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Hongkou

Hongkou

A district that sheltered 20,000 refugees, still lived in, and largely absent from visitor itineraries.

Feel
Working, unpolished, historically dense
Good for
Second-time visitors, history, anyone bored of the Concession
Half a day
2.5 hours
Best hour
Weekday morning, for the market streets
Crowd level
Low
Metro
Line 12 Tilanqiao, Exit 1

Hongkou sits north of Suzhou Creek and feels older and less finished than the districts visitors see. Its small claim on world history is enormous: the blocks around Tilanqiao took in Jewish refugees in the late 1930s because Hongkou required no visa. The buildings are still there and the streets are still ordinary.

01

Hongkou: Shanghai's Jewish Quarter

A neighbourhood that took in 20,000 refugees in the late 1930s, still standing, still lived in, and almost entirely missing from most itineraries.

2.5 hours3.8 kmHongkou
Under-visited→