Shanghai travel, reviewed
Independent guides, reviews and answers for travelling in Shanghai: where to eat, stay, get around, and what to see, buy and do.
category.eat
A review of a long-established benbang kitchen in Huangpu: what the cooking genuinely does well, what to order and why, how the room and service feel, and when a trip is worth it.
4 min read · Last updated October 1, 2026
category.eat
A verdict on the traditional Shanghai breakfast as something to seek out: what the four big names and the everyday items are honestly worth, what fails a visitor, three traps, and who should get up for it.
5 min read · Last updated October 8, 2026
category.move
A review of Pudong International Airport: a large, well-run, clearly signed gateway whose real weaknesses are the distance from the city, the walk from the transport hub to the terminal, the peak-hour immigration queue and the awkward business of moving between its two terminals.
5 min read · Last updated October 16, 2026
category.see
A review of the walled, ticketed Ming-dynasty garden itself: what is actually inside, for whom the ticket pays off, who should stay in the free bazaar, and why the crowds within the walls decide the visit.
5 min read · Last updated October 5, 2026
category.see
Jing'an Temple reviewed: golden halls against glass towers are the real reason to come, plus what is inside, how long it takes, whether the fee pays, how to visit respectfully and who should skip it.
5 min read · Last updated October 6, 2026
category.see
Panlong Tiandi reviewed: a canal-side commercial quarter built on the site of an old village, not a preserved old town. What it actually is, what is done well, what is only set dressing, whether the food and shopping justify the trip, how it compares with Zhujiajiao and Nanxiang, and who should come and who should give the time to somewhere else.
5 min read · Last updated October 7, 2026
category.see
Yunjian Granary reviewed: a group of 1950s grain silos and warehouses in Songjiang now run as a culture park, and what the photographs leave out — how much is actually open, how long it takes, and whether the trip from central Shanghai pays.
5 min read · Last updated October 7, 2026
category.see
Guangfulin reviewed: whether half a day is enough, once the park above ground and the halls below it are counted separately — which parts are solid, which are only scenery, how long four kinds of visitor should allow, whether to pair it with the rest of Songjiang, and who should skip it.
5 min read · Last updated October 9, 2026
category.see
The Lu Xun Memorial Hall and Lu Xun Park reviewed: the hall and the park are two different experiences with two different answers — the display is well made but built for Chinese readers, while the park is a working city park still in use.
5 min read · Last updated October 9, 2026
category.see
Nanxiang old town reviewed: the old street, the twin pagodas, the temple and Guyi Garden weighed separately, with the question in the title answered — whether the town stands without its dumplings, which sight is worth a trip and which is worth ten minutes, why the birthplace does not mean better eating, how far the old street has been commercialised, who should come, who should skip it, and whether it justifies a trip from central Shanghai.
5 min read · Last updated October 13, 2026
category.see
Columbia Circle reviewed: a low-rise campus that suits anyone happy to spend an unhurried hour or two, and does not repay a special trip for a visitor with two days in Shanghai, an appetite for raw old factory fabric, or an expectation of exhibitions and interpretation.
5 min read · Last updated October 13, 2026
category.buy
A review that splits Nanjing Road into its two halves, covering what the pedestrian section actually holds, what is worth buying, which direction to walk, when it hurts most, and who should skip it.
5 min read · Last updated October 16, 2026
category.play
ERA at Shanghai Circus World reviewed: real acrobatic craft against dated multimedia packaging, with seat choice treated as the main subject, plus arrival, the interval and who should skip it.
5 min read · Last updated October 8, 2026
category.play
Tonglefang reviewed: a small converted workshop quarter in Jing'an that runs at night, for people staying nearby who want dinner, a drink or a small live-music room; by day, or on a two-day trip, it does not repay a special journey.
5 min read · Last updated October 17, 2026