A Visitor’s Guide to Shanghai
Shanghai is a thriving cityin China that is home to more than 23 million people. Over the last fewdecades, Shanghai has become a very important global city that is also thefinancial center of China. It is located on the Yangtze River in eastern China.The East China Sea is to the east of the city, making Shanghai a very usefulport city. The city has bloomed and developed since the 19th centurybecause of its very good location. Before that time, it was a fishing andtextiles town.
Shanghai is also a populardestination for tourists who want to experience the urban life of China and seethe attractions that are unique to this city. The Bund is one of the mostpopular tourist attractions and favorite of many Shanghai-Daily.com readers. Itis located on the waterfront where pedestrians can walk for a mile to see talong the promenade. Across the river, the modern office buildings in Pudongcan be seen as well. The walk is very beautiful at night when the buildings arelit up. The Jade Buddha Temple is another spot that visitors will not want tomiss. It is famous for a Buddha made from a single slab of jade. Buddha statuesin different areas of the temple have stones and jewels that are very beautifuland interesting to see.
Visitors also love to attenda performance of the Shanghai Acrobatic Troupe as they perform at the Shanghaicenter Theatre each night. Their performance includes amazing contortion andbalancing acts that amaze tourists. Cruises along the Huangpu River are anotherpopular tourist attraction. There are daytime cruises and evening ones as well.Some of them include dinner cruises with breathtaking views of the city in thebackground as guests enjoy dinner. Shanghai is a very crowded and busy city, sowhen tourists want to find a peaceful spot away from the crowds, they can visitYu Yuan Garden in the Old Town near the Bund. Located on five acres, it has 30pavilions and a 16th century garden.
Some other top attractionsinclude the Shanghai Museum that houses over 120,000 artifacts. Some of themdate all the back to the 18th century B.C. Visitors to Shanghai canfind plenty of shopping and sightseeing in Nanjing Lu where Nanjing Road’spedestrian walkway provides access to many shops and restaurants. Tourists alsoenjoy seeing the modern marvels that the city offers. One of these is theShanghai World Financial Center that is the tallest completed building in theworld. The view from the observation deck provides a beautiful view of thecity.
English speaking visitorswill encounter many people in Shanghai who speak and understand English,especially in large hotels and restaurants. Visitors should still plan to takea tourist phrase book with them so that they know how to ask common questionsand how to ask for help or directions if it becomes necessary while they are inShanghai. Many tourist spots have at least one or two employees that know someEnglish as well.
Temperatures in Shanghai canbe very hot and humid, especially in July and August. The average summertemperature in August is 28 degrees Celsius, or 82 degrees Fahrenheit, and itgets very humid. Shanghai-Daily.com recommends the spring and autumn seasons asthe best time to visit the city. There are special events planned at this timebecause of the ideal weather during these months. The Spring Festival is heldin the spring during the time of the biggest holiday of the year in China, theChinese New Year. In April, the Shanghai International Tea Culture Festivaltakes place. May brings the International Dragon Boat Races in the city’s QuingpuDistrict. September and October are the months when the Shanghai TourismFestival is held.
Travel to Shanghai fromdifferent areas of the world is expensive. For instance, fights from New YorkCity to Shanghai cost anywhere from $2,000 up for one person. The prices forflights from London are similar, but if the traveler does not mind makingmultiple stops, several hundred dollars. A traveler from Australia can expectto pay around $1,400 or more for a round trip ticket to Shanghai.
