8 areas · District by district
Where to stay in Shanghai
Eight areas, each with a plain account of who it suits, what it costs, what transport you get, and what is wrong with it. No area here is right for everyone.
Staying near the Bund and East Nanjing Road
You are paying to walk out of the hotel and see the thing Shanghai is famous for. Convenient, loud, and pricey.
Staying in the former French Concession
The best area to stay for most people. Tree-lined streets, ordinary life, good food, and the metro ten minutes from anything.
Staying in Jing’an
Business hotels, excellent transport, and the best balance of price and convenience in central Shanghai.
Staying in Lujiazui, Pudong
Skyline views, wide roads, and a fifteen-minute metro ride to everything you actually came to see.
Staying near Hongqiao and the National Exhibition Centre
Nobody recommends it, and then a third of visitors end up there for a trade fair. Worth knowing what you are getting.
Staying at Xintiandi and south Huangpu
Restored lane houses turned into a restaurant and bar district. Convenient, pretty, expensive, and oddly quiet when it is not dining hours.
Staying on the West Bund
Twenty years ago it was shipyards. Now it has the best contemporary art museums in the city and a riverside promenade.
Staying around People’s Square
Geographically the exact centre and functionally interchangeable with the Nanjing Road area, usually cheaper.
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