Anyone been to Shanghai before

[sunjade]

FH and i thinking of a pre-wedding trip to Shanghai to eat and shop. Also, i am thinking of tailoring a cheong sam as my tea dress. Any of you ladies been to shanghai before? Can share some experience and advise on the following questions?

1) Where to eat? (good restaurants, road side stalls, eating streets)
2) Where to shop? (cheap stalls, trinkets, night markets etc)
3) Where to tailor clothes?
4) what are the must see or visit places?
5) Which hotel would you recommend? average 4 star hotel, clean, safe, good location.

thanks! a lot of questions heh

 

[muppy]

hi sunjade,

i was there for a very short trip so prob can only help a little. go to yu yuan for trinkets etc. you can eat almost anywhere! there's a place that sells steamboat along the roadside near yu yuan - DO NOT GO THERE. it looks inviting but the food sucks!

my FH worked in china for 3 years. here are his suggestions: take a walk on the bund, go up in the pearl tower, stay at the Astor House (albert ainstein stayed there before!), there's a temple with a big jade buddha (really nice), pudong district, nanjing lu, xia pu lu (eat there!).

a little bit of advice from me: carry haversacks / bagpacks instead of luggage if you intend to take buses / trains.

watch out for people spitting everywhere! and don't get tricked by street touters.

i can share pics of my trip there with you if you want. email me [email protected]

 

[muppy]

hi sunjade, i don't remember if it's you who emailed me, but i asked my FH to reply to whoever asked about china. if you've received his reply, can you just drop him a note to let him know? cos he's been asking. thanks!

if it's not you who wrote to me, then no worries

 

[chatterbox]

Hi melanie,

I'm the one, but I did not recv any reply from him.....

Anyway can he drop me a mail [email protected]

Thanks

 

[postpet2]

Hi ladies,

was wondering if there are apartments in Shanghai for short stay instead of hotels?
Or if there are any recommendation for cheaper hotels?

 

[happybunny]

hi ... hope this helps

went to shanghai last may ... stay at 'jiang(1) xin(4) da (1) jiu(1) dian(1)' at '400 Ji(1) nian(1) lu(1)' near to 'fu(1) xin(1) gao(1) ji(1) zhong(1) xue(1)' at 'che(1) zan(1) na(1) lu(1)' ... there is a 'mrt' beside the school which is on right side of the hotel is u r facing it.

The hotel is not in town central so u need to 'ta(1) di(1)' or take mrt to go sightseeing.
but the rate are cheap, we pay 300 yuan per pax for 4 nights stay. converted to S$ is abt ~S$60++. there is a resturant opp the hotel which sells nice n cheap food. The hotel also have a resturant but a bit expensive than the outside ones ... but food in shanghai is really cheap.

we r a grp of 8 pax, we always order 5 or 6 dishes plus soup, with at least 3 meat (fish, beef, prawns, etc) ... the meal cost on the avg 100 ~ 200 yuan. convert to S$ is like ~S$5/6 per pax!!!! i put on 3 kg while there for only 4 days.

Another good place to eat is at 'Lao(1) Shanghai' at 'Yuyuan' ... We order the 788 yuan set lunch which consists of 6/7 cold dishes, 7/8 main dishes, 2 desserts plus 2 fruits.
for shopping, go to 'Si(1) chuan(1) Bei(1) Lu(1)' ... the clothes there are price closer to home if not cheaper.

for 'fake' goods or tinklets, don buy from 'yuyuan', it's more ex there cos of tourist spot... but try the local food there.

can get the same item at 'xiang(1) Yang(1) lu(1)' flea market at much much cheaper prices ...
their steamboat is a must to try ... but need to know where to look for good ones ...

there r lots of fun places to go,lots of nice foods to eat ...

hope to go again this year ...

 

[postpet2]

Happybunny,

seems that you had enjoyed your trip to shanghai..
For your big group, you guys split into rooms in hotel or rented a apartment?


its my first time there if i were to make it there this year...
but is there anywhere else to go other than shanghai? that is, maybe can go somewhere near it as well?

Have you gone to Sichuan? Saw it on Extra Gourmet last night..like not bad too..haha...

 

[happybunny]

hi postpet2

i went to shanghai cos all my friend interested n sia having promotions so tickets quite cheap.

i went during the one week labour day holiday, so it's like the whole china ppl all went to shanghai ... very crowded but otherwise very fun.

am thinking of gg shanghai this year ... then take train to suzhou n hangzhou for day tour ... or can go 'zhu jia jiao' ...

shanghai is a big place so haven complete touring all places n taste all the food yet.

most of my china coll also said to visit shanghai fast cos the development there is super fast ... a few years later, might be more ex liow.

 

[tersher]

Hi Happybunny,

Regarding the hotel that you stayed in, how should we go about making reservations? Which "mrt" is it close to and the estimated walking distance-time? How do we reach the hotel from the airport?

We've booked our tickets to go in March but haven managed to sort out the accommodation part... running out of time... ;o)

 

[meaty]

anybody which hotel is nice in shanghai? Where is good to go?

 

[lilacz]

Anyone knows whats the weather like in Shanghai in about November-December? Will it snow? Planning to bring my parents there but worry too cold for them.

 

[droopy_eyes]

Hi Sunjade,
I hv been to Shanghai twice & really enjoyed myself shopping there. R u staying in Pudong or Puxi? Puxi is the older part but with lots of action. Pudong got the Dong Fang Ming Zhu Tower & from the banks of Huang Pu Jiang, u can have coffee & admire the Bund opposite the river. BUT frankly not impressed by the food.

For shopping:
If u r looking for souvenirs for yr friends, can go to this 3 or 4 storey (forgot) wholesale place beside YU YUAN as some girls mentioned, there r these keychains, handphone accessories very very nice selling at less than S$1. Once u are inside YU YUAN, gotta bargain & things not that cheap.

I got my boots at this shopping centre at Tai4 Ping2 Yang2 Bai3 Huo4 at Huai2 Hai3 Lu4. I tell u, if there are anything u MUST buy in Shanghai, it is the shoes!! The entire floor of shoes..look out for those goat skin ones, the leather is soft, the design is up to date & the varieties...ohmigod... the price is cheaper than Sin too.

Clothes ah...mmph depends on the season, u may not get what u want for S'pore. R u into fakes? If u dun mind, u can go Xiang4 Yang2 Jie1, all fake stuff. Must bargain, cut until 30% of the original price, the pants are at most RMB70 - 120

I also went to these HUGE wholesale place which the clothings & shoes are seldom more than RMB30, bought two pairs of shoes for RMB50 & tons of tops. The designs are all up-to-date but quality not like Tai Ping Yang so good. BUT u have to be very adventurous & daring because it is not a tourist place, a little messy, no place where u can relax, sit n drink kopi. The place is at Qi1 Pu3 Lu4.

As for Nanjing Lu I was too dazzled by the huge shopping complexes lining the two sides of the road, in the end never buy anything there.

For nightspot,
It is of course Xin1 Tian1 Di4, lots of cafes & pubs, can sit outside & people watch.

If u have time to spare, do venture to the outskirts where there are those Gu3 Zheng4 (Old Cities) like Zhu Jia Jiao, Zhou Zhuang...those are very old river cities. Interesting places to see.

I had a one day trip to Hang Zhou by train (abt 2 hrs, if I remember correctly) to see the infamous Xi Hu & went to a huge awesome chinese temple Lin Yin Shi. Can consider too.

Hope these info helps u to plan yr trip...oh by the way, I travel by taxis most of the time coz the train station is quite a distance fr where I stay.

 

[droopy_eyes]

Er...for my 2nd para I mean Trinkets not handphone accessories...heh heh...

 

[droopy_eyes]

Oops...blur me this thread was started a year ago.

Hope my info helps those planning to Shanghai anyway!

 

[lilacz]

Droopy, which month did u go? Just want to find out the weather for year end in Shanghai.

 

[droopy_eyes]

i went once in Mar & once in Oct. Mar colder than Oct. Not sure in Nov/Dec.

 

[not_so_easy]

do you go on a free n easy tour or packaged one?

 

[chatterbox]

Hi lilacz,

Temp is abt 14-18 deg cel.
It will be colder towards the end of dec, which is the start of their "dong-zhi".

 

[lilacz]

Think 14-18 shd be bearable lah. Thanks chatterbox!Hopefully the next NASA fair will have good deals!

 

[jerinehsu]

hi! i am going to shanghai in june. So would like to get some pointers.. how much money should we bring for shopping? As in roughly how much will be enough? Though it sounds kinda stupid..(more means more spending) but just wanna know the gauge.. Thnks alot

 

[skywolf]

Hi ladies,

Can I check where can i obtain Shanghai's map? My family are gg there next mth... but i need a map to navigate.

Where can i get one? I emailed China Embassy and there was no reply.

Also, i'm looking @ 3* hotels too. I have quotes from a Yangzhe, Bai Le Men and Xin Tian Fu (hope i got the last name correct). Does anyone has any feedback on these 3 hotels?

Thanks.

 

[melodie]

What kind of Shanghai map do u need? the train map or location map? Are u guys going f&e? Last one shld be Xin Kai Fu, quite near nanjing lu i think...

the last tm i went, i stayed in Qianhe hotel, quite out of the way but we had frens driving us ard so still quite ok.

U can always take a cab, it's really cheap there...

 

[dear_dear]

this is the map website. you can zoom in or out.just click on the map.
http://smi.stn.sh.cn/Eshmap/Emap.htm

 

[skywolf]

Hi MeLodie,

Oh ya hor, got train and normal map... Err.. actually, i need both lor. Hotel name... ya... it's Xin Kai Fu.

I dun have a map, so it's hard to imagine where is where... Oh yes, it's f&e. Dad claim know his way leh. But i'd rather play safe. Hehe.

Hi Dear,
Thanks for the url. Do you have any idea where i can obtain a hard copy?

 

[yule]

skywolf
not sure if my reply's too late. but u can get hardcopy map in Shanghai itself. The hotel lobbies or airports will hv complimentary copies.

Xin Kai Fu is on Sichuan North Rd where there's lots of cheap shopping. Very near to Luxun Park.

 

[cassie]

Hi ladies,

I've got a lonely planet travel guide to shanghai selling from more than 50% off. Please see http://www.singaporebrides.com/forumboard/messages/194/323554.html.

Cheers

 

[cooler0821]

Hi, I will be going shanghai for short holiday 3days 4nite there.. Any nice/special place to recommend shopping eat chillout.. mus vitis

 

[mngo]

hi all
i am going in october... anyone advise the weather?

 

[stellarm]

hi mngo,

october is autumn, can range between 10-20 degrees.

u can pop by bookshops to go check out on it too.. keke.. thats what i always do before planning travelling.

 

[cooler0821]

Haha mngo,

Then weekend remember to drop by book shop. Me also go and search.

Stella,
Autumn nice nice wealther hee..

 

[dear99]

hey gers!

i'm gg shanghai dis sat,

visit bookshop?? any english books?

 

[mngo]

hi stella, ivy
thank u!!!

 

[yunxi]

Rui(4) Jing(1) Yi(1) Lu(4)and Rui(4) Jing(1) Er(4) Lu(4) are places where locals shop based on what a friend who works in Shanghai...within the city on Pudong side. Can just take a cab there...mainly fashion wear and there was a shop that sells branded clothings which seem like factory rejects as their labels were cut off...but still in good condition.....it does not have so much branded bags or watches there.

Yes, chinese books are cheap and much larger variety (of course) in china bookshops. so book lovers shd definitely not missed this.

For Food, I tot the Xiao(3) Fei(2) Yang(2) was good..it's steamboat, speciality is the thin sliced mutton. somehow mutton taste good in china, does not have the bad smell. The roadside Yang(2) Rou(4) Chuan(4)-giant mutton satay is delicious..esp. when weather is cool.
Shd try Shanghai food in one of the restaurants (about less than SGD20, you can good food already).
And Yong(2) He(2) Dou(4) Jiang(1), it's yummy! just ask ard and there should be a branch nearby the Nanjing Rd.

 

[jon_erica]

We went Shanghai last yr during end May to mid June.

It was real fun coz we did it F&E. Stayed at my FH brother's apartment in Xin Zhuang (he was working in Shanghai then), we travelled via trains to HangZhou, Suzhou, 2 days in Nanjing and Zhou Zhuang. Board the trains at 'Shanghai Railway Station' (can be reached via their metro line). The train tics are relatively cheap and if I remembered correctly, there are 3 classes.

For our day trip to Nanjing (around 1.5 hrs), we took the cheapest class (coz book last min), Hangzhou took the 2nd class (much better), and Suzhou took the first class (super clean). Its a good experience esp the trip to Nanjing. The train was leaving for ulumuqi and was really jam-packed with ppl and rather dirty with people shouting and toking loudly haha.

If you are visiting Nanjing, must definitely go see Sun Yat San Masoleum. Its in the middle of a mountain (burial site built according to fengshui) and the view is real splendid and awesome when you reach the top.

Another place not to miss is Zhu Yuan Zhang's residence. Lotsa history on how he founded the Ming Dynasty.

For Zhou Zhuang, we took the coach bus at 'Shanghai Indoor Stadium' (can be reached via their metro line 1). It was a 1.5 hr journey to the beautiful old water town.

At Shanghai itself, we went Yu Yuan, Xu Jia Hui (its a shoppers paradise !!), Pearl tower, xin tian di (just like Sg's boat quay) and Xiang Yiang Jie (a must go place !). For these places, we went via their metro line except for yuyuan. Actually its quite accessible in Shanghai using their metro line.

There is one good place, its a shopping mall opp the pearl tower. Inside the mall, there are plenty of good food at cheap prices. We went to one of the noodle restaurant (at the far end) and ordered their la-mien and it was only S$1 each and the portion is huge !!!

 

[singaporetoys]

i am gtg shanghai end sept for a short trip. I am traveling alone. Anyone ladies who wanna join me
pls advise at [email protected]

 

[dingdang]

Anyone could recommend good tailor for men's shirt and ladies' dresses in Shanghai?

 

[scrumpee01]

Place to tailor clothes in Shanghai (esp. Cheongsum) is this place call Mian Liao Shi Chang at Lu Jia Bang Lu/Nan Chang Jie.

I tailored a very nice knee length cheongsum at RMB 180 (must bargain like hell).

If you are a fan of H&M, they have one in Shanghai at Sinan Lu/Huai Hai Lu.

Happy shopping

 

[kkjc0517]

hi,

is 5 days enough to cover shanghai?what are the places to visit and shop?what are the must buy in shanghai?

 

[joanne10]

hi,

i am going to shanghai f&e, any one got recommendations where to stay? near to mrt and shopping centres?

 

[joanne10]

hi,

i am going to shanghai f&e, any one got recommendations where to stay? near to mrt and shopping centres?