, this graffiti-strewn basement warren won't impress your date, but the echoing music and rock-bottom prices guarantee devoted (student-based) droves of drinkers.

3Entertainment

oYuyintangLIVE MUSIC

( MAP GOOGLE MAP ; www.yytlive.com; 851 Kaixuan Rd; 851 h9pm-midnight Tue-Sun; mWest Yan’an Rd)

Small enough to feel intimate, but big enough for a sometimes pulsating atmosphere, Yuyintang has long been one of the top places in the city to see live music. Any Shanghai rock band worth its amps plays here, but you can also catch groups on tour from other cities in China and beyond. Rock is the staple diet, but anything goes, from hard punk to gypsy jazz.

Shanghai Film Art CentreCINEMA

(Shanghai Yingcheng MAP GOOGLE MAP ; %6280 4088; 160 Xinhua Rd; 160 mJiaotong University)

This cinema is the main venue for the Shanghai International Film Festival. The nearest metro station is a 10-minute walk so consider a taxi.

7Shopping

oTianshan Tea CityTEA

(Tianshan Chacheng MAP GOOGLE MAP ; 520 West Zhongshan Rd; 520 h9am-6pm; mZhongshan Park, West Yan’an Rd)

Running low on loose-leaf oolong and aged pu-erh cakes? This three-storey sprawl is hands down the largest collection of tea shops in the city. You probably won’t need to leave the ground level, but you'll find a decent selection of teaware and porcelain on the 2nd floor, and teapots and jewellery on the 3rd.

Henry Antique WarehouseANTIQUES

(Hengli Gudian Jiaju MAP GOOGLE MAP ; %6401 0831; www.h-antique.com; 3rd fl, Bldg 2, 361 Hongzhong Rd; 36123 h9am-6pm)

This enormous showroom, with more than 2000 high-quality antique pieces, both large and small, is a good first stop for antiques hunters. It’s down a lane off Hongzhong Rd in a not-so-obvious location; take a taxi and look for the signs. The Traditional Furniture Research Department of Tongji University is based here.

Hongqiao International Pearl CityMARKET

(Hongqiao Guoji Zhenzhu Cheng MAP GOOGLE MAP ; %6465 0183; 2nd fl, Hongqiao Craft Market, 3721 Hongmei Rd; 37212 h10am-9pm; mLongxi Rd)

Popular with local expats, the 2nd floor of this market has a selection of freshwater and saltwater pearls that is worth a browse. There’s a relaxed atmosphere and you can bargain here. On the 1st floor there are clothes and golf gear; on the 3rd floor carpets and luggage.

Foreign Languages BookstoreBOOKS

(Waiwen Shudian MAP GOOGLE MAP ; 71 South Shuicheng Rd; 71 h9.30am-9.30pm; mShuicheng Rd)

A small branch that stocks foreign-language books and magazines.

MARTIAL ARTS

China lays claim to a bewildering range of martial-arts styles, some of which have either fallen by the wayside or completely disappeared, perhaps due to their exclusivity. Other styles became part of the mainstream and have flourished; Wing Chun in particular has been elevated into a globally recognised art, largely due to its associations with Bruce Lee.

Unlike Korean and Japanese arts such as taekwondo or karate-do, China's individual martial arts frequently have no international regulatory body that oversees the syllabus, tournaments or grading requirements. Consequently students of China's myriad martial arts may be rather unsure of where they stand or what level they have attained. With no standard syllabus, it is often down to the individual teacher to decide what to teach students, and how quickly. It is not hard to find a teacher in Shanghai.

Early morning taichi (taiji quan) on the Bund is one of the classic images of Shanghai. If you’re interested in learning either taichi or one of the harder martial-arts (wushu) styles, there are a number of schools around town offering a range of classes for everyone from kids to adults. There are also aikido, karate-do and taekwondo groups.

2Sports & Activities

Mandarine CitySWIMMING

(Mingducheng Youyong Chi MAP GOOGLE MAP ; %6405 0404; 788 Hongxu Rd, entrance cnr Guyang & Shuicheng Rds, Hongqiao; 788 h7.30am-9pm Jun-Oct; mShuicheng Rd)

Popular outdoor pool.

Mingwu International Kungfu ClubMARTIAL ARTS

(Mingwu Guoji Gongfu Guan MAP GOOGLE MAP ; %6465 9806; www.mingwukungfu.com; 3rd fl, Hongchun Bldg, 3213 Hongmei Rd; 32133 c)

This versatile gym offers bilingual classes in a wide range of martial arts, from taichi and qigong to wushu and karate, for both children and adults. There’s also a shop on-site, selling clothing and weapons.

Dino BeachSWIMMING

(Redai Fengbao %6478 3333; www.64783333.com; 78 Xinzhen Rd; 78 admission Mon, Tue & Thu ¥100-120, Wed & Fri ¥100-150, Sat & Sun ¥150-200, child under 0.8m free; h1-11pm Mon, 10am-11pm Wed & Sun, 10am-midnight Tue, Thu, Fri & Sat Jun-Sep; c; mXinzhuang then bus 763 or 173)

Way down south in Minhang district, this popular summer place has a beach, a wave pool, water slides and tube hire to beat the Shanghai summer heat and keeps going late. But it’s absolutely heaving at weekends. To get here, take metro line 1 to Xinzhuang, or catch a cab from Qibao.

Shanghai Yinqixing Indoor SkiingSKIING

(Yinqixing Shinei Huaxuechang %5485 3248; www.yinqixing.com; 1835 Qixing Rd, Xinzhuang; 1835 per hr adult/child Mon-Fri ¥98/80, Sat & Sun ¥118/100; h9.30am-10.30pm Mon-Thu & Sun, to midnight Fri & Sat; c; mXinzhuang)

The slope is aimed at first-timers so don’t expect anything overly long or steep, but children will love it. The snowboard park is more challenging. To get here take the metro to Xinzhuang (line 1) and then hop in a taxi. Shut at the time of writing, so check ahead.