Nanjing Lu (Nanjing Road)

Nanjing Road is China's most famous shopping street, a heaving, dazzling commercial artery running from the historic Bund toward central Shanghai. Its eastern stretch is a pedestrianised promenade lined with department stores, malls, neon signs, and global and Chinese brands, packed day and night with shoppers and a small tourist 'train' trundling along it. It's less about specific sights than the spectacle of modern Chinese consumer energy, especially after dark when the lights blaze.

The real reward is using it as a walking spine: stroll east and it delivers you to the Bund and the riverside skyline view; the side streets hide older shops and food. It's crowded and commercial, but an essential slice of Shanghai's buzz, and the after-dark neon is a sight in itself.

Don't miss

• The pedestrianised, neon-lit shopping promenade
• Historic department stores and modern malls
• The after-dark light spectacle
• Its walk down to the Bund and the riverside skyline
• People-watching amid Shanghai's commercial energy

Tickets & tours

Ways to visit Nanjing Lu (Nanjing Road)

Cheapest way inNanjing Private English Tour Guide Service5★ · 13 travelers~8 hoursFree cancellationFrom$75 per personSee dates →Best full dayFlexible Private Nanjing City Highlights Day Tour5★ · 64 travelers6–8 hoursFree cancellationFrom$150 per personSee dates →

Good for

How travelers rate it

Know before you go

• Use it as a walking route to the Bund, the eastern end delivers you to the river.
• After dark is when the neon makes it most spectacular.
• Expect crowds and persistent touts; a polite firm 'no' works.
• Duck into side streets for older shops and cheaper food.

A bit of history

Nanjing Road developed from the mid-19th century in the foreign concession era into Shanghai's premier shopping street, home to the city's first modern department stores. The eastern section was pedestrianised in the 1990s, cementing its status as a commercial showpiece.