Best of Shanghai in a nutshell: A Visitor’s Guide to World Expo City

Shanghai was the largest and most prosperous city in the Far East during the 1930′s  and has remained the most developed city in mainland China. In the past 20 years Shanghai has again become an attractive city for tourists from all over the world. The world will once again have its eyes on the city when it is hosting the 2010 World’s Fair, where nearly 200 countries and 70 million visitors are expected.

Leave it to Shanghai to pull out all the stops for this year’s “Better City, Better Life” Expo, the largest fair the world has ever seen.

What to SEE & DO

Shanghai icons
For many it’s the symbol of modern Shanghai. The 468-metre, red-bulbed Oriental Pearl Tower is a spectacular sight from any angle and can be scaled (by lift) for some sensational panoramic views (100-150 yuan, 1 Century Avenue, Pudong, 5879 8888, 8am-9.30pm daily). The Yuyuan Gardens (40 yuan adults/10 children, 132 Anren Street, Nanshi, 6360 0830, 8.30am-5pm daily) is a Ming-era dynasty site with liberal sprinklings of flowers, carp-filled pools and pretty pagodas, while the Jade Buddha temple is delightfully serene (20 yuan, 170 Anyuan Road, Jing’an, 6266 2668, 8am-4.30pm daily). Shanghai’s much-hyped Expo runs until October 31 and although queues can be maddening — the event is expected to draw 70 million visitors — it’s worth going just to see the quirky pavilion designs. (www.en.expo2010.cn).

Culture
More than a millennium of Chinese history is crammed into the Shanghai Museum (free, 201 Renmin Avenue, Huangpu, 6372 3500, 9am-5pm).  For top-notch opera, book a seat at the Grand Theatre (300 Renmin Avenue, Huangpu, 6386 8686, www.shgtheatre.com), or go to nearby Yifu Theatre for performances of China’s myriad regional dance styles (701 Fuzhou Road, 6322 5294, tianchan.com. Contemporary art galleries are sprinkled across Shanghai; try Hongkou’s Duolun Road Cultural Street, an area of restored old houses once home to some of China’s leading literary figures.

Foot work
Avoid it at weekends, unless you want to rub shoulders with what seems like half of China, yet a stroll along the Bund is unmissable. The kilometre-long stretch fringing the muddy Huangpu River is lined with art deco and neoclassical-style bank and consulate buildings that date back to the city’s glory days before World War II. Another fabulous place for a wander is the former French Concession district. Navigating its wide, leafy avenues, you’ll appreciate why Shanghai’s nicknamed the Paris of the East. For an insight into how most Shanghainese live, hit the ungentrified backstreets of the Old Town.

Follow the leader
Scores of tour companies offer boat trips on the Huangpu. Head down to East Jinling Road dock on the Bund, or the Pearl Dock in Pudong but consider a night cruise — when buildings on both sides of the river are lit up. For hop-on-hop-off tours, Shanghai Sightseeing Buses ply 50 routes, taking in top attractions (ticket office and station, Shanghai Stadium, 666 Tianyaoqiao Road, Xihui, 6426 5555). Shanghai’s Jewish history can be explored on a half-day guided tour (400 yuan a person, 6283 9235, www.shanghai-jews.com).

Taikang Lu Art Centre, a treasure trove filled with boutiques, art galleries, wi-fi cafes, restaurants and bar, is a perfect antidote to Shanghai's oversized malls and intimidating skyscrapers.

Where to EAT & DRINK

Cafe culture
A cool place for latte and brunch is in the warren-like lanes of the Taikang Road Art Centre (also known as Tianzifang) — a little community of cafes, restaurants, boutiques and galleries housed in uniquely Shanghainese shikumen buildings (ostensibly late 19th-century and early 20th-century blocks fused with Western and Asian-type architecture). The Kommune Cafe is a hive for an creative, artsy crowd (210 Taikang Road, Luwan, 6466 2416). If you’d prefer tea, frequent one of Shanghai’s 4500 teahouses. De He serves sublimely sweet Golden Osmanthus, a honey-shaded green tea scented with the fragrant yellow flower that usually blooms in autumnal Shanghai (135 West Jianguo Road, Luwan, 5468 1117).

Snack attack
A clutch of steaming, sizzling cheap eats are hawked in and around Yunnan Road, a short walk from Renmin Square. Gorge on skewered chicken, mutton and beef, fluffy pork and vegie buns, juicy meat dumplings and hand-pulled noodle soups before checking out sugar-coated pastries and cakes in the neighborhood’s many bakeries. Rather more high-brow, Peruvian chef Eduardo Vargas’s Azul Viva lounge gets rave reviews for its mouth-watering Spanish tapas with a South American twist (8 Dongping Road, Xuhui, 6433 1172). Issimo serves stylish Italian-themed dishes at the boutique hotel JIA (931 West Nanjing Road, 6217 9000 www.jiashanghai.com).

Top of the town
Touted as the world’s highest restaurant, the Grand Hyatt’s 100 Century Avenue stretches from the 91st to the 93rd floor of the Shanghai World Financial Centre and serves up a sophisticated selection of Chinese, Japanese and Western dishes (100 Century Avenue, Pudong, 6888 1234, www.shanghai.park.hyatt.com). Celebrated Shanghainese fare such as hairy crab and drunken chicken, so called because it’s marinated in local Shaoxing wine, are on the menu at Fu 1039, an intimate Chinese place set in a restored 1930s villa (1039 Yu Yuan Road, Changning, 5237 1878). The newest of many French eateries in Shanghai is Allure, on the 11th floor of Le Meridien Hotel. Bargain set lunches — rustled up by chef Michael Wendling — from 128 yuan, dinners 488 yuan (789 Nanjing East Road, Huangpu, 3318 9999). Classy outdoor restaurants fill the revamped shikumen area of Xintiandi (corner Taicang and Madang Roads, Luwan, www.xintiandi.com).

By the glass
The bars along the Bund are prime places for fine wine and cocktails and attract a suitably sharp-dressed crowd. Take your pick from Glamour (6F, 5 The Bund, 6322 0099, www.m-theglamourbar.com), New Heights (7F, 3 the Bund, 6321 0909, www.threeonthebund.com), Bar Rouge (7F, 18 The Bund, 6339 1199, www.bar-rouge-shanghai.com) or, for the best views of all, Vue (33F, Hyatt Hotel, 199 Huangpu Road, 6393 1234, www.shanghai.bund.hyatt.com). O’Malley’s (42 Tao Jiang Road, 6474 4533, www.omalleys-shanghai.com) is the place to kick-start a night on Hengshan Road, while the Windows bars enjoy cult status (www.windowsbars.com).

Obama Club: Bringing change to Shanghai's nightlife or just more of the same?

Where to Play

Live music
Once derided for its lamentable live music scene, Shanghai now attracts some top performers — those who pass China’s strict censorship rules, anyway. Shanghai Grand Stage (Shanghai Gymnasium, 1111 Caoxi Road, Xuhui, 6217 2426) has hosted the Rolling Stones, Christina Aguilera, Eric Clapton and Michael Bolton rolls into town on June 3. Top DJs hit the decks at M2 Club; John Digweed and Ferry Corsten recently performed sets (4F, 283 Huaihai Road, Luwan, museshanghai.cn). For live punk and alternative music, dive into Logo (13 Xingfu Road, 6281 5646, www.logoshanghai.net). Sax appeal slithers through the smoky House of Blues & Jazz (60 Fuzhou Road, Huangpu, 6323 2779).

Nightclubs
Shanghai’s clubbing scene is in a state of permanent flux, with venues forever coming and going. One veteran still luring night owls is Club Bonbon (2F, 1329/1331 Central Huaihai Road, 2193 9299, www.clubbonbon.com), while the it-crowd flocks to Baby Face (No. 101, 138 Huaihai Road, Huangpu, 6375 6667, www.babyface.com.cn). Revellers hunting Latin exuberance, salsa-themed parties and table dancing should try Zapata’s (5 Hengshan Road, 6474 6166 or 6433 4104, www.zapatas-shanghai.com). A stylish newcomer, the 2000-capacity Obama launched in April with a theme night dedicated to the US president (The Garden Plaza, 2088 West Yan’an Road, Gubei, 6082 5511).

Shanghai's top street to shop has always been Nanjing Lu, where the most modern and the most traditional modes of retailing commingle.

Where to SHOP

To market
For a vibrant, ramshackle slice of Shanghai, head to Dongtai Road Antique Market and nose through dusty, second-hand memorabilia from the Mao era, opium pipes and eye-catching porcelain. Don’t bank on everything being top quality but do expect a raffish atmosphere and plenty of haggling (Luwan, 9am-6pm daily). At the Shiliupu Fabrics Market, talented tailors can conjure up made-to-measure clothing from silk, cashmere, linen and cotton. A business suit should set you back about 500 yuan ($84), (168 Dongmen Road, Huangpu, 10am-6pm daily). Cha lovers should seek out Tianshan Tea Market (520 Zhongshan Xi Road, Changning, 10am-6pm daily).

Go shop
Shiny new malls, overflowing with the latest Gucci and Armani fashions, seem to sprout almost every month in Shanghai. The flashiest is Super Brand in the Pudong district’s ever-growing forest of gleaming high-rises (168 Lujiazui Xi Road, www.superbrandmall.com). Nanjing Road and Huaihai Road are the city’s tried and trusted shopping arteries. If you can handle the crowds, don’t miss the Yuyuan Bazaar, which is chock-a-block with souvenir stores selling teapots, woodcuts, lacquerware, pearls and calligraphy (19 Wenchan Road, Nanshi). Nifty boutique shops are all the rage in Shanghai, with Suzhou Cobblers renowned for its lovely hand-sewn silk slippers (17 Fuzhou Road, 6321 7087, www.suzhou-cobblers.com).

A revamped classic, the Fairmont Peace Hotel, reopens this winter after a three-year hiatus.

WHERE TO STAY

Budget
China’s new wave of youth hostels are great value, with one of the cosiest, the Mingtown Hiker, just a five-minute walk from Shanghai’s People’s Square; dorms are 60 yuan ($10) and doubles only 200 yuan (450 Jiangxi Road, Huangpu, 6329 7889, www.yhachina.com). Bargain alert: Motel 168 has branches all over Shanghai; one in the former French Concession offers rooms from 208 yuan (1119 West Yan’an Road, Changning, 5117 7777, www.en.motel168.com). Fairly frill-less but clean, functional and easy on the wallet, Home Inn has 25 chains in Shanghai; rooms from 169 yuan (400 820 3333).

Mid-range
The towering art deco-style Park Hotel is a relic of Shanghai’s 1930s glamour days; from 1005 yuan for a double (170 Nanjing Road, Huangpu, 6327 5225, www.parkhotelshanghai.cn). Another venerable old-timer sporting a 21st-century facelift, the Astor House Hotel is a stone’s throw from the famous Bund and counts Charlie Chaplin, Albert Einstein and Bertrand Russell among past guests; online B&B specials from about 700 yuan (15 Huangpu Road, Huangpu, 6324 6388, www.astorhousehotel.com). Hedged by some of Shanghai’s coolest shopping and dining spots, the sleek Yun’s Paradise Hotel has doubles from 675 yuan (789 East Fuxing Road, Huangpu, 6335 6666, www.hotelyun.com).

Luxe
Next to the lovely Fuxing Park, the Pudi Boutique Hotel has 52 rooms with dark-hued furniture and funky artwork; from 1577 yuan, if booking online (99 Yandang Road, Luwan, 5158 5888, www.boutiquehotel.cn). Getting high is compulsory at the Grand Hyatt; it occupies the 53rd to 87th floors of the shimmering shard-like Jin Mao Tower, while its Cloud 9 bar has stunning 360-degree views of Shanghai; from 2000 yuan for a double (88 Century Avenue, Pudong, 5049 1234, www.shanghai.grand.hyatt.com). A short taxi ride from Shanghai’s extravagant Expo site, the luxuriant St Regis has doubles from 2070 yuan (889 Dong Fang Road, Pudong, 5050 4567, www.starwoodhotels.com/stregis).

Lash out
A long-time favorite for Westerners and affluent Chinese, the swish, centrally located Portman Ritz-Carlton has doubles from 2000 yuan a night (1376 West Nanjing Road, Huangpu, 6279 8888, www.ritzcarlton.com). The 235 rooms at the new, five-star Peninsula have art deco and Oriental flourishes, while an in-house spa promises extreme pampering. From 3200yuan for a double; the ultra-lavish Peninsula suite — with two bedrooms, an enclosed balcony, private gym and whirlpool — is yours for a mere 85,000 yuan (32 The Bund, Huangpu, 2327 2888, www.peninsula.com). A revamped classic, the Fairmont Peace Hotel, reopens this winter after a three-year hiatus. Taking reservations for stays from September onward, the refurbished rooms start at 2300 yuan (20 Nanjing Rd, 6321 6888, www.fairmonthotel.com/peacehotel).

Business

Etiquette
* Business in China is all about ‘guanxi,’ which, loosely translated, means relationship building. If you build the relationship, the business will come.
* Business attire consists of Western-style shirts and ties. Women should wear conservative suits or dresses.
* Offer and accept business cards with both hands. Cards should be exchanged one by one. Do not deal your business cards to several people at a time, as this is considered extremely rude.
* Address people by their family names only. For example, Mr. Yang or Ms. Wu. Don’t try to inject casualness by insisting that your Chinese counterparts address you by your first name.
* In China, it is assumed that the first person to enter the room is the head of the group.
* It is appropriate to bring a wrapped gift to a business meeting to show you are interested in building a relationship.
* The concept of “losing face” is still alive and well in China, so make sure that no one ever has to in your business dealings.
* Part of business is a large banquet dinner (or lunch) — and many rounds of toasts with baijiu. Do not refuse a toast of a (potential) business partner.

Internet access
* There are four wireless internet service providers in Shanghai: China Telecom’s Tianyitong, China Unicom’s CDMA 1X, China Netcom’s Mobile Office and China Mobile’s E-Traveler.
* Pre-paid wireless Internet cards can be purchased at the business centers of most four- and five-star hotels.
* While several large chains have either axed their WiFi services or have started charging for them, there are numerous cafes, restaurants and malls that still offer free wireless.

Money

* The Chinese currency is the yuan (Y), and is also known as renminbi (RMB, literally ‘the people’s money’). In Shanghai, you may also hear it referred to as ‘kuai,’ an informal term similar to ‘buck.’
* The largest bill denomination is RMB 100.
* Exchange rates in China are fixed by the government daily, so they will be the same at branches of the Bank of China and hotel exchange desks. Other rates are illegal.
* ATMs all accept Union Pay, the local banking system.
* Some ICBC and China Construction Bank ATMs now take Cirrus and MasterCard. All Bank of China ATMs accept the Visa/Plus card system.
* Counterfeit bills counterfeit bills are still abundant in China. Although not foolproof, one easy test is the collar rub. Rub Chairman Mao’s collar and, if the bill is legit, you should feel a raised pattern.

Emergency info

In event of emergency dial one of the following numbers:
* Ambulance: +86 21 120
* Police (emergency): +86 21 110
* Police (traffic): +86 21 5631 7000
* Fire: +86 21 119
* International SOS (24-hour service): +86 21 6295 0099
* ParkwayHealth (expat hospital): +86 21 6445 5999
* Public Security Bureau Division for Foreigners: +86 21 6357 6666
* Shanghai Call Centre (information hotline in English): +86 21 96 2288
* LifeLine Shanghai (free confidential and anonymous counseling, crisis intervention): +86 21 6279 8990

Hot Tips

* Weather-wise, spring (April to mid-May) and fall (late September to mid-November) are the best times to visit. Summers are hot and humid; winters are cold, misty and gray.
* Tipping in China is tricky. Once frowned upon, the practice is becoming more commonplace. Tour guides and bellhops expect tips. Waiters and taxi drivers still do not.
* Shanghai (along with the rest of China) is on Beijing time, which is eight hours ahead of GMT.
* Tap water throughout China is not safe for drinking. Drink only bottled water, which is widely available in stores and provided in most hotel rooms.
* Shanghai’s main varieties of dumplings are xiaolongbao (steamed round sacks with a nob on top), guotie (fried crescent shaped dumpling) and shengjianbao (fried, round balls with a flat bottom). If you get meat (rou) dumplings, be careful when you bite into them, there’s hot oil from the meat inside.
* Restaurants will not serve ice water (bing shui) unless you ask for it.
* The international country code for China is 86. The city code for Shanghai is 21.
* Most public restrooms have squat toilets. Many restrooms do not have toilet paper, so carry around some of your own.
* The electrical current in China is 220 volts, 50 cycles alternating current (AC), so most American appliances cannot be used without a transformer. A universal adapter is useful as wall outlets come in a variety of configurations.
* Call 962288 to reach the Shanghai Call Center, a 24-hour hotline that will answer almost any question you have about the city — in English.

Getting There

By air
All international flights arrive at the ultramodern Pudong International Airport, located about 45 km east of downtown Shanghai. The airport is easy to navigate, with departures on the upper level and arrivals on the lower level.
Taxis, lined just outside the arrival hall, are cheap and convenient. A ride to the Puxi side of downtown Shanghai takes about an hour and costs RMB 140-190. Getting to the Pudong side takes about 40 minutes and costs RMB 100-130.
The are now also two economical way to get to the airport. You can transfer from Pudong is via the official airport bus (+86 21 6834 6612). There are numerous routes to other transportation stops, including the Hongqiao International Airport, which is used primarily for flights within China. Additionally the Pudong and Hongqiao airports are now connected by Metro Line 2 (the green line). It takes a bit more than 90 minutes to travel between the two.
Another way to get into town is Shanghai’s jet-like magnetic levitation (MagLev) train. It’s the fastest railway system in commercial operation in the world, with a designed speed of more than 500 km. Although it’s much faster than taking a taxi, the Metro or the bus, dragging luggage in and out of the station can be a hassle and you’ll likely have to transfer to a subway (Metro Line 2) or hail a taxi to get to your final destination.
To get info on either the Pudong or Hongqiao airports go to www.shairport.com

Getting around

Taxis
For short distances, taxis are a good option. They are reasonably priced staring at RMB 12 and easy to find (except during rainstorms, when flagging one down is nearly impossible). Few taxis have rear seat belts, so sit up front as locals do if you’re alone.
To pay with a transportation card (bought in Metro stations), say “yong ka” before the driver stops the meter at the end of the ride. Say “fa piao” to get a receipt, which has the phone number of the taxi company and ID number of the driver. Taxi drivers do not expect tips.
The color of a taxi indicates which company it belongs to. The most reputable colors to look for are:
* Teal/Expo taxis: +86 21 96822
* Yellow: +86 21 6258000
* Light green: +86 21 96840
* Royal blue: +86 21 96333
* White +86 21 96961

Subways
If you’re in Shanghai for long enough, buy a transportation card from a booth in the subway station. Give them RMB 100, say “mai ka” and they’ll give you a card with RMB 70 on it. Before you leave the city, return the card to the booth in subway station and you should receive your RMB 30 back.
For longer distances, the subway can save time and money. There are currently 11 subway lines in Shanghai, and all major tourist sights are accessible from the first four. Determine your fare by finding selecting you starting and final location on the map at the ticket-vending kiosks. Don’t lose your ticket — you’ll need it to exit.

Buses
Public buses may be the most economical way to get around town, but they are usually hot, cramped and can be difficult for non-Chinese speakers to use. Drivers do not give change so it is good to have a Transportation Card. Some buses have you pay at the driver while others will have a fare collector who sits by the back door.
Pay close attention to your belongings to prevent pickpocketing.

• What to See & Do in Shanghai
  

Top Ten Shanghai Must-See Attractions

Visitor’s Guide to The Bund: Shanghai’s Newly Opened Waterfront Landmark

Modern Architectural Wonders of Shanghai

Exploring the Water Villages – Excursions from Shanghai

• Where to Eat and Drink in Shanghai
  

Taste of Shanghai – A Guide to Shanghai’s Best Food

Shanghai Nightlife and Drinking Guide: Best Bars & Clubs

• Where to Shop in Shanghai

Shop till you drop – Shanghai Shopping Guide

• Where to Stay in Shanghai
  

Top Ten Ritziest Hotels in Shanghai

Shanghai Nightlife and Drinking Guide: Best Bars & Clubs

Being a busy commercial center during day time, Shanghai transforms into a sparkling seductress after dark. Welcome to Shanghai, Pearl of Orient and Paris of the East .

Shanghai has the reputation as the city that never sleeps, as mainland China’s nightlife capital, Shanghai transforms after dark into a sparkling seductress. This is a party town from way back. Yesterday’s opium joints and gambling dens are today’s private members clubs and Giorgio Armani’s. Shanghai has returned to its rightful place as one of the world’s great sin cities – and one gets the feeling that the party has only just begun. Barflies now have a choice of everything from glamorous Art Deco lounges to the seediest watering hole; live rock and jazz can be heard into the wee hours and the dance club scene now employs DJs , foreign and local, to keeping the younger set raving. Welcome to Shanghai by night.

• The Bund and the beautiful

After a half-century of neglect, Shanghai’s iconic Bund waterfront is being dug up and transformed into a luxurious after hours destination. Shanghai nightlife mavens can trawl posh restaurants, cocktail lounges, jazz clubs, boutique hotels, day spas and the fashion flagships dotted between old banking headquarters along the main stretch of Zhongshan Dong Yi Lu, as well as in the atmospheric backstreets. More dilapidated heritage gems are set to be gussied up by top global brands in the years to come. The thoroughfare itself is undergoing renovation for the 2010 World Expo that will see traffic diverted underground and new landscaping along the famed riverbank.

It’s a far cry from a decade ago when restaurateur Michelle Garnaut opened Shanghai’s first independent international restaurant in the old Nissin Shipping Building on the waterfront. Back then, the Bund was a long shot – but M on the Bund proved to be a very popular pioneer. This eminently stylish institution is still one of the Bund’s best, serving contemporary European fare such as its signature slow-baked, salt-encased leg of lamb, accompanied by an excellent seasonal wine list. Downstairs, the pink-tinged Glamour Bar has a sophisticated 1930s vibe and excellent straight-up martinis. It also plays host to a diverse collection of artists, panel discussions, musical recitals and an annual writers’ festival (tel: [86-21] 6350-9988, 7/F, 20 Guangdong Lu).

Five years after M, Three on the Bund opened right across the alley (tel: 6323-3355, www.threeonthebund.com, 3 Zhongshan Dong Yi Lu). The Michael Graves-designed beauty is home to some of the city’s top tables, an Armani flagship boutique and the first Evian spa outside France. This building is where the local cognoscenti start or, perhaps end, their Shanghai nightlife carouse, casually tousled yet immaculately chic. On the top floor, New Heights (tel: 6321-0909) serves Western food with a nod to Southeast Asia. It’s the most casual and affordable option and boasts the best view in the house from the wraparound terrace.

On the fourth floor, Jean Georges (tel: 6321-7733) is the three-star Michelin chef’s only signature restaurant outside New York. Inspired by old Shanghai grandeur, the moody lounge is filled with pony-hair club chairs and eel-skin benches leading through to a luxurious burnished copper and cobalt blue dining room. If you’re not dining on an expense account, try the Nougatine experience nightly from 6-11pm. Seated at white-clothed tables in the more relaxed bar area, you can sample a selection of JG favourites starting at just Rmb58. We recommend the black truffle and fontina pizza. This is Shanghai dining at its best.

The Gothic castle at 6 Bund (6 Zhongshan Dong Yi Lu) is also home to several upscale restaurants and a couple of fun lounges. Our pick is Japanese Sun with Aqua on the second floor (tel: 6339-2779), which is remarkably good value for the Bund. Its adjoining Aquarium Bar has a cool underwater vibe, curtained beds – and sharks. The bijou Dolce & Gabbana Martini Bar (tel: 6323-2277) between the men’s and women’s D&G boutiques on the ground floor is a fashionable spot for a restorative espresso or ‘tini between shopping.

Bund 18 (tel: 6323-7066, www.bund18.com, 18 Zhongshan Dong Yi Lu), in the powder-grey neoclassical former Macquarie Bank Tower, features Hong Kong chef To Chi Hoi’s trendy Cantonese cuisine at Tai Wan Lou (tel: 6339-1188) on the fifth floor.One floor up, Mr and Mrs Bund (tel: 6323-9898) is a show-stopping Shanghai restaurant. Taking a break from the molecular cuisine that made his name at Shangri-La’s Jade on 36, French chefs Paul Pairet returns to his roots offering modern French bistro fare – some rustic, some glammed-up – with over 200 dishes meant for sharing. It is open for dinner nightly and continues as a supperclub until 4am five nights a week. Be sure to book a window seat and save room for the excellent desserts.

Bund 18’s top-floor Bar Rouge (tel: 6339-1199) is party – and promiscuity – central. Designed by Imaad Rahmouni, a protege of Starck, the bar features 33 hand-blown Venetian chandeliers, Sino sirens splashed across the walls and a scenic terrace. Between show-off bottle juggling and setting fire to the bar, the bartenders may deign to make you one of their signature ginger melon martinis. Downstairs, Lounge 18 (tel: 6323-8399) attracts a similar crowd.

M1NT Club’s venues in Hong Kong, Cannes and Shanghai are owned by shareholding members and come with an exclusive members-only door policy. The macho Shanghai club sprawls across a 2,000sqm, 24th-floor penthouse, offering 360-degree views from behind the Bund. It also features a 17-metre shark tank, raunchy pop art murals and shareholders-only hot tubs on the rooftop terrace. A good concierge should be able to get you in. (tel: 6391-3191, 24/F, 318 Fuzhou Lu) an

LAN Club (tel: 6323-8029, 102 Guangdong Lu), which occupies an entire four-storey neoclassical mansion near the Westin hotel, is another highly ambitious mega-venue offering Chinese, French and seafood restaurants, multiple lounges and a small nightclub. Down the road, at the glorious intersection of Fuzhou and Jiangxi Lu, Hamilton House (tel: 6321-0586, 137 Fuzhou Lu) is a trendy French brasserie and cocktail lounge in a soaring 1934 Art Deco mansion. Their marmalade-laced Breakfast Martini is a good choice – at any time of the day.

Just past the Bund, in the historic Hongkou district formerly home to the Japanese concession and Jewish Ghetto, Gosney & Kallman’s Chinatown (tel: 6258-2078, 471 Zhapu Lu) brilliantly references Shanghai’s 1930s “Sin City” days. The burlesque club transforms a heritage Shinto shrine with theatre boxes, hard-hitting cocktails and high-kicking show girls. Open Wednesdays to Saturdays, it’s a bit off the beaten track but there is no cover charge and shows feature New York crooner Frank Brae, Shanghai acrobats and a six-strong chorus line. Good fun.

• Highs and lows in Pudong

Pudong has perked up considerably and some of the Shanghai nightlife throb has moved here. It is steadily becoming a viable option for a good night out. Park Hyatt’s 100 Century Avenue (tel: 6888-1234, 91-93F, Shanghai World Financial Centre, 100 Century Ave, Pudong) is the highest restaurant and bar on the planet, stretching from the 91^st to 93^rd floors of the 101-storey Shanghai World Financial Centre. Despite its high profile, it’s not the least bit highfaluting. Filling the 91^st floor is a very cool and convivial tavern with Western, Chinese and Japanese show kitchens and a 750-label cellar. The à la carte menu here allows you to mix-and-match different cuisines, and highlights top quality produce including seven types of US oysters, Australian Wagyu beef and fresh fish from Tokyo’s Tsujiki Market. The 92^nd floor hosts a jazz bar and quieter Oriental lounge with a small dance floor and ballroom dancing four nights a week, while the uppermost level is a private dining space for 100 people adorned in mod-Nordic style and lorded over by mischievous ceramic mooseheads.

In the basement of the Shanghai World Financial Centre (2/B, 100 Century Ave, Pudong), celebrity chef Salvatore Cuomo’s 3,000sqm upmarket food hall incorporates eight different restaurants including an Italian Restaurant and Grill, Japanese Yakiniku, Crystal Jade dim sum counter and a relaxing lounge bar. Gourmet European grocer Bottega is a great place to pick up picnic supplies.

Perched on the 87th floor of the Jin Mao Tower, Cloud 9, the Grand Hyatt’s hotel bar, offers one of the best views in Asia. Make sure you get a table facing west for views of the Bund, Pearl Tower, and the lights of Puxi; windowscapes of its new, taller neighbor, the Shanghai World Financial Center, are to the southeast. Drinks at Cloud 9 aren’t as expensive as you might think, with prices starting at around ¥75 for a small draught Tiger, while cocktails start at about ¥90. There’s a two drink minimum after 8pm and a 15% service charge.

Tucked away by the riverside behind the Oriental Pearl Tower is Salvatore Cuomo’s original Pudong location, The Kitchen (tel: 5054-1265, Unit D, 2967 Lujiazui Xi Lu), another Shanghai dining favorite. The airy Italian is a great place for sundowner drinks looking across the water to Puxi, and its woodfired oven turns out arguably the city’s best pizza.

Jade on 36 is a restaurant that must be experienced to be believed. Perched on the 36th floor of the Pudong Shangri-La Hotel tower, the Jade lounge/restaurant is simply beautiful. Drinks don’t come cheap but neither does real glamour.. Downstairs, the Japanese institution Nadaman serves teppanyaki and yakitori in a Zen-like setting with sleek granite surfaces and big paper lanterns. Yi Café is buffet brilliance, with 10 show kitchens presenting cuisines from China, Japan, India, Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Europe and North America. (tel: 6882-8888, Pudong Shangri-La, 33 Fucheng Lu, Pudong).

For laid-back happy hour drinks, head to Blue Frog alongside the enormous Super Brand Mall. This popular Shanghai chain offers 2-for-1 house pours daily from 4-8pm, good burgers, free Wi-Fi and a pleasant terrace surrounded by skyscrapers.

Located within People's Park, Barbarossa is a chic bar & restaurant with a Moroccan theme.

• Playtime in People’s Park

Constructing an Arabian palace on historic green space in the heart of the city was a questionable move by Shanghai’s town planners – but the party people aren’t complaining. Deep in People’s Park, on the edge of a still lake, candlelit Barbarossa (tel: 6318-0220, 231 Nanjing Lu) glimmers like a mirage. Step inside to find three storeys of maharajah chic filled with North African antiques and the European trip-hop beats. Food and service can be lacklustre but you won’t much care after a cappuccino-flavoured sheesha pipe on the terracotta rooftop.

The same group has also opened a sprawling club next door to the Four Seasons. Sin (tel: 6267 7779, 23/F, 211 Shimen Yi Lu) lives up to its name with a suitably decadent design incorporating a dance floor, hot pink cushiony nooks and city views from the 23^rd floor.

On the rooftop of the old British Racing Club, now the Shanghai Art Museum, Kathleen’s 5 (tel: 6327-2221, 5/F, Shanghai Art Museum, 325 Nanjing Xi Lu) is an elegant restaurant in a glassed-encased terrace beneath the original clock tower. The food plays second fiddle to the ambience. The Backroom Bar is a charming place for cocktails and the occasional tango milonga.

Also on People’s Square, JW Marriott’s 40th-floor Champagne Bar (tel: 5359-4969, 399 Nanjing Xi Lu) is a top spot to kick back in style and drink in the vertiginous views of the Square (which is actually round) and the city radiating beyond. It’s a good spot to contemplate your Shanghai nightlife options.

Great drinks, design, décor and dining - T8 in the ultra-hip shopping and dining district of Xintiandi is a don't miss.

• Shikumen chic – Xintiandi bars and clubs

Site of the Communist Party’s first clandestine meeting in 1921, the 19th century shikumen neighbourhood of Xintiandi (Lane 181, Taicang Lu) is now a hub for all manner of glamorous delights. If you have the cash, you can’t really go wrong with the venues here – there are more Shanghai dining options here than you can shake a stick at – but some are more memorable than others.

T8 Restaurant & Bar (tel: 6355-8999, No 8, North Block Xintiandi, www.t8shanghai.com) serves global cuisine in a lacquered Zen setting, with an impressive list of boutique wines. If you’re craving Chinese, Xintiandi has two worth trying: Crystal Jade (tel: 6385-8752) and Din Tai Fung (tel: 6385-8378). Casual American bistro KABB has a faithful following and great hangover brunches on weekends.

Fans of Liuligongfang will love Taiwanese owner Yang Hui Shan’s showcase restaurant TMSK (tel: 6326-2227, www.tmsk.com, Unit 2, House 11, North Block).

Perch on a crystal stool at the bar or head up the carved staircase to a sumptuous dining room complete with musicians playing traditional Chinese instruments on a small stage.

The dark, sultry DR Bar (tel: 6326 8008, House 15, North Block) next door is owned by the architects of the Xintiandi development, Ben Wood and Carlos Zapata.

Their minimalist venue showcases design materials sourced in China, from the ink stone slabs to the trio of vodka shooters served in a Chinese “cricket jar”.

Cotton's is popular with many expats for its friendly vibe and quintessential Shanghai setting in a romantic French Concession mansion.

• To the manor born in the former French Concession

Shanghai bars and restaurants have made full use of the city’s rich architectural heritage and many of the city’s finest old villas are now atmospheric tippling grounds.

Private members club KEE Shanghai (tel: 3395-0888, 3/F, 796 Huaihai Lu) occupies the upper floors of twin 1920s French Concession villas just off Huaihai Lu. The club is part of Richemont Group’s luxury headquarters, and sits above flagship ‘homes’ of Alfred Dunhill and Vacheron Constantin. Its classic European restaurant and luxe scarlet lounge adorned with art and antiques, lead out to a colonnaded balcony overlooking a quiet garden. A good concierge should be able to get you in to this posh Shanghai dining venue.

Sasha’s (tel: 6474-66289, Dongping Lu) has been the long-time resident of a big red villa formerly home to the infamous Soong family. The bar offers a relaxed, colonial vibe, pool table, reasonable happy hours and an expansive courtyard with comfy wicker chairs. Steakhouse, Prime, sits on the second floor. Sharing the garden, Mexican cantina Zapata’s (tel: 6474-6166, 5 Hengshan Lu) is still the place to be on Wednesdays – free margaritas for the girls, ’80s house music and dancing on the bartop assured.

Cocktail gem Constellation II (tel: 5465 5993, 1-2/F, 33 Yongjia Lu) is a more refined affair. Taking its interior cues from the roaring 1930s its two floors joined by a spiral staircase are filled with quiet nooks and leather armchairs bathed in the glow of antique lampshades. Immaculate cocktails are shaken by Japanese-trained barman/owner, Kin.  Down the road in a two-storey heritage villa on quiet Anting Lu, Cotton’s exudes warmth, with four open fireplaces, a large garden terrace and  genuinely friendly vibe (tel: 6433-7995, 132 Anting Lu).

A Future Perfect has the style and ambience, and most importantly, good food.

Another alfresco Shanghai dining option is A Future Perfect in the popular B&B, Old House (tel: 6248-8020, No 16, Lane 351 Huashan Lu). A wholesome, organic approach is evident in the recycled decor and a healthy menu of steaks, salads and smoothies. Best of all is the spacious walled garden under a leafy canopy where Panton-inspired cantilevered chairs and a futuristic outdoor bar are strikingly juxtaposed against the original 1930s facade.

South Beauty 881 (tel: 6247-6682; 881 Yan’an Zhong Lu) combines artfully presented Sichuan and Cantonese dishes and cutting-edge designs by Japanese architects SuperPotato. But the real gem is the property’s original 1930s mansion, home to 19 dramatically decorated private dining rooms around a lipstick-red bar. Rooms seat from two to fifty people and there’s a lovely rooftop terrace.

Another excellent option with an Asean kick is Lost Heaven (tel: 6433-5126, 38 Gaoyou Lu). Tracing the folk cuisines of the Dai, Bai and Miao ethnic hill tribes through China’s Yunnan province and into Burma and Laos, the richly spiced curries are served in a suitably exotic villa setting.

Casa 13 (tel: 5238-2782, Rm 13, 1100 Huashan Lu) is a dash of Mediterranean in the courtyard of a heritage Spanish villa. This warm, romantic venue with chandeliers strung from high ceilings serves hearty seafood, roasted meats, risottos and pasta, accompanied by an impressive wine list. The Casa’s owner Eduardo Vargas, is a Shanghai dining powerhouse – among his other popular Shanghai restaurants are Vargas Grill (tel: 6437-0136, 3/F, 18 Dongping Lu), Bistro Burger (tel: 6170-1315, 1/F, Mansion, 291 Fumin Lu) and Osteria (tel: 6256-8998, 226 Jinxian Lu), where the excellent Rmb198 Italian prix fixe menu is complemented by a well-priced wine list.

Catalan chef Willy Trullàs Moreno helms delightful villa restaurant, El Willy (tel: 5404-5757, 1/F, Diage, 20 Donghu Lu). Innovative dishes on the menu here include scallop with ceviche, avocado and crispy shallots, and chocolate coulant with green tea ice cream and tomato cardamom jam. A tucked-away garden hosts alfresco seating and occasional organic farmers markets.

Designer Wang Xingzheng has a passion for Chinese culture and his three bars should not be missed. Yongfoo Elite (tel: 5466-2727, www.yongfooelite.com, 200 Yongfu Lu) is a rarefied members club in the old British consulate evoking the Shanghai of popular imagination rendered in mahogany, old leather, crystal chandeliers and Chinese lanterns. The Shanghainese cuisine is nothing to write home about, but an evening spent draped across a canopy bed in the garden sipping gin-and-tonic and listening to Beijing opera in the background certainly is. The Door, way out in Hongqiao (tel: 6295-3737, 4/F, 1468 Hongqiao Lu), and Xian Qiang Fang (tel: 6351-5757, 5/F, 600 Jiujiang Lu), located in an old theatre near People’s Square, are similarly decadent.

Big Bamboo is Shanghai's best sports bar. Malone's, which attracts a similar if slightly older clientele, is just around the corner.

• A walk on the wild side –  Julu Lu and Tongren Lu

Time to dive into the seed or, at any rate, skirt past it. That’s right. The cheap lipstick heart of Shanghai nightlife, Julu Lu caters to all tastes. Near the junction of Changshu Lu is a row of down-at-heel girlie bars with names like Goodfellas and Badlands and propositions by the yard. However, the Fumin Lu end is infinitely classier. For its jaw-dropping industrial-chic interior and nouvelle Japanese cuisine, book one of the mezzanine tables at Shintori Null II (tel: 5404 5252, 803 Julu Lu). The same group also owns bar/restaurant People 7 (tel: 5404-0707) next door, known for its fun password-protected entrance and trick toilets.

Nearby, an old electronics factory retains its buzz as the well-heeled watering hole Manifesto (tel: 6289-9108, 748 Julu Lu). Be sure to try one of their creative cocktails like the Belgian white chocolate martini. The downstairs restaurant, Mesa, has a good modern Australian menu and fabulous weekend brunches.

For booze, babes and beats, the seedy masses head to Tongren Lu bar street. The most sophisticated of the bunch, Blue Frog (tel: 6247-0320, 86 Tongren Lu) wins points for its slick but super-casual ambience, daily happy hours (4-8pm) and famous 100 shooters. Within stumbling distance, Malone’s (tel: 6247-2400, 255 Tongren Lu) is a beefy American bar popular with the beer-swilling masses for its super burgers, sports and Filipino house band. The top floor of this massive bar has been refitted as a slightly more sophisticated chill-out zone, complete with a country-western crooner. Big Bamboo (tel: 6256-2265, 132 Nanyang Lu) and The Spot (tel: 6247-3579, 331 Tongren Lu) kick on until late with a variety of sports on big screens, bar sports and beer swilling.

Also on Tongren Lu, City Diner (6289-3699, 2/F, 146 Tongren Lu) is open 24 hours. Their hearty portions of all-American comfort food go down a treat after a long night of drinking.

Babyface: Probably the best nightspot to hit up for some Chinese-style clubbing complete with loud thumping music and patrons playing table-side dice games.

• Shanghai clubbing – dance until dawn

Packed to the gills and reeking of parfum and pretension, the enormously popular Baby Face (tel: 6375-6667, Unit 101, 138 Huaihai Zhong Lu) consists of two separate dance areas, a central bar that you’ll be lucky to get to and exclusive mezzanine lounges requiring a Rmb2,500-Rmb3,500 minimum order. There’s a cover charge on weekends, brutish bouncers manning the door and floor, and a largely local crowd.

In Fuxing Park (2 Gaolan Lu), Muse at Park 97 (tel: 5383-2328) and club Guandii (tel: 3308-0725) attract a glittery Chinese crowd – don’t forget your dice and aviator specs. Velvet Lounge (tel: 5403-2976, Bldg 3-4, 913 Julu Lu) is a favourite late-night lounge for expats and locals alike with curtained enclaves, a DJ, dance floor and great thin-crust gourmet pizzas.

MAO Livehouse Shanghai (tel: 138160-95660, 46 Yueyang Lu, www.maoshanghai.com) stands for Music Art Oasis, and features a recycled chrome and concrete interior, all-natural cocktails and a grassy backyard chill-out zone. At the end of the night head to the tiny Dragon Club (tel: 5404-4592, 156 Fengyang Lu), which kicks on until 7am at weekends.

When it's all about the jazz, man, the gimmick-free sublte charms of JZ club can't be beaten.

• Mellow mood – all that jazz

Shanghai and jazz are synonymous and two of the city’s best-loved live jazz clubs are within a stone’s throw of each other on Fuxing Lu. The plush JZ Club (tel: 6431-0269, 46 Fuxing Xi Lu) hosts a varied weekly line-up of vocal jazz, Big Band, Latin and Shanghai jazz, headlined by popular Shanghai-based musicians, such as flamboyant Chinese vocalist Coco Zhao and guitarist Lawrence Ku, while the long-running Cotton Club (tel: 6437-71108, Fuxing Xi Lu) is a much rawer venue with a dark, smoky interior and righteous blues.

In a heritage villa behind the Bund, House of Blues & Jazz (tel: 6323-2779, 60 Fuzhou Lu) revives the golden Shanghai Jazz Age, complete with wood-panelled walls, art deco furnishings, fat cigars and stiff G&Ts. The musical roster brings top jazz and blues bands from the international circuit for three-month stints, along with ‘mellow Monday’ gigs by local performers, and jam sessions on Sundays.

Shanghai nightlife waits for nobody, so strap on your beer goggles and enjoy the ride.

• What to See & Do in Shanghai
  

Top Ten Shanghai Must-See Attractions

Visitor’s Guide to The Bund: Shanghai’s Newly Opened Waterfront Landmark

Modern Architectural Wonders of Shanghai

Exploring the Water Villages – Excursions from Shanghai

• Where to Dine in Shanghai
  

Taste of Shanghai – A Guide to Shanghai’s Best Food

• Where to Shop in Shanghai

Shop till you drop – Shanghai Shopping Guide

• Where to Stay in Shanghai
  

Top Ten Ritziest Hotels in Shanghai

Shop till you drop – Shanghai Shopping Guide

Shanghai is often touted as a shoppers’ paradise – however you can expect hours of pavement pounding, foraging and bargaining before reaching true retail Nirvana. The good news for those who persist is that the local markets and boutiques can reward the dedicated shopper with awesome finds at prices to suit any wallet.

Like many fashion capitals, the city’s two main boulevards – Nanjing West Road and Huaihai Road – are lined with some of the best Shanghai shopping malls brimming with luxury brand stores and high street labels. Due to heavy import tariffs, the few found fondling the inflated price tags here are usually wealthy domestic customers. For your Dior, Chanel and Armani – best head to Hong Kong. If you don’t mind Pardas and Calvin Keins, there’s always rip-off Qipu Road Clothing Wholesale Market (168 Qipu Rd) or the back alleys surrounding Shaanxi Road (recommended only for the stout of heart).

Of more interest, are the retail enclaves scattered around the vibrant streets of the former French Concession and behind the Bund. Here, local designers present their wares – everything from handmade silk slippers and modern ceramics to organic cotton baby kimonos – offering trendy updates on classic Chinese styles. Other good buys in Shanghai include Oriental rosewood antiques, freshwater pearls and custom-made garments from the city’s legendary tailors.

Shanghai's top street to shop has always been Nanjing Road (Nanjing Lu). Evern more popular among locals, however, is Huaihai Middle Road (Huaihai Zhong Lu).

• Shanghai shopping – Nanjing West Road and Huaihai Road

High end Shanghai shopping and the glossiest malls are clustered along Nanjing West Road, between Jing’an Temple and Shimen No. 1 Road. Next door to the working Buddhist temple, Jiuguang City Plaza (久光百货 in Chinese, 1618 Nanjing Road) houses Tiffany & Co, Omega and Kate Spade, as well as excellent Japanese supermarket Freshmart in the basement. Opposite this, rising above the interchange of three metro lines, Park Place (越洋广场in Chinese) opened in 2009 offers seven levels of international designer boutique shopping and dining.

Plaza 66 (恒隆广场 in Chinese, 1266 Nanjing Xi Lu, metro line 2 Nanjing Xi Lu Station) is chock full of luxury brands – Louis Vuitton, Dior, Prada, Cartier – on five marble-clad levels. Next door, Citic Square (Zhongxin Taifu guangchang, 中信泰富广场 in Chinese, 1168 Nanjing Road) includes Armani, Bally and Marc Jacobs, while neighboring Westgate Mall (Meilongzhen guangchang, 梅龙镇广场 in Chinese, 1038 Nanjing Road) features Burberry, Ermenegildo Zegna, Coach and an Isetan department store. Between these are more moderately priced fashion outlets, such as Zara, Promod and Marks & Spencer.

Running parallel to Nanjing West Road through the former French Concession, Huaihai Middle Road is populated with European fast fashion flagships H&M, Zara and Mango along with clothing brands from China, Korea and Japan.

In the southern part of the French Concession, Taikang Lu, home to a bunch of art galleries and trendy clubs, also has some fashionable boutiques selling everything from designer handbags to pricey silks.

• Funky shopping around Taikang Road

What started with a few artists and design agencies moving in to abandoned factory warehouses on quiet Taikang Road, has become Shanghai’s funkiest shopping district. The rabbit-warren of cobbled Shanghai ‘longtang’ (lanes) are flanked by traditional stone-gated residences housing an eclectic collection of fashion, furniture and lifestyle boutiques, craft workshops, jewelers, photography galleries and alfresco cafes. Amongst all this, elderly residents of the alleyways steadfastly go about their daily life, which presents eye-popping contrasts often as fun to observe as the goods on offer in bohemian shop windows. Most of the top Shanghai local brands now have a presence here – following are several good ones not to miss.

Nuo Mi (Lane 274, 12 Taikang Road) by young Chinese-American designer Lin Wen creates cross-culture women and children’s fashions in eco-friendly bamboo, cotton, soya and raw silk that feel as soft and slinky against the skin as they look. Urban Tribe (Number 14, Lane 248 Taikang Road) is a rustic-chic collection of fashion, pottery tea sets, handmade silver jewellery and black-and-white photography inspired by China’s hinterlands, Burma and India.

Japanese model turned designer Maki Hayazono’s two-story boutique  Rou Rou (Number 19, 155 Jianguo Middle Road) fuses contemporary streetwear with European tailoring and Asian detailing. The store’s two labels – Rou Rou basics and the high-end Lotus Room – are frequently updated.

Deke Erh Art Center, owned by local photographer and author Deke Erh, Tibetan-themed oils as well as occasional photo exhibits and musical recitals.

Several photography studios include one of the street’s original tenants, photographic historian Deke Erh. The sprawling Deke Erh Art Centre (Number 2, Lane 210 Taikang Lu) presents his images snapped around Shanghai and rural China, as well as books he has published on the city’s fading architectural heritage. Gang of One is a tribute to the rags-to-riches tale of Wang Gangfeng, a former factory worker whose wonderful portraits of characters and street life around China now hang in the Musee de l’Elysee in Switzerland.

The small Duke Gallery (Number 8, 274 Taikang Road) presents a fun collection of contemporary Chinese art and sculpture. Stealing the show is Mongolian artist Guo Qipeng’s ‘Boy Scout’ series of chubby lipstick-red ceramic kid soldiers playing different instruments.

INSH (200 Taikang Road) carries the hip, streetwise fashions of designer Helen Lee,

Two of Shanghai’s most promising young designers, Jenny Ji and Helen Lee, also have boutiques at Taikang Rd. La Vie (Number 7, Lane 210 Taikang Lu), stocks the heavily tailored and deconstructed fashions of Jenny Ji, who studied fashion in Milan before returning to her hometown. INSH (200 Taikang Road, 021-6466-5249, www.insh.com.cn) carries the hip, streetwise fashions of designer Helen Lee, while her namesake boutique, further down the alley (Number 3, Lane 210 Taikang Road) showcases a more mature line.

If your Shanghai shopping diary includes sparkling accessories and baubles, three interesting jewelery stores worth checking out are Marion Carsten (Suite 106, Bldg 3, Lane 210 Taikang Road) by a Shanghai-based German jeweler whose striking contemporary designs use bold combinations of sterling silver, leather and pearls. Red Dawn (Suite 105, Bldg 3, Lane 210 Taikang Road) showcases beautiful baubles by homespun talent Dawn Zhu made of jade, pearl, coral and carved woods. For men, JIP’s smart collection of industrial-style accessories combining edgy tungsten, titanium and carbon fibre are designed by an international team of artists but manufactured in southern China, which keeps the line surprisingly affordable (Number 51, Lane 210 Taikang Road).

In the building that started it all – the International Artist Factory – Nest occupies an airy loft space where nine locally based clothing, home wares and product design companies have formed an eco design collective, championing cutting-edge design, sustainable materials and responsible manufacturing. For cottage industry in action, visit Harvest Studio downstairs (Suite 18, Bldg 3, Lane 210 Taikang Road). Here, Miao minority women from southern China gossip as they hand embroider ethnic-styled cushions and clothing. Also in the building, Cosmos Design (Unit 112, Bldg 3, Lane 210 Taikang Road) features contemporary home accessories by Cosmo Chan made from rich brown zisha ceramics, popular in the Ming dynasty.

When your Shanghai shopping binge gets too much for you, release you own creative energy with easel and acrylic paints at Jam Art Space or grab some excellent pho noodles at Pho No.1 Vietnamese Cuisine (Number 13, Lane 248 Taikang Lu).

About as classy and pricey as you can get in Shanghai shopping, this ritzy development "Three on the Bund" has a Georgio Armani flagship store and other not-too-shabby mouthfuls such as Ann Demeulemeester, Bottega Veneta, Vivienne Tam, Yves Saint Laurent.

• Prime Shanghai shopping – The Bund

The gentrification of Shanghai’s iconic riverfront Bund has seen luxury brands – Giorgio Armani at Three on the Bund, Dolce & Gabbana at 6 Bund and Cartier, Patek Philippe, Ermenegildo Zegna and Boucheron at Bund 18 – move into the former colonial banking HQs.

These are interspersed with local designer boutiques in the side streets, including Suzhou Cobblers (Room 101, 17 Fuzhou Road, 021-6321-7087, www.suzhou-cobblers.com), selling handcrafted silk slippers and shoes in updated colors and patterns, and Annabel Lee (Number 1, Lane 8, East No. 1 Zhongshan Road, 021-6445-8218, www.anabel-lee.com), whose range of embroidered silk decor and accessories are displayed in a museum-like flagship behind a large red door.

Design Republic’s retail showroom founded by Shanghai-based architects Lyndon Neri and Rossana Hu showcases contemporary furnishings from top international designers, along with their own pieces that are currently all in the rage in many of the city’s high-end restaurants (G/F, 5 Zhongshan Road E1). Meanwhile, on the second floor of Bund 18, Gabbiani (2/F, Bund 18, 18 Zhongshan Road E1), sells hand-blown glassware by the designer of those iconic red Venetian chandeliers hanging in the Bund 18 lobby.

• Shanghai boutique shops in the French Concession

For more Shanghai designer brands and eye candy, cruise the leafy streets of the former French Concession that are lined with tiny boutiques by aspiring local talent. The best stretches lie along Changle Road (between Rujin Number 1 Road and Chengdu Road) and Xinle Road (between Donghu Road and Maoming Road). Julu Road and Jinxian Road contain a smattering of interesting boutiques, while Shaanxi Road is shoe heaven if you fit a size 37.

Streetwear fans will love Source (158 Xinle Road), The Thing (60 Xinle Road), Fly (704 Changle Road) and Eno (139-23 Changle Road). Hong Kong designer Joel Chen’s Pursue by Joel (142 Xinle Rd) offers trendy tailored menswear and women’s evening dresses using quality materials. Pursue’s larger location behind Xintiandi (365 Zizhong Lu) has a fitting studio on the second floor that can whip up custom pieces in around three weeks. Also on Zizhong Lu, is an outlet of Studio PI (Post Industrial), where European-trained designer Lu Min creates recycled daywear and unique party pieces with an almost-gothic feel (347 Zizhong Lu).

Shanghai Tang, the oh-so-hip store from Hong Kong fashion maven David Tang, has spawned several branches worldwide since it first opened in Shanghai in 2003. Besides his signature and pricey traditional Chinese shirts and qipao, you can also pick up elegant scarves, photo frames, bags, and candles.

• Shopping in Xintiandi lanes

The refashioned traditional lanes and shikumen houses of Xintiandi, on the corner of Huangpi Road and Madang Road, are very popular with travelers on account of the wide array of high-end shopping, dining and entertainment options. Luxurious fashion brand Shanghai Tang (Unit 15, Xintiandi North Blk, Lane 181 Taicang Road, two other branches: 59 Mao Ming Road; Shangri-La Hotel, 33 Fu Cheng Road, Pudong) features men’s, ladies and children’s apparel, home furnishings, accessories and novelty gift items with a colorful nod to Chinese culture. Exquisite cutting and inspired design are reflected in the high-end prices.

The massive flagship store of homegrown label Simply Life (Unit 101, 159 Madang Road), stocks pan-Asia furniture and house ware, including an exclusive range of hand-painted fine bone china from luxury local brand Asianera. Delightful Shanghai Trio (Number 1, Unit 5, Xintiandi North Blk, 181 Taicang Road) blends Chinese motifs with classic French styling in its range of adorable baby wear, bags and accessories.

Shanghai South Bund Fabric Market has all of Shanghai's best tailors all under one roof. Bargain hard to get a fair price.

• Shanghai tailors for Western-size fits

For those frustrated with the search for Western-size clothing – Shanghai’s legendary tailors can whip up a custom-made wardrobe in a matter of days. Start with a trip to the South Bund Fabric Market (399 Lujiabang Road), where three air-conditioned levels offer vast reams of fabric and trimmings at bargain prices. Bring your favorite pieces and have the onsite tailors sew made-to-measure replicas. Expect to pay approximately Rmb600 for a suit including material and workmanship.

Dongtai Lu Antiques Market, not far from Xin Tian Di, is Shanghai's answer to Beijing's Panjiayuan Market. Dealers specialize in antiques, curios, porcelain, furniture, jewelry, and wood carvings, birds, and nostalgic bric-a-brac from colonial and revolutionary days (especially Mao memorabilia).

• Shanghai shopping – pearls and antiques

Shanghai is close to China’s freshwater pearling areas of Jiangsu province and is therefore a great place to buy these precious gems. Mark this down in your Shanghai shopping diary. Shanghai Hongqiao International Pearl City (3721 Hongmei Lu) is a multi-level pearl emporium. Most of the action is found on the third floor, where vendors sell a wide array of fresh water pearls and semi-precious stones, along with inexpensive crystal and plastic beads. Buy readymade jewelery or create your own custom designs, which can be strung on the spot.

The five-storey wholesale antique market at Cang Bao Lou (457 Fangbang Middle Road) and charming outdoor Dongtai Road Antique Market (Dongtai Road, by Tibet Road) are good places to scavenge for Cultural Revolution memorabilia, Buddhist statuary, art deco furniture and even opium pipes. Although many of the wares are ersatz, this is still great souvenir territory and keen eyes will occasionally spot a genuine antique prize. Bargain hard.

For antique rosewood furniture head to the warehouse showroom of Hu & Hu Antiques in far-flung Hongqiao (1685 Wuzhong Lu). The sisters-in-law Hu have a massive collection of well-restored Chinese antiques and customised reproductions, delivered fuss-free thanks to their fixed-pricing policy and international shipping.

And if all this frantic Shanghai shopping hasn’t left you with an anorexic wallet and swollen feet, then strap on your (probably new) dancing shoes and head on out for a night on the tiles.

• What to See & Do in Shanghai
  

Top Ten Shanghai Must-See Attractions

Visitor’s Guide to The Bund: Shanghai’s Newly Opened Waterfront Landmark

Modern Architectural Wonders of Shanghai

• Where to Dine in Shanghai
  

Taste of Shanghai – A Guide to Shanghai’s Best Food

• Where to Stay in Shanghai
  

Top Ten Ritziest Hotels in Shanghai

Top Ten Ritziest Hotels in Shanghai

For the past decade, Shanghai’s upscale hotels have mostly targeted corporate travelers, but leisure visitors now enjoy a broader array of large luxury and small boutique options. The upcoming Shanghai World Expo is expected to bring in an estimated 70 million visitors and ambitious plans for long-term tourism growth are bringing names like Park Hyatt, Conrad, Jumeirah, Peninsula, Mandarin Oriental, W, Banyan Tree, and Fairmont through 2010, while a small portfolio of design-led hotels is slated to grow and flourish. Location remains the key to which one you choose. Hotels in the French Concession and near the Bund offer the most convenience for tourists. Despite the lofty views, staying east of the river in one of the Pudong’s high-rise hotels can mean taxi rides and inconvenience.

• Le Royal Méridien Shanghai
  

The gorgeous view of Shanghai skyline is only the start of the royal treatment at Le Royal Méridien, the tallest hotel in Puxi, West of Shanghai

With considerable panache, Le Royal Méridien executes its Art Deco–inspired design throughout its 770 rooms, high above People’s Park on central Nanjing Road. Above the eleventh-floor lobby, black lacquer–framed mirrors line hallways, and airy guest rooms have floor-to-ceiling windows. Chic marble bathrooms, plush velvet couches and club chairs, and beds with down duvets and oversized square pillows round out the stylish accommodations. Ai Mei, the Chinese restaurant already known for its dim sum, is entered through a door frame of glass tanks filled with goldfish; the menu at Allure—roasted lobster with risotto, beef tenderloin with goose liver—is worth the culinary detour. Even the spa here caters to a late-night clientele, staying open until 11 p.m., for those who can’t sleep without a signature egg-white, vodka, and cucumber facial.

Le Royal Meridien Shanghai (Shanghai Shimao Huangjia Aimei Jiudian, 上海世茂皇家艾美酒店)

Address: 789 Nanjing Dong Lu, Huangpu District, Shanghai, China
Chinese Address:  上海市黄浦区南京东路789号
Phone: 021-3318-9999
Website: Le Royal Meridien Shanghai

• JIA Shanghai

Best Boutique Hotel: JIA Shanghai serves as your stylish home away from home.

Housed in a renovated 1920s townhouse on hip Nanjing Road, this is wunderkind Singaporean hotelier and restaurateur Yenn Wong’s follow-up to the original Jia in Hong Kong, designed by Philippe Starck. The 55 rooms combine luxe comforts—think plush beds, blackout curtains, plasma TVs, iPod docks, and ceiling-mounted Bose speakers—with trendsetting boutique styling, including artwork by photographer Russel Wong, outsize tubs in gold Bisazza-tile bathrooms, and furnishings by Minotti, Moroso, and Hans Wegner. Each room has a small kitchenette with a microwave oven, cookware, and serving dishes. The two stunning penthouse suites have extra theatrical flourishes, including contemporary art, a sunken circular Jacuzzi, and a shower that converts into a steam room. The chic lobby lounge, where you’ll be served complimentary continental breakfast and afternoon tea, is dressed with giant Chinese bird cages and lacquer tableware. Shanghai’s shaker-makers reserve dinner tables at Issimo, a modern Italian eatery created by Japan-based restaurateur Salvatore Cuomo. This is the place to stay for sophisticated small hotel chic.

The lounge of Issimo restaurant at JIA Shanghai

JIA Shanghai (上海JIA精品酒店)

Address: 931 West Nanjing Road, Jiangan District, Shanghai 200041
Chinese Address: 上海市静安区南京西路931号（近泰兴路）
Opening Date: August 2007
Number of Rooms: 55 rooms and suites, including two penthouse suites
Rate per Night: 2,000 to 10,000RMB
Phone: 021-6217-9000
Website: www.jiashanghai.com

• URBN Hotel

Serene little URBN is China's first carbon-neutral hotel, implementing eco-friendly elements such as solar shades and water-based A/C, and allowing patrons to buy carbon credits.

Tucked away on a side street north of Jing’An Temple, this 26-room design hotel is built around an enclosed slate and bamboo courtyard with calming water fountains. Constructed using reclaimed local materials —such as gray factory bricks, mahogany, and slate—Urbn wears its eco-conscious credentials on its sleeve; the hotel also tracks its ecological footprint and matches it in carbon credits. The rooms, in five categories, are all relatively small but make good use of space with low-level beds and a sunken “lounge” area, complete with hemp cushions on the broad benches and a wall-hung flat-screen TV. Neat in-room design touches include mahogany floors and wall paneling, desk chairs made from compressed cardboard, and under-floor bathroom heating, plus free Wi-Fi and iPod docks. Contemporary Australian-Asian cuisine is served in the ground-floor restaurant, Roomtwentyeight.

This modestly luxe, environmentally-friendly suite was built with recycled materials drawn from dilapidated French Concession villas.

URBN Hotel  (Yayue Jiudian, 上海雅悦酒店)

Address: 183 Jiaozhou Road, Jingan District, Shanghai
Chinese Address: 上海市静安区胶州路183号
Phone: 021-5153-4600
Website: www.urbnhotels.com/urbn-shanghai

• Park Hyatt Shanghai

Park Hyatt Shanghai, world's most vertiginous hotel, is on floors 79 through 93 of the Shanghai World Financial Center, in the Pudong district.

Shanghai hotels are rising ever higher—and top of the pile is this deluxe cloud buster on the 79th through 93rd floors of the 101-story, 1,615-foot Shanghai World Financial Center in Pudong. The Park Hyatt Shanghai can now claim the twin titles of world’s highest hotel and world’s highest restaurant. New York City–based Tony Chi created the interiors to resemble a sophisticated modern Chinese residence, hence the series of gates, halls, and chambers. The lobby itself is on the 87th floor and the spa and fitness center have prime city views from the 85th level. The 174 rooms are an impressive size (an average room is 645 square feet), plus there is 24-hour butler service, a technology concierge, and a walk-in dressing room and flat-screen TV in the bathroom and bedroom. The hotel’s highest highlight is 100 Century Avenue, an integrated three-level fine-dining restaurant (serving Western, Chinese, and Japanese cuisine) and lounge bar on the 91st to 93rd floors.

The hotel's highest highlight is 100 Century Avenue, an integrated three-level fine-dining restaurant and lounge bar on the 91st to 93rd floors.

Park Hyatt Shanghai  (Shanghai Baiyue Jiudian, 上海柏悦酒店)

Address: 100 Century Avenue, 79th–93rd Floors, Shanghai World Financial Center, Pudong District, Shanghai
Chinese Address: 上海市浦东新区浦东世纪大道100号上海环球金融中心79-93楼
Phone: 021-6888-1234
Website: www.parkhyattshanghai.com

• The Portman Ritz-Carlton

Despite some heavy competition, this is still a favorite for many business travelers and world leaders (George W. Bush stayed here during the APEC Conference in 2001).

The Portman Ritz-Carlton was the city’s first luxury hotel when it opened in 1998, on the major shopping thoroughfare Nanjing Lu. The hotel  completed a multimillion-dollar, top-to-bottom face-lift of the guest rooms, bars, restaurants, and facilities in 2008. The circular pale-marble lobby gives way to 610 rooms—request one of the newly renovated ones, which feature gleaming dark-wood traditional furniture, accents of gold and brown, and sliding doors that lend an Oriental air. Guests are spoiled for choice when it comes to dining: There are four house restaurants to choose from, including Palladio, which serves modern Italian dishes in a formal setting. Luxury-brand lovers will delight in the neighboring upscale Plaza 66 mall. Though the hotel is centrally located at the Shanghai Center, surrounding office buildings mean that finding a cab during rush hour can be difficult—hotel guests do get preference in the taxi line, but the queue lengthens noticeably during peak times, from 4 pm until 8 pm.

The Portman Ritz-Carlton  (Shanghai Boteman Lijia Dajiudian,上海波特曼丽嘉酒店)

Address: 1376 Nanjing Xi Lu, Jingan District, Shanghai
Chinese Address: 上海市上海市静安区南京西路1376号
Phone: 021-6279-8888
Website: www.ritzcarlton.com

• St. Regis Shanghai

In the lobby of St. Regis Shanghai, an elaborate alabaster light fixture echoes the tobacco-leaf pattern of the inlaid marble.

Every guest is a VIP at the St. Regis. The amphitheaterlike lobby sets the stage for the most indulgent hotel experience in Shanghai. The 318 rooms in this 40-story red-granite tower—its design lauded by Architectural Digest—spare no expense, with Bose wave radios, Herman Miller Aeron chairs, and rain-forest showers that give you the feeling of being under a waterfall. At 500 square feet (152 sq. m), standard rooms compare to other hotels’ suites. The two women’s-only floors are unique in Shanghai. Butlers address all your needs 24/7 (you can even contact them by e-mail) from in-room check-in to room service, and as part of a new program, they can arrange to escort guests personally to visit local artist studios. The hotel’s location—15 minutes from the riverfront—is a drawback, but the fitness center and 24-hour gym, along with the remarkable Danieli’s Italian restaurant add to this pampering property’s appeal.

Spacious and elegant double-height living room of The Imperial Suite at St. Regis Shanghai

St. Regis Shanghai (Shanghai Ruiji Hongta Dajiudian, 上海瑞吉红塔大酒店)

Address: 889 Dongfang Lu, South central Pudong, Pudong District, Shanghai
Chinese Address:上海市浦东新区东方路889号
Phone: 021-50504567
Prices ¥3,313-¥3,478 ($473-$497/£237-£249) standard; from ¥6,378 ($911/£456) suite (up to 60% discounts)
Website: www.stregis.com/shanghai

• The Peninsula Shanghai

The 14-story luxury Peninsula Shanghai hotel, with 235 rooms and suites, is the first new structure on the storied riverfront Bund since the Bank of China in 1927.

The Peninsula Shanghai, an Art-Deco inspired hotel on Shanghai’s historic Bund, is dressed to impress, from its stepped, faux Deco facade to the grand pillared lobby decorated in cool celadon tones (a string quartet plays on a theatrical balcony in the afternoons) to the restored 1934 Rolls-Royce Phantom II for airport transfers. This is a hotel that makes the most of its outlook over the future-scape Pudong skyline, the Peninsula Spa by Espa features a skylit indoor swimming pool and a layered crème marble terrace, while the terrace of the 14th-floor Sir Elly’s Restaurant has panoramic river views. The pick of the hotel’s five restaurants is Yi Long Court, serving classic Cantonese cuisine in a luxurious chocolate and dark-blue Shanghai Deco dining room with Qing dynasty furnishings. The hotel’s 235 guest rooms, styled in a pale gray-green or cerulean blue, start at a spacious 600 square feet and go up to the 4,300-square-foot Presidential Suite. All have 1920s Shanghai mahogany and ebony furniture. The in-room technology is best in class, with thoughtful additions such as a Nespresso machine positioned at shoulder level, a desktop iPod dock, a 1,000-channel Internet radio, and an in-bath phone system that filters out the sound of the water. Another flick of a switch dims the bathroom lights and turns on relaxing spa music.

The Peninsula Shanghai features 235 generously large guestrooms (44 of which are suites). Ipod docks, free wireles

The Peninsula Shanghai (Shanghai Bandao Jiudian, 上海半岛酒店)

Address： 32 Zhongshang Dong Yi Lu, The Bund, Huangpu District, Shanghai
Chinese Address:上海市黄浦区中山东一路32号
Phone: 021-2327-2888
Website: www.peninsula.com/Shanghai

• Pudong Shangri-La

The Shangri-La Pudong occupies one of the most prized locations in Shanghai: overlooking the Huangpu River, opposite the Bund, near the Pearl Tower in Lujiazui.

With its new 36-floor glass tower, the Shangri-La is set to give its Pudong competitors a run for their money. It may not tower as high as the Grand Hyatt, but this hotel’s gorgeous views stretch across the Huangpu River to the stately Bund and rival those of its taller (and sometimes more fogged-in) neighbor. All of the 950 modern rooms are unfussy, accented with Asian touches such as raw silk throws and pillows. Rooms also have broadband Internet, and satellite TV—just be sure to request accommodation that overlooks the water. Not one but two indoor pools and full-service gymnasiums satisfy the sporty, while those hoping to unwind can enjoy a massage in the Oriental opulence of the Chi spa. Eleven restaurants offer options to suit every taste, but there is no better place for a drink and nibble than Jade on 36, an eclectic fusion restaurant perched on the 36th floor. Though the Pudong location means that during rush hour (4 p.m.-9 p.m.) it can take 45 minutes to get downtown by car, taxis are cheap and plentiful, and those in a hurry can hop on the metro, which is only a five-minute walk from the hotel.

The Pudong Shangri-La boasts a slew of trendy designer restaurants including the luxurious Nadaman Restaurant and Sushi Bar, designed by Super Potato

Pudong Shangri-La Hotel (Pudong Xianggelila Fandian, 上海浦东香格里拉大酒店)

Address: 33 Fucheng Lu, Southwest of the Oriental Pearl TV Tower, adjacent to Riverside Ave/Binjiang Da Dao, Pudong New Area, Shanghai
Chinese Address:上海浦东新区富城路33号
Phone: 021-6882-8888; 800-942-5050
Prices ¥3,050-¥3,300 ($436-$471/£218-£236) standard; ¥3,550-¥3,750 ($507-$536/£254-£268) executive level; from ¥5,150 ($736/£368) suite
Website: www.shangri-la.com

• The Grand Hyatt Shanghai

From its perch on the upper floors of the Jin Mao Tower, the Grand Hyatt Shanghai With Art Deco furnishings and floor-to-ceiling windows has splendid views of the Bund and Pudong

The Grand Hyatt Shanghai takes up the top 34 floors of the monolithic 88-story Jin Mao Tower—the fifth-tallest building in the world—so you can imagine the views: vertigo-inducing panoramas over the city’s skyscrapers and streets, abetted by the ubiquitous floor-to-ceiling windows. (Request a west-facing room for views of the Bund, the Oriental Pearl Tower, and the rest of the Shanghai skyline’s kitschy excess.) If you can tear your gaze from the neon spectacle outside, you’ll find the hotel’s interiors are pretty sumptuous: All 555 rooms have contemporary furniture (lots of glass, lacquered wood, and velvety neutral-toned upholstery) accented by traditional Eastern artwork. The marble baths have multiple-head “shower towers” that engulf you in water and mist; if these aren’t enough of a full-body experience, you can head to the steam baths and hot tubs at the on-site spa. The hotel’s dozen restaurants, bars, and clubs include the Patio, a 33-story atrium where you can listen to live jazz; Cloud 9, on the 87th floor, where the views will make you dizzier than any cocktail; and Club Jin Mao, where you can sample local specialties, such as deep-fried eel with honey soy sauce and braised bean curd with hairy crab roe. While the Pudong location is oriented more for business than pleasure, the Line 2 Metro station is just a five-minute walk away, and a horde of cheap cabs waits outside to whisk you across the Huangpu River to the Old City.

Grand Hyatt Shanghai (Shanghai Jin Mao Junyue Dajiudian, 上海金茂君悦大酒店)

Address: 88 Century Boulevard, Jin Mao Tower, Pudong District, Shanghai
Chinese Address:上海市浦东新区世纪大道88号
Phone: 021-5049-1234
Prices: ¥3,800-¥4,100 ($543-$586/£272-£293) standard; ¥4,450-¥4,800 ($636-$686/£318-£343) executive level; from ¥5,700 ($814/£407) suite
Website: www.shanghai.grand.hyatt.com

• The Westin Shanghai

Perched between the Bund and People's Square, Wesin Bund Center hotel attracts a mixed clientele

Popular with travelers on an expense account, this centrally located hotel—part of the office-heavy Bund Center—is just a short walk from the swish restaurants and nightlife of the Bund. The glitzy atrium lobby features a neon-lit glass staircase and artificial palm trees, while the 570 rooms are kitted out in earth tones, with polished wood paneling and rain forest showerheads in the dark granite bathrooms. A new wing, the Grand Tower, opened in 2007; formerly serviced apartments, rooms here are more spacious, albeit pricier, than in the main building. With so many business travelers passing through the halls, service can feel a bit impersonal and corporate—front desk clerks eagerly push upgrades at check-in. There are three restaurants—we liked the wood-fired pizzas at Prego better than The Stage’s buffet—as well as a fitness center, swimming pool, and branch of the Banyan Tree spa.

The Westin Shanghai (Shanghai Weisiting Dafandian, 上海外滩中心威斯汀大饭店)

Address: 88 Henan Central Road, 3 blocks west of the Huangpu River, Huangpu District, Shanghai
Chinese Address: 上海市黄浦区河南中路88号
Phone: 021-6335-1888
Prices: ¥3,245 ($464/£232) standard; ¥3,970 ($567/£284) executive level; from ¥9,730 ($1,390/£695) suite
Website: www.starwoodhotels.com/westin

• Travel Deals: World Expo in Shanghai

With an expected attendance of 70 million, this year’s World Expo in Shanghai – which runs May 1 to Oct. 31 — will  most likely mean  higher hotel rates in the city. But good deals can still be found.

For the duration of the Expo, Marriott is offering 20 percent off staysof two nights or more, and the package includes two single-day admission tickets. Rates start at 1,120  renminbi (or about $161 a night at 7  renminbi to the dollar). Book by March 31 at marriott.com or (800) 228-9290. Use the promotional code ADP.

Hilton is offering the same discount for any reservation made 21 days in advance at the Hilton Shanghai, through Oct. 1. There’s no minimum stay, but rates start at about $216 a night.

For a cheaper option, the Shanghai Metropole Hotel, a 141-room hotel near the Bund, has rooms from $80 a night. And ChinaHotels.org, a hotel booking site based in China, has rooms for as little as $25 a night.

• What to See & Do

Top Ten Shanghai Must-See Attractions
Modern Architectural Wonders of Shanghai

• Where to Dine

Taste of Shanghai – A Guide to Shanghai’s Best Food

Exploring the Water Villages – Excursions from Shanghai

Many of the Water Villages near Shanghai are picturesque canal towns with original Ming and Qing-era whitewashed buildings, cobbled lanes, humpbacked bridges and interlocking canals.

Shanghai’s World Expo 2010 is expected to be a tourist bonanza, drawing 70 million visitors between May and October. Shanghai being the polluted, hectic, crowded urban jungle it is, it would be a rare visitor who never felt the urge at some point to escape to fresh air, trees and a bit of peace of quiet. The easiest and most interesting places to get to for a day, a weekend or longer are scattered across the Yangzi River Delta.  The nearby cities of Suzhou and Hangzhou are two of the most pleasant in China, and their landscaped gardens and parks will certainly restore your stretched nerves. Both are ideal for a two- or three-day break.

The region west of Shanghai around Tai Hu (Lake Tai) includes some of China’s loveliest countryside. Here you’ll discover centuries-old water villages. Bowed bridges span narrow canals, as traditional oared boats paddle by, creating an almost perfect picture of a way of life long past. A trip to one of these villages will probably be a highlight of your trip to Eastern China.

Be careful which village you choose, though. The tourist dollars that flow in may have saved these villages from the wrecking ball, but they have also changed their character to differing degrees. Those closest to the larger cities can be the most swamped by tour groups. Trekking to an out-of-the-way destination can pay off by letting you find a village that you will have all to yourself.

• Qibao

This quaint little thousand year old town of Qibao is only about about 18 kilometers from the Shanghai city center and is accessible by subway.

For visitors eager to glimpse a Yangzi River delta water village but who are unable to spare an entire day, the ancient water town of Qibao, located in Minhang District a scant 18km (11.5 miles) southwest of downtown Shanghai, makes for an acceptable if not terribly exciting alternative.

Like many water towns in the area, Qibao was built in the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127), but only came into its own in the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties.  Opened as a tourist attraction in 2002, the “old town” (many of the structures are newly built to look old) spans about 2 square kilometers and has the usual narrow alleyways, arched bridges, and canals. Unfortunately, it’s also surrounded by a new town and many ugly modern concrete structures.

Both a blessing and a curse, Qibao’s proximity to downtown Shanghai means that it can be easily reached, but it is also overrun with tourists, making a relaxed leisurely visit (the ideal way to see a water town) all but impossible. From downtown Shanghai, you can take Tourist Bus A (¥2/25¢, 1 hr.) from the Shanghai Sightseeing Bus Center at the Shanghai Stadium to Qibao.

Alternatively, take Metro Line 1 to Xinzhuang Station and walk 200 meters to the intersection of Humin Lu and Qixin Lu; take Bus 91 in the Beixinjing direction and get off at Qibao Zhen station. A taxi from downtown Shanghai will cost around ¥70/$9. There is no longer an admission fee to the old town, only separate admissions fees (¥5-¥10/60¢-$1.25) at select sights.

• Zhouzhuang

Many of Zhouzhuang's charming restaurants evoke the past with traditional music (Suzhou Pingtan: storytelling and singing in local dialect) and decor.

The most famous of the water villages is undoubtedly Zhouzhuang. Its fame is partly due to its proximity, just 45 minutes from Suzhou and an hour away from Shanghai. As a result, more than 2.5 million visitors head to the water village of Zhouzhuang each year to catch a glimpse of old China. Its charm is reduced by the sheer number of tourists who elbow their way through the streets. Next to the “ancient memorial archway,” which isn’t ancient at all, is a ticket window. The steep entrance fee of Y100 gets you into the water village-turned-gift shop.

Songshu Guiyu (Mandarin Fish): Cuisine near Shanghai is often sweet to taste and beautifully presented.

Crowds aside, Zhouzhuang is fun for families. Several residences, some 500 years old, let you see what life was like in the Ming and Qing dynasties. There are several storefronts where you can see brick making, bamboo carving, and basket weaving—traditional crafts that up until recently were in widespread use throughout the countryside. The food is typical country fare, making it a nice break from the fancier cuisine of Suzhou and Shanghai. The most famous dish, a fatty cut of pork leg, is a bit oily for most Western palates. But there are also pickled vegetables and wild greens to sample. For crafts, skip the snuff bottles and teapots, which are of low quality. Opt for something you probably won’t find elsewhere: homemade rice wine, rough-hewn ox-horn combs, and bamboo rice baskets.

Buses to Zhouzhuang leave from Suzhou’s North Bus station every half hour between 7 AM and 5 PM. The 1½-hour trip is ¥15 to ¥25.  From Shanghai, There are Zhou Zhuang buses leaving Shanghai Indoor Stadium Sightseeing Bus Terminal every morning.

• Tongli

One of the main attraction of Tongli is Tuisi Yuan,  a gorgeous garden built by a retired official in 1886 as a place to retreat and mediate.

The pick of the water villages is Tongli,30 minutes from Zhouzhuang and 1½ hours from Suzhou. There’s a more reasonable entrance fee of ¥60. A number of locals still live and work here, making this village seem more authentic than Zhouzhuang. The streets are cobbled, and the complete absence of cars make Tongli feel like it’s from a different era. You can still find yourself wandering on quaint side streets or creeping down impossibly narrow alleyways that open onto canals and bridges. Tongli is the largest of the water villages, imminently photographable, and a pleasure to explore.

Near the entrance gate are several private homes offering beds, and throughout the village are tea shops and small tables set out in front of the canals. Hiring a boat (¥60 for up to 6 people) to float down the canals gives you a different perspective on the town.

You have the chance to watch a cormorant fishing show in Tongli

A favorite spot in Tongli is Tuisi Garden, a slightly smaller version of the private courtyard parks found in Suzhou. Tongli is also home to the Ancient Chinese Sexual Culture Museum (0512/6332-2973, www.chainsexmuseum.com (Chinese only)), housed in a former girl’s school. The controversial exhibition of ancient erotic toys and art is the project of a retired university professor.

Buses to Tongli leave from the square in front of Suzhou Train Station every 20 to 30 minutes between 7 AM and 5 PM. The journey is Y6 to Y10. From Shanghai, there are Tongli buses (2 hr., ¥120/$15 round-trip, includes ¥80/$6.25 entrance fee) that leave the Shanghai Sightseeing Bus Center (Gate 25 of the Shanghai Stadium/Shanghai Tiyuguan) daily at 9, 9:55 and 10:25am. Departure times may change so call ahead (tel. 021/6426-5555) to confirm. From Tongli, buses return to Shanghai at 4:45, 5:30, and 6pm.)

• Luzhi

Narrow waterways and traditional arched bridges add to Luzhi's appeal

Even farther off the beaten path is Luzhi,about a half hour from Suzhou and Zhouzhuang. It has been described as a “museum of bridges.” There are over 40 here, in all different shapes and sizes. Many of the older women in the village preserve traditional customs, wearing traditional headdresses and skirts. Luzhi is also notable for the spectacular Baosheng Temple (Luzhi. 0512/6501-0067), a yellow-walled compound that is famous for its breathtaking collection of Buddhist arhats. Arranged on a wall of stone, these clay sculptures are the work of Yang Huizhi, a famous Tang Dynasty sculptor. They depict Buddhist disciples who have gained enlightenment; these works, made over 1,000 years ago, impart the character and artistry of their creator. The temple also features a well-preserved bell from the end of the Ming Dynasty.

Luzhi-bound buses leave from the square in front of Suzhou Train Station every 30 minutes between 6:30 AM and 6:30 PM. The 40-minute drive is Y10. From Shanghai, you can take Shanghai Sightseeing Bus at Shanghai Indoor Stadium Bus Terminal on Saturday and Sunday.

The sleepy water town offers a great escape from the razzle-dazzle of the city.

Related Articles about Shanghai:

Exploring Water Towns of Jiangnan

Top Ten Shanghai Attractions

Taste of Shanghai – A Guide to Shanghai’s Best Food

Best of Shanghai in a nutshell – Top Ten Shanghai Attractions

Shanghai Pudong Skyline at Sunset

The most westernized city in the world’s fastest growing country, Shanghai (literally “above the sea”) is an exhilarating, ever-morphing metropolis that isn’t just living China’s dream, but is setting the pace for the rest of the world. In just a little more than a decade, Shanghai has transformed itself into the model for 21st century China. As Shanghai is gearing up for its role as China’s showcase for the May 1-Oct. 31 World Expo, whose theme is “Better City, Better Life,” by remaking itself into the country’s most chic and modern city, expect to see constant changes as record numbers of foreigners and Chinese flock here to stake out their share of the ever-expanding pie.

Shanghai is much more Hong Kong than Beijing; there are no grand monuments and imperial palaces here. Instead, European-style cityscapes and tempting, tree-lined neighborhoods rub shoulders with the sci-fi skyline of Pudong. Shanghai was where China first met the West and it’s still a frontier town, obsessed with the latest fads, fashions and technology. This blend of old and new offers tourists a wide variety of experiences that are sure to be memorable.

Here are Shanghai’s top 10 must-see sights and attractions.

• The Bund

(Wai Tan, Chinese: 外滩)

The Bund - Shanghai's famous waterfront boulevard

A spectacular, dazzling waterfront esplanade with a wide range of colonial architecture. Particularly striking at night, when brilliantly illuminated. One of the most famous streets in China, and an absolute necessity to visit. Over the past few years, the buildings have started to be inhabited by shopping arcades and restaurants. The most impressive are 3 on the Bund and Bund 18, which have some of Shanghai’s most glamorous restaurants (M on the Bund, Laris, Jean-Georges and Whampoa Club) and bars as well as high-end glitzy international boutiques. The bund is also where you’ll get that postcard view of the futuristic skyline in Pudong.

Transportation: Subway Line 2 at East Nanjing Road, about a five minute walk to The Bund. Bus Line 145, 311, 316, 320 and 71 also have stops near The Bund.
For taxi drivers:  请带我去外滩 (Qing dai wo qu wai tan) Please take me to The Bund.

• Oriental Pearl TV Tower

(Dong Fang Ming Zhu Dian Shi Ta, Chinese: 东方明珠电视塔)

As the first architectural wonder of New China, the Oriental Pearl TV Tower, built in 1994, was a foremost symbol of the country’s potential as it began to flirt with free enterprise ideals. The 468-meter (1,536 feet) tower, located in Pudong Lujiazui area along the Huangpu River, is the 4^th tallest TV and radio tower in the world after  the Guangzhou TV & Sightseeing Tower in Guangzhou, China and the CN Tower in Toronto, Canada and the Ostankino Tower in Moscow, Russia.  The undeniable tower soars above the Pudong skyline and features fifteen observation levels, a small hotel, shops, a museum and a restaurant that of course, revolves. Over 3 million people visit the Oriental Pearl every year. The 263-meter (863 feet) high observatory level is one of the best places to get a bird’s-eye view of the city.

Address: 1 Century Avenue (Shiji Dadao), Pudong District, Shanghai
Transportation: Take Metro Line 2 and get off at Lujiazui Stop. It is right outside of the station. Buses 81, 82, 85, 870 also take you to the nearby area.
For taxi drivers: 请带我去东方明珠电视塔 浦东新区世纪大道1号 (Qing dai wo qu dong fang ming zhu dian shi ta, pu dong xin qu shi ji da dao yi hao)
Please take me to Oriental Pearl TV Tower, 1 Century Avenue (Shiji Dadao)
Opening hours: Daily 8:00-21:00
Admission Fee: 263 m sphere: CNY70 per person; 90 m sphere + 263 m sphere + Shanghai History Exhibition: CNY85 per person; 90 m sphere + 263 m sphere + 350 m sphere: CNY100 per person

• Jin Mao Tower

(Jinmao Dasha, Chinese: 金茂大厦)

Gazing down on the atrium of the Grand Hyatt Hotel, Jin Mao Tower

Now the second tallest building in Shanghai, the Jin Mao Tower stands at 88 floors. Its remarkable architecture is recognizable on a clear day from all over the city. There’s an observation deck on the 88th floor (access 50rmb, US$6) where you have spectacular views of the neighboring skyscrapers and the sprawling city. Enjoy similar views with a cocktail in hand at the Cloud 9 bar on the 87th floor of the Grand Hyatt hotel. Note, access to the observation deck and Cloud 9 are separate. Follow signs at ground level to the observation deck, follow Grand Hyatt signs to get to the hotel elevators and Cloud 9.

Address: 2 Century Avenue (Shiji Dadao), (3 blocks southeast of Oriental Pearl TV Tower), Pudong District, Shanghai
Transportation: Take Metro Line 2 and get off at Lujiazui Stop. It is right outside of the station. Buses 81, 82, 85, 870 also take you to the nearby area.
For taxi drivers: 请带我去东方明珠电视塔 浦东新区世纪大道1号 (Qing dai wo qu dong fang ming zhu dian shi ta, pu dong xin qu shi ji da dao yi hao)  Please take me to Oriental Pearl TV Tower, 1 Century Avenue (Shiji Dadao)
Opening hours: Daily 8:30am-9:30pm (last ticket sold 9pm)
Prices: Admission ¥70 ($10/£5); ¥60 ($8.55/£4.30) seniors over 70

• Shanghai World Financial Center

(Shanghai Huanqiu Jinrong Zhongxin, Chinese: 上海环球金融中心)

China's tallest buildings: Shanghai World Financial Center (left ) and Jin Mao Tower (right)

Resembling a giant bottle opener in shape, the new skyscraper king of the sky in China and indeed, save for Dubai’s Burj Khalifa, the world, is a beast at 492.0 meters (1,614.2 ft) with 101 floors. Open since 2008 next to Jin Mao Tower, the design of Shanghai World Financial Center has already become a premier icon of the city. This tapering glass tower with a trapezoidal aperture at the peak, featureing the world’s highest public observation deck at 474.2 m (1,556 ft) and world’s highest hotel, Park Hyatt Shanghai, will likely make this skyscraper the new “must visit” spot in town.

Address: 100 Shiji Dadao, Pudong District, Shanghai
Transportation: Subway Line 2 at Lujiazui
Phone: 021-5878-0101
Website: www.swfc-observatory.com
Prices: 94th floor only ¥100 ($14/£7); 94th to 97th floors ¥110 ($16/£8); 94th to 100th floors ¥150 ($21/£11)

• Former French Concession

(Fa Zu jie, Chinese: 法租界)

The French imported plane trees in the early 1900s still line both sides of every street in the Former French Concession

Shanghai’s most charming district, was administered by the French from the mid 1800’s to the mid 1900’s. The streets are tree-lined, with few high rises, and colonial villas dot the landscape; it has become an elite district of the city. Try wandering around the FFC on foot. Scenic bits include such small streets as Yuqing Lu and Kangping Lu. For a nice walk, try Fuxing Xi Lu, near Yongfu Lu or Wukang Lu. Dongping Lu has many good small restaurants such as Simply Thai and Azul.
Transportation: Take Metro Line 1. There are three metro stops you can get off to visit different parts of the former French Concession—South Shanxi Road, Hengshan Road and Changshu Road.
For taxi drivers:
请带我去淮海路陕西南路 (Please take me to the cross junction of Huaihai Lu and South Shanxi Lu)
请带我去衡山路高安路 (Please take me to the cross junction of Hengshan Lu and Gao An Lu)
请带我去复兴路乌鲁木齐路 (Please take me to the cross junction of Fuxing Lu and Wulumuqi Lu)

• Yu Gardens

(Yu Yuan, Chinese: 豫园)

Yu Garden offers an atmosphere of peace and beauty amid the clamor of the city

In the center of Old Town, just southwest of the Bund, the Garden of Peace and Comfort offers an escape from the fast pace of the surrounding city. The 16th century Yuyuan Garden, one of the best-preserved gardens in China, represents the height of Suzhou-style garden art which makes use of craftily structured pavilions, corridors, and bridges together with exquisitely set rocks, ponds, and floras to create charming and pleasant views. Of the many temples and halls, the Grand Rockery is the most popular. Two thousand tons of rare yellow stones are combined with rice glue to form a massive sculpture that stands 46 feet high. Wander through the lanes and alleys and find everything you might want to take home as souvenirs from silk pajamas to chopsticks. A trip to a genuine teahouse is cultural experience one must try in China. For Shanghai, Huxingting Teahouse is the place and still floats on a lake in the Old Town as it has since 1784.
Insider tips: While you are at Yuyuan Garden, try some delicious Shanghai local snacks such as steamed buns (xiao long man tou or xiao long bao ).

Address: 218 Anren Street
How to get to Yuyuan Gardens: From The Bund: Walk south along The Bund then turn right at Jinling Dong Lu. The Old City is the area to the south.
Bus Line 11, 24, 26, 64, 581, 715, 736, 801, 920, 926, 930, 945 have stops in Yuyuan area.
For taxi drivers: 请带我去豫园 安仁街218号 (Qing dai wo qu yu yuan, an ren jie er bai shi ba hao) Please take me to Yuyuan Garden, 218 Anren Street)
Opening hours: Daily 8:30 am – 5:00 pm
Admission Fee: CNY30 per person

• Nanjing Road

(Nan Jing Lu, Chinese: 南京路)

People come from all over China to shop on what is China's premier shopping street - Nanjing Lu

A visit to Nanjing Lu, the “Number One Shopping Street in China” is practically required, if only for a chance to marvel (or shudder) at the sheer numbers of people, people, people everywhere! Nanjing Road consists of two sections: East Nanjing Road and West Nanjing Road. The term “Nanjing Lu” in many cases refers only to the eastern section from The Bund to the People’s Square. The pedestrian-only East Nanjing Road boosts trendy designer boutiques alongside a cluster of Shanghai’s oldest department stores and traditional eateries, some of which have a century-long history. With hundreds of shops and restaurants there is something for everyone.
Transportation: Subway  Line 2  at East Nanjing Lu Stop.
For taxi drivers: 请带我去南京东路步行街 (Qing dai wo qu nan jing dong lu bu xing jie)  Please take me to Nanjing Lu Pedestrian Street.

• Xintiandi

(New Heaven and Earth， Chinese: 新天地)

Xin Tian Di is a restaurant, bar, club development that utilizes Shanghai's traditional shikumen architecture

A must-see on any tourist’s itinerary. This outdoor section of “shikumen”  (1920’s – 1930’s Shanghai style stone gate houses) was completely rebuilt in 2000 -1 and is a great example of the success of the urban renewal effort.. Xin Tian Di is divided into the North and South Blocks. The South Block is the more modern of the two and is home to one of China’s first major shopping centers as well as boutiques, restaurants and nightclubs. Shikumen architecture lines the streets in the North Block providing a contrast to the modernity of the South Block. Xintiandi is often packed with tourists and is home to some of Shanghai’s best restaurants. We like: Ye Shanghai, Crystal Jade, Kabb, Va Bene, Simply Thai and T8.

Address: Lane 181, Tai Cang Lu
How to get to the Jade Buddha Temple: Take Metro Line 1 and get off at South Huang Pi Lu. It is 5-minutes walk to the south along Ma Dang Lu.
For taxi drivers: 请带我去新天地 太仓路181弄 (Qing dai wo qu xin tian di, tai chang lu yi bai ba shi yi long) Please take me to Xintiandi, Lane 181, Tai Cang Lu

• Shanghai Museum

(Shanghai Bo Wu Guan, Chinese:上海博物馆)

Shanghai Museum, China's best museum, houses an incomparable collection of art and artifacts

Considered by many to be the finest, most modern, and most memorable museum in China, the Shanghai Museum in the heart of People’s Square has 11 galleries and over 120,000 historic artifacts including paintings, sculpture, ceramics, calligraphy, furniture, and fantastic bronzes. The museum’s architectural design is that of a round top with a square base which symbolizes the ancient Chinese philosophy that the earth is square-shaped and the sky overhead is round. The Stone Sculpture Gallery and the Bronze gallery are the most popular with collections dating back to the 18th century B.C. There are also special exhibitions on occasion that can be quite fascinating. Make it a top priority, and allow a few hours more than you planned on.

Address: 201 Renmin Avenue
How to get to Shanghai Museum: Take either Metro Line 1 or 2, get off at the People’s Square stop, and take Exit 1.
For taxi drivers: 请带我去上海博物馆 人民路201号  (Qing dai wo qu shanghai bo wu guan, ren min lu 201 hao)    Please take me to Shanghai Museum, 201 Renmin Avenue
Opening hours: Daily 9 am – 5 pm
Admission Fee: For regular exhibitions, 5000 free admission per day
For special exhibitions, CNY20 per person
Website: www.shanghaimuseum.net

• Dongtai Lu Antiques Market

(Dongtai Lu Guwan Shichang, Chinese: 东台路古玩市场)

Mao badges at Dongtai Lu Antique Market in Shanghai

This largest of Shanghai’s antiques markets, not far from Xin Tian Di, is Shanghai’s answer to Beijing’s Panjiayuan Antique Market.  While tiny in comparison to Panjiayuan, Dong Tai Road is lined with stalls and shops selling all that is junk and treasure in chinoiserie. You can find all kinds of items including antiques, curios, porcelain, furniture, jewelry, old wooden rice buckets, brightly painted opera masks, wood carvings, birds, flowers, goldfish, and nostalgic bric-a-brac from colonial and revolutionary days (especially Mao memorabilia). It’s worth a wander just to see what’s on offer but don’t forget your bargaining skills.

Address: Junction of Dongtai Lu & Liuhe Lu, 1 block west of Xizang Nan Lu, Luwan District, Shanghai
Transportation: Metro at Huangpi Road South
Hours: Daily 9am -5pm

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Taste of Shanghai – A Guide to Shanghai’s Best Food

Taste of Shanghai – A Guide to Shanghai’s Best Food

From delicious local dumplings to international fine-dining fare, the restaurant scene in Shanghai has never been better as the largest city in China gears up for the World Expo 2010 starting May 1.

Fast-paced and forward-looking, Shanghai is China’s most energetic city, and nowhere is its dynamism and spirit of adventure more apparent than in its restaurant scene. In the last decade, dining in Shanghai has changed out of all recognition. True, you can still buy bowls of noodles on street corners – thankfully – but in restaurants, trendy youngsters are likely to be munching on French fries while Shanghai’s nouveau riche splurge on fine-dining restaurants serving dishes from around the world, and fashionistas knock back lurid cocktails to a backdrop of neon-lit views. Big, brash and better than ever, dining in Shanghai is now the equal of that in any modern western metropolis.

By all means, start at street level: cheap and informal eats are everywhere. At stalls and corner restaurants across the city, you need only spend a few dollars to get popular snacks such as pork dumplings, egg pancakes, lamb skewers – grilled to order by Muslim immigrants from northwest China – and leek pies. You can get memorably good bowls of noodles and delicacies such as frogs’ legs in ginger or slices of roast duck on rice. But nothing beats xiao longbao, a Shanghai dumpling filled with a delicious broth that explodes into your mouth (or, if you aren’t careful, over your clothes) as you bite into it.

Elegant dumplings from Ai Mei Chinese Restaurant at Le Royal Méridien

Local snacks are wonderful, but you’ll have to head to a restaurant to try Shanghai cuisine at its best. Little-known in Australia, Shanghai food is really a branch of eastern-style cuisine, and features braised and stewed dishes rather than stir-fries as well as cold ‘drunken’ dishes marinated in wine, of which drunken chicken is the best known. The emphasis is on the freshness of the main ingredients rather than on heavy sauces and marinades. Freshwater fish is prominent, though expensive, and the much-loved local delicacy is hairy crab – known locally as duza ha, or in Mandarin, dazha xie, meaning crabs from the “big dam”. Duza ha is usually steamed and dipped in soy sauce and black rice vinegar with ginger. The Shanghainese like to wash down their meal with a sweetish, yellow rice wine known as huangjiu.

It isn’t hard to find superlative restaurants in Shanghai: the Chinese bring relatives and business partners to the city’s restaurants to impress them with lavish feasts. Many restaurants cover several floors, each floor offering menus at different price points. Foreigners are invariably directed to more expensive floors in the belief that they’re used to luxury, but there’s nothing to stop you joining locals on the cheaper (usually lower) floors, where you can expect a raucous din of happy diners.

If you’re after the best local flavors, head to Shanghai Uncle in the basement of the Bund Centre. Shanghai Uncle goes for modern versions of old Shanghai classics and inspired east-west fusion dishes, and is certainly some of the best Chinese food you’ll eat in town. Try the superlative crispy pork, traditional smoked fish and handmade noodles and, if you can afford the astronomical prices, a fresh lobster dish.

Executive chef Jeremy Leung from the Whampoa Club

For excellent Chinese comfort food in less formal surrounds, look no further than the queues outside Crystal Jade Restaurant in Xintiandi. Locals flock here for steamed dumplings, roast pork buns and spicy Sichuan noodles. The restaurant is reckoned to serve the best xiao longbao in Shanghai – in other words, in the known universe.

Villa du Lac, housed in an old colonial building, is also one of the city’s top restaurants for Shanghainese cuisine, as well as palace cuisine from the nearby city of Yangzhou, its light, clean flavours once reserved for royalty and court officials. Signature dishes include hand-cut tofu and drunken chicken; European-influenced desserts include egg tarts served with Longjing tea and snow-skin peach dumplings in champagne. The chef here, Justin Quek, hails from Singapore, and has an international reputation.

Many a world-class chef has been lured by Shanghai’s bright lights, and the Shanghainese love of trends and fashions. It all started along The Bund, where Art Deco and Neoclassical facades recall Shanghai’s heyday as a great trading port and international settlement in the early 20th century. The municipal government launched an enlightened program of restoration in the 1990s that has seen The Bund return to its former grandeur and bustle.

Poppyseed galettes from M on the Bund

M on the Bund was the first international restaurant to open here, in 1999 and, for some time, was the place to be seen in Shanghai. Its star has faded somewhat as newer competitors steal the limelight, but the Art-Deco elegance and wonderful views from the seventh floor are hard to beat, and the food can still reach superlative heights. Signature dishes are the slow-baked leg of lamb and pavlova – no surprise, really, as chef-owner Michelle Garnaut hails from Melbourne.

Next door, Three on the Bund is a seven-storey pleasure palace housing art galleries, luxury boutiques, a jazz club, a day spa and several restaurants of top international quality. These include French fare at Jean Georges, bistro fare at New Heights, and classic-meets-contemporary Shanghai cuisine at the Whampoa Club – try the tasting menu, and talk to the tea sommelier about choosing a matching tea. Another Australian chef, David Laris, is at the helm at Laris, with its emphasis on New World seafood dishes.

Foie gras terrine with hibiscus gelee from Laris

Given the high prices at Three on the Bund, you might expect serving sizes to be a bit more generous and service more suave. Nevertheless, dining at one of these trendy restaurants on The Bund is a quintessential Shanghai experience. If you really want to splash out, you can reserve the cupola on top of the building as a private dining room, and order from any of the restaurants on the floors below.

House smoked salmon from M on the Bund

Xintiandi is another trendy locale and the evening destination of choice for hip locals and expats alike. This upmarket area of little alleys and courtyards is an appealing blend of modernistic and faux old Chinese architecture, crammed with eateries and bars of all sorts, from hugely busy, German-style Biergartens to Tuscan pizzerias and chic post-modern venues serving the likes of green-pea cappuccino.

At Lan Na Thai, in a lovely old colonial mansion known as Face Building, delightful deep-fried soft-shell crab and divine papaya salads are served up to a mostly foreign clientele; on another floor, svelte guests recline on ‘opium beds’ in an Asian-style cocktail lounge. At Di Shui Dong, try the outstanding spicy regional Hunan cuisine: everything from chicken chilli hotpot to cumin pork spare-ribs is wonderful, even if it needs to be washed down with copious amounts of cold beer.

The wide, tree-lined avenue known as Hengshan Road, just a totter west, is another trendy spot lined with 1920s mansions, now converted into teahouses and restaurants. It’s also home to one of the city’s favoured music venues, O’Malleys. With an outdoor courtyard and cosy, Irish-pub style, O’Malleys serves up a good beer and Irish, British and American favourites – just the place to head for if you have a hankering for bangers and mash.

A delicate prawn dish from Jean Georges

In the old days, this area was part of the French Concession. There’s still a nod to the glamor of these times at 1931 Bar & Restaurant, where waitresses are dressed in traditional qipao, or high-collared, tight-fitting silk dresses with side slits. This is the place for a drink and nibbles – fried dumplings, duck pancakes and noodles. Also worth a visit is the Art Salon, where Montmarte meets Shanghai: the walls are covered with local artworks; rickety tables and traditional Chinese-style chairs crowd every inch of floorspace. Sit elbow-to-elbow for some terrific homemade specialties – and feel free to purchase any of the artwork or furniture that catches your eye.

During the days of the settlements, the Chinese lived crammed into the old city; now, Shanghai’s historic heart has been redeveloped into an unabashed tourist theme town, jammed with souvenir shops and antiques markets. At its centre lies the fabulous Yu Garden and iconic Bridge of Nine Turnings, a zigzag bridge over a carp pool always packed with photo-snapping visitors. Stop by the venerable Huxinting Teahouse in the middle of the pond for a pastry or quail’s eggs with excellent green tea as you watch the passing hubbub.

You’ll also find fine fare at the Shanghai Classic Restaurant, which serves such local dishes as eight-treasure duck, stuffed with sticky rice, and deep-fried shrimps. The restaurant claims to have been around since 1875, though in its current guise, it is located on the second-floor atrium of a modern mid-range hotel.

Inside Laris at Three on the Bund

Occasionally, someone in this relentlessly advancing city actually looks to the past. If you’re after a coffee, avoid the ubiquitous Starbucks and head instead to Old China Hand Reading Room, with its Qing Dynasty furniture, old books, manual typewriters and beautiful photography, or to Old Film Café, where you can watch 1920s movies from China and Russia as you down your brew. Just the caffeine shot you’ll need before launching yourself into the frenzy of Shanghai once more.

A beautifully presented dish from The Whampoa Club

Where to eat

• 1931 Bar and Restaurant, Maoming Nan Lu 112 (Luwan District), phone +86 21 6472 5264.
• Art Salon, Nanchang Lu 164 (Luwan District), phone +86 21 5306 5462.
• Crystal Jade Restaurant (Feicuì Jiujia), 2nd floor, 12A & B, Nanli 6-7 (Luwan District), phone +86 21 6385 8752.
• Di Shui Dong, Maoming Nan Lu 56 (Luwan District), phone +86 21 6253 2689.
• Huxinting Teahouse (Huxinting Chashi), Yuyuan Lu 257 (Nanshi District), phone +86 21 6373 6950.
• Lan Na Thai, Ruijin Er Lu 118 (Luwan District), phone +86 21 6466 4328.
• M on the Bund, Zhongshan Dong Yi Lu 5 (Huangpu District) +86 21 6350 9988 or visit www.m-restaurantgroup.com
• Old China Hand Reading Room (Hanyuan Shuwu), Shaoxing Lu 27 (Xuhui District), phone +86 21 6473 2526.
• Old Film Café, Duolun Lu 123 (Hongkou District), phone +86 21 5696 4763.
• O’Malley’s, Taojiang Lu 42 (Xuhui District), phone +86 21 6437 0667.
• Shanghai Classic Restaurant (Shanghai Lao Fandian ), Fuyou Lu 242 (Nanshi District), phone +86 21 6355 2275.
• Shanghai Uncle (Haishang Ashu), Yan’an Dong Lu 200-222 (Huangpu District), phone +86 21 6339 1977.
• Three on the Bund, Zhongshan Dong Yi Lu 3 (Huangpu District), phone +86 21 6323 3355 or visit www.threeonthebund.com
• Villa du Lac (Hu Ting), 383 Huangpi Nan Lu (Luwan District), phone +86 21 6387 6387 or visit www.justinquek.com

Where to stay

• Le Royal Méridien Shanghai, phone +86 21 3318 9999 or visit www.lemeridien.com
• Pudi Boutique Hotel, contact Small Luxury Hotels of the World on 1800 251 958 or visit www.slh.com
• St Regis Shanghai, phone +86 21 5050 4567 or visit www.stregis.com
• Westin Bund Centre, phone +86 21 6335 1888 or visit www.westin.com

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