So, I’ll be visiting Shanghai next week, and honestly, things have changed in China! Last time I was in Shanghai it was 2009… and then only for 2 nights. Back then they were redeveloping the Bund, so in some sense this will be my first time.
I have done my usual preparation: hotel is booked (in the central business district Pudong), verified that I don’t need a visa, and I have just renewed my passport. So far, so good.
Now comes the difficult part. VPN? Alipay?? Wechat? I have already downloaded and installed Alipay, and linked it to my credit card. I have also separately downloaded the ride hailing app Didi. What else? Airalo for e-sim? I’ll also go to Hong Kong for a week, is there an e-sim I can use for both? And what am I missing in terms of preparation?
Found these in the Michelin guide. I’ll be joined by my parents, so the focus will be more on proper restaurants than street food. We will also be visiting the club lounge restaurant in our hotel a lot so we don’t need to find that many places to eat.
Some questions. As I’ll also be going to HK and some restaurant chains have branches in both cities, eg Xinronjgi, should I choose HK or Shanghai? In terms of price and quality.
NordVPN did not work at all. I’ve read lots of good feedback on letsvpn and will most definitely preload it BEFORE next trip to China. Regardless, do the research and load a vpn that will work for you.
Airalo is great, have used in a few countries. Recently in PRC. There is a multi Asian option, but seems more $/GB than just getting a dedicated eSIM for each destination.
Didi was essential for us. Cost very reasonable. Range of car options. We mostly opted for the higher (not highest level.)
Gets you where you wanna go without the language communication confusion.
Looks like the weather will be pleasant in coming weeks. It was almost unbearably hot a couple months ago.
I had a great experience with Airalo, but that was in Spain. 30 days/5gb for $17 CAD, and I still came back with 1gb leftover after using it every day, all day for 2 weeks. YMMV in Shanghai tho…
Arrived yesterday. I can now confirm a few things.
Airalo works! Set up is relatively easy on my iphone 12 (was my first time installing an e sim). With Airalo you don’t even need a VPN to bypass the great Chinese firewall, but for hotel wifi you do need a VPN. And yes I tried letsvpn and it also works perfectly fine (thanks for the tip!!). But you must indeed install the VPN before arriving in China.
In real life it’s still (mostly) hit and miss. For example, you may be out on the street and google maps won’t load for a minute.
I’ve been using Didi through Alipay, and while so far 100% succesful, it is still a bit awkward sometimes. Some drivers don’t ask for payment, so you’ll get a reminder in your app the next time you open it. But I’ve also had drivers wanting me to prepay at the time of booking. Sometimes it can also be difficult to find correct addresses as there are often multiple places with more or less the same name.
Google maps: do note that Google is persona non grata in china. Understandable that it’s not the utility we’re so dependent on.
Didi: we’ve had similar experience. With some rides, one pays in the car at arrival. For others, one pays after the ride leaves. I understand that you can set up to pay upon ordering the ride, haven’t figured that method yet.
Didi pickup. Find a local “landmark”, any place with a name will do. Helpful if there is ez pull in pickup spot.
A big issue with google is that many places/restaurants aren’t there. You type in an address from say the michelin guide, and google maps shows you nothing but a grey wall from a nondescript building…
It’s fun though, makes life a bit more adventurous…
Didi works a treat though, despite the language barrier. I use the app through alipay and it shows just enough English to get by. But, also the drivers are flexible and nice. You know the problem: on which side of the road will the car stop to pick you up? With some basic messages through the app one can get by easily.
And it’s cheap indeed as you mentioned @Google_Gourmet - just paid 5 euro for a 15 min trip in a new and clean Tesla. The driver even had to stop for an alcohol test along the way, with many other drivers. Safety first!
Not sure if this is still helpful to you, but back in the day, Jesse at 41 tianping lu was the standard for Shanghainese food. Judging by photos I’ve seen, it looks like nothing has changed. Tofu skins stuffed with wild herbs, stuffed dates, crystal shrimp made with tiny river shrimp…
Also, for Cantonese, Shanghai Heng Shan Xiao Guan Hengshan Dian at 308 Hengshan Lu (between Wuxing and Gaoan Lu.) Again, not a recent rec but the pictures make it look like nothing has changed., FWIW. I have very specific memories of the roast goose, morning glory leaves, and the banana and red bean pancakes for dessert.
and then only for 2 nights. Back then they were redeveloping the Bund, so in some sense this will be my first time.
