Celebrate the Holiday Season in Shanghai

Image by David H.

Shanghai is the second most populated city in China with a whopping 24.15 million people. Shanghai offers a lot of expatriated livings. Countless clubs, groups, restaurants, and hotels offer a variety of international architecture and atmosphere. Almost every national cuisine is offered in Shanghai. From Chinese food stands on an empty street t0 fancy restaurants, there are endless options. Shanghai is similar to other metropolitan cities such as New York City, Hong Kong, and Tokyo. Like any other Chinese city, Shanghai also blocks out useful websites such as Google, Youtube, Facebook and so on. The food in Shanghai may not always be cheap. Western cuisines will probably be more expensive than actually eating in that country. The dishes may offer a smaller meal than usual. A city as big as Shanghai will constantly be crowded and it is hard to find a suitable, quiet place for some alone time. Usually, you have to travel long distances into the rural areas for a peaceful time by yourself. Other than that, Shanghai offers a lot of tourist attractions like the Oriental Pearl Tower, Yu Garden, and the Shanghai Disneyland Resort.

Shanghai offers a lot of Christmas markets, malls, restaurants, hotels and attractions. The Shanghai Christmas markets have many ornaments to buy, such as Christmas trees, Christmas snacks, food, drinks and other Christmas-y decorations. Paulaner’s Christkindlmarket, Jing’an Christkindlmarket, and Jiashan Market are only some of the many places to buy Christmas-y ornaments for this year’s Christmas.

Restaurants during Christmas can be tricky to find, especially when you are looking for a Western cuisine-based restaurant. If you are looking for just an elegant place to eat, JW Marriott, Kerry Pudong, Hotel Pelham’s at Waldorf Astoria, Atrium Cafe at The Hilton, and the Shangri La are great places to take your special someone or just your family for an amazing atmospheric Christmas dinner. For more restaurant ideas in Shanghai check China Highlights.

There are many amazing malls in Shanghai such as the Super Brand Mall or the Shanghai Time Square, which is in the heart of Shanghai. All malls are basically the same for Christmas, it’s the markets that you will need to go to see more Christmas spirit. The Christmas Designer Market at Shanghai Centre and the RCS Christmas Market at Marriot city center are great examples to shop and enjoy Christmas with your family.

Overall, Shanghai is a great place for families, couples, or even friends who are in China and want to celebrate Christmas at a cheaper cost. From Western cultured restaurants, hotels, activities, and festivals to more traditional Chinese culture mixed in with the Christmas spirit, Shanghai is a great, affordable city to stay, hang out, and relax during Christmas.