🇨🇳 Shanghai · Living here

Weekend getaways in Shanghai

Places within easy reach of Shanghai, with how long they take, how to get there and what a weekend costs. Filter by time and mode.

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11 getaways from Shanghai

  • Suzhou

    30 min · Train

    Classical gardens, canals and the Pingjiang Road lanes, close enough for a day. The Humble Administrator's Garden needs a booked ticket.

    Stay
    Day trip / 1 night
    Per person
    ¥100–¥700
    High-speed train from Shanghai or Hongqiao station, several an hour
    All year; spring and autumn are best

  • Zhujiajiao water town

    1 h · Train, Car

    Canals, stone bridges and a Ming-era street of snack stalls, reachable on the metro. Go on a weekday morning before the tour groups.

    Stay
    Day trip
    Per person
    ¥40–¥200
    Metro Line 17 from Hongqiao to Zhujiajiao station
    Spring and autumn

  • Hangzhou and West Lake

    1 h · Train, Car

    A lake ringed by hills and causeways, tea villages at Longjing and cycling around the shore. Avoid the national holidays, when it is shoulder to shoulder.

    Stay
    1–2 nights
    Per person
    ¥400–¥1,500
    High-speed train from Hongqiao to Hangzhou East, every few minutes
    Spring and autumn

  • Nanjing

    1 h 10 min · Train

    A former capital with the Ming city wall, Purple Mountain and its tombs, and a long, sobering memorial museum.

    Stay
    1–2 nights
    Per person
    ¥400–¥1,300
    High-speed train from Hongqiao or Shanghai station
    Spring and autumn; summers are very hot

  • Chongming Island

    1 h 30 min · Car, Bus

    Flat farmland, wetlands for birdwatching and cycling routes, within the city's limits but nothing like the city.

    Stay
    Day trip / 1 night
    Per person
    ¥100–¥600
    Bus or car through the Yangtze tunnel and bridge
    Spring and autumn

  • Wuzhen

    2 h · Car, Bus, Train

    A restored canal town that comes into its own after dark, when the day visitors leave and the West Scenic Zone lights up.

    Stay
    1 night
    Per person
    ¥500–¥1,500
    Bus from the Shanghai South long-distance station, or train to Tongxiang and a taxi
    All year; misty and atmospheric in winter

  • Moganshan

    2 h 30 min · Car, Train

    Bamboo forest, old stone villas and boutique guesthouses on a hill station where Shanghai has escaped the summer heat for a century.

    Stay
    1–2 nights
    Per person
    ¥800–¥2,500
    Train to Deqing and a car up the mountain, or a hired car all the way
    Late spring to autumn

  • Qiandao Lake

    2 h 30 min · Train, Car

    A reservoir with more than a thousand forested islands, cycling paths along the shore and clean air.

    Stay
    1–2 nights
    Per person
    ¥600–¥1,800
    High-speed train from Hongqiao to Qiandaohu station
    Spring to autumn

  • Huangshan

    3 h · Train

    Granite peaks above the clouds, pines and stone steps, with a night on the summit for the sunrise. Nearby Hongcun and Xidi are Huizhou villages of whitewashed houses.

    Stay
    2–3 nights
    Per person
    ¥1,200–¥3,000
    High-speed train to Huangshan North, then a bus to the mountain
    Spring and autumn; book summit hotels ahead

  • Putuoshan

    4 h · Bus, Ferry

    A Buddhist island of temples, beaches and seafood, one of China's four sacred mountains. Calmer outside the pilgrimage dates.

    Stay
    1–2 nights
    Per person
    ¥800–¥2,000
    Coach to Zhoushan, then a short ferry across to the island
    Late spring and early autumn

  • Beijing

    4 h 30 min · Train, Flight

    The Forbidden City, hutongs and a section of the Great Wall. The train is as fast as flying once airports are counted.

    Stay
    2–4 nights
    Per person
    ¥2,000–¥5,000
    High-speed train from Hongqiao, about four and a half hours
    Spring and autumn

Budgets are per person for the whole trip: return travel, a mid-range double room shared, and food.