Shanghai

Shanghai wasn’t my travel destination, but part of a really long layover on my way to Indonesia. I arrived in Shanghai at 4:55 AM, and the plan was to shower, store luggage, then venture off into the city for the day. Unfortunately, Shanghai airport has no shower facilities on the arrivals side. You can leave your luggage at the storage facility and pay by amount of hours + luggage size. The cost will be anywhere between 10- 50 CNY ($1.40-$7.00 USD). You will find this near Island A and M in the Intonations departure hall.

The Maglev

This thing is so cool. The Maglev is a magnetic levitation train that travels at speeds of 300km. That’s 185 mph for my customary people. Normally, the drive to Shanghai is about 45 minutes. With the maglev, it takes 8 short minutes. You can purchase a 24 hr Maglev + Metro ticket for 85 CNY ($12 USD) at the SMT center, section 2F. It is cash only, there is a currency exchange desk across the hall, don’t expect to get a good exchange rate.

Into the City

1. Take the Maglev from Pudong airport to Longyang Rd (it’s the only stop).
2. Transfer to the green line #2. You will exit the Maglev, go down the stairs into an alley, and into the building to your right
3. Take line #2 for 6 stops and get off at North (East) Nanjing Road
4. Transfer to the lavender line #10 towards Hangzhong
5. Get off at the first stop Yu Yuan Garden
6. When you exit the metro, walk down the sidewalk to your right which leads you to Old City Shanghai

Here is a link to the metro map for a visual.

Yu Yuan Garden

I only recommend having tea at the Shanghai Old Tea House if you are fully aware of the cost. It is extremely expensive. We ordered two pots (about 3 cups each) of tea and it cost us 60 USD. I was not accustomed to the exchange rate and ordered before I did the math. The experience was great, it just took a small piece of my soul to pay that much for tea. I will say, it was fresh as hell though.

The Bund

The Huang Pu River splits Old City Shanghai from the glinting skyscrapers of the Shanghai financial district. From Yu Yuan Gardens in Old City Shanghai, I walked a few blocks East towards the river and found The Bund. The bund is Shanghais riverwalk, lined with hotels and restaurants. There are several places with great skyline views, but after extensive research I think M on the Bund has one of the best and classiest. I had brunch there which ran about $106 USD for 2 people including meals, cocktails, bottle of sparkling, and appetizers. Nothing in Shanghai is cheap but the views are priceless.

Watch Out for Scams

Originally the plan was to eat brunch at Captain’s Bar. It is supposed to have a great rooftop view as well. We got there early and the staff was extremely rude refusing to let us sit in the lobby and wait. They demanded we order from the downstairs cafe in the mean time which was overpriced. I was going to order a coffee (the least expensive item on the menu) but they refused to accept Visa. The front door had a huge “We accept Visa” sign, but staff pretended to not understand. Needless to say we left. I’m happy that we did, because other people said they’d been double charged there. They were told it was cash only and then brought a bill accusing them of not paying and with no record, they had no choice.

Back to the Airport

Walk a few blocks inland, and hop on the metro to East Nanjing Road. Ride for 6 stops to Longyang Road, get off to transfer to the Maglev the same way you came in. Take the Maglev back to Pudong Airport and enjoy the rest of your travel!