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Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Hall

The first city on my tour was Shanghai and the first site I visited in the city was the Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Hall. I have to admit I wasn't too thrilled about visiting it, but I have since changed my mind. I think it is the perfect beginning of any tour to Shanghai.

The Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Hall showcases Shanghai's past, present, and history. It gave me a better understanding of the city and its people that I would never have gotten by just visiting the city. It helped me understand how the city is laid out and how it developed in the metropolis it is today. The Hall's architecture is really cool and modern. It is located across from the Shanghai Museum. The hall is beautifully set up and very informative. It is famous for its models. The Hall has models giving visitors a view of Shanghai's past, present, and future. The second floor showcases Shanghai's past and has scale models of ancient buildings, many of which no longer stand. On the third floor is a huge scale model of Shanghai as it is now. Its details are astounding. It has every building currently existing in Shanghai. It even has the newest buildings in Shanghai on it. The new Shanghai World Financial Center building was in the model and it had only opened two days earlier. Every ten minutes or so the lights would dim and all of the windows and streetlights on the model would turn on. It was really cool! The details on each building were incredible. i wish I knew how they kept it updated. They have to have a bunch of people whose job it is to drive around the city looking for new construction. The fourth floor is dedicated to Shanghai's future and has models of the new airport and train terminals and all of the projects that Shanghai is currently working on. Shanghai is going to be the host of the 2010 World Expo and the Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Hall has a large display on it. There are models of what the entire expo will look like and also models of some of the different countries' buildings. The entire city is gearing up for the expo and are very proud of it and rightfully so. They are doing an incredible job. I have never been to a world expo and will definately be going to the one in Shanghai.

The hall really gave me a better understanding of Shanghai and made my experience in Shanghai a lot more fun. I really enjoyed it and I was sure I wouldn't. It was a nice surprise. If you are planning to visit Shanghai try to make sure that the Shanghai Urban Planning Exhhibition Hall is one of the first places you go. It will give you a much better understanding of Shanghai and you will enjoy your visit much more as a result.

Ticket Price:
Adults: 30rmb
Elderly: 15rmb
Children below 120cm: Free
Students: 15rmb
Disabled: 24rmb
Group Ticket (more than 20 people): 24rmb
Time Needed:
1 to 1.5 hours
Hours of Operation:
Monday thru Thursday 9:00-5:00
Friday thru Sunday 9:00-6:00

In September 2008 I was sent on an inspection tour with China Odyssey Tours. I am the Marketing Manager of China Odyssey Tours. No one is told that I work for the company, and since I am a foreigner I can experience a tour the way our customers do. That way I get the real experience without any VIP treatment. I check on the sites, hotels, restaurants, and guides to ensure that they all meet our rigid quality guidelines.

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Photos

Exterior of the hall
The building's architecture is pretty cool.

2010 World Expo Mascot
This little blue guy is the mascot for the world expo. He can be found throughout the city.

The Sculpture in the Lobby
This is the lobby and its centerpiece, the huge sculpture of Shanghai's architecture. The sculpture slowly revolves.

Looking down at the huge model
I took this photo of the model from the floor above. It is so big!

Another Shot of the Model
Sadly this photo doesn't really show the scale or detail of the model.

Comments

[Wonderful experience.]

I, a Chinese, have to say I learned a lot of Chinese stuff from you.