Shanghai Expo Culture Park is located in the Pudong New Area of Shanghai, on the bank of the Huangpu River. Bounded by Expo Avenue to the east, Tongyao Road to the south, Rihui Port to the west and the Huangpu River to the north, it is a large urban park integrating ecological recreation, cultural inheritance and public leisure. The park has a total planned area of about 2 square kilometers (200 hectares), including approximately 1.3 square kilometers of land and 0.7 square kilometers of water area. Leveraging the precious heritage of the 2010 Shanghai World Expo, the park has been renovated and upgraded, retaining and activating some iconic buildings of the Expo site while integrating ecological restoration and cultural exhibition functions, making it one of the largest riverside park green spaces in Shanghai's central urban area. The buildings in the park not only preserve the industrial heritage and the style of iconic venues from the Expo era, but also add supporting buildings meeting the needs of modern ecology and culture. The total construction area of the entire building complex is about 100,000 square meters, which balances historical memory with modern functions and forms a unique scenic feature of "ecological foundation + cultural core + leisure experience".
History and Culture
The site of Shanghai Expo Culture Park carries multiple layers of historical memory. Its predecessor was part of the Pudong section of the 2010 Shanghai World Expo, the first comprehensive World Expo held in a developing country. It attracted 246 countries and international organizations from around the world to participate, with the number of visitors exceeding 73 million, making it a milestone event in the history of the World Expo. After the conclusion of the World Expo, the Shanghai Municipal Party Committee and the Shanghai Municipal People's Government decided to preserve the core area of the Expo site and plan the construction of Expo Culture Park on this basis, aiming to carry forward the Expo spirit and turn this land bearing the memory of the times into an urban public space with ecological, cultural and leisure functions.
In addition to the Expo memory, this area has also witnessed the industrial transformation of Shanghai's riverside zone. Before becoming the Expo site, it was home to industrial enterprises such as Shanghai No.3 Iron and Steel Works, being an important microcosm of the development of modern industry in Shanghai. During the construction of Expo Culture Park, industrial heritage elements such as steelmaking blast furnaces and old factory building structures have been fully preserved, organically integrating industrial history, Expo culture with the ecological construction of modern cities. This forms a unique historical and cultural context, which not only preserves the urban industrial memory but also inherits the open, inclusive and innovative spirit of the Expo.
Major Scenic Spots
Shen Garden
Shen Garden is the core Jiangnan classical garden in Expo Culture Park, covering an area of about 5 hectares. Drawing on the gardening techniques of classical gardens in Shanghai and the Jiangnan region, the garden features typical Jiangnan garden elements such as "mountains, waters, pavilions, terraces, towers, halls, corridors and verandas", and is divided into four sections: North Mountain, South Water, East Garden and West Courtyard, replicating the elegant artistic conception of Jiangnan gardens. Gather the architectural styles of Jiangnan gardens in the Ming and Qing dynasties, the total construction area of the garden is about 3,000 square meters, including more than ten main buildings such as Hanbi Hall, Zuihong Xuan and Qinghe Hall. It is the largest and highest-spec classical garden in Shanghai's central urban area, serving as an important carrier for displaying Jiangnan garden culture.
Twin Peaks
Twin Peaks is an artificial mountain landscape in Expo Culture Park and also the first artificial nature-like mountain forest in Shanghai's central urban area. The highest point of the mountain is about 48 meters, with a total area of about 14 hectares, of which the green coverage area exceeds 12 hectares. Adopting an eco-friendly construction method, Twin Peaks uses the resource utilization of construction waste from the Expo site and urban construction as the mountain base. Nearly a thousand species of native arbor, shrub and ground cover plants are planted on the mountain, forming a multi-level mountain vegetation landscape. Climbing to the top, visitors can overlook the Huangpu River scenery and the whole view of the park, making it a unique mountain viewing spot on Shanghai's riverside.
Expo Garden
Expo Garden preserves some landscape relics from the 2010 Shanghai World Expo, covering an area of about 8 hectares. The garden retains part of the landscape structure of the "Expo Axis" and the characteristic plant landscapes of various national pavilions from the Expo era, and adds flower exhibition areas and leisure lawns at the same time. The garden also sets up Expo memory exhibition nodes, displaying iconic exhibits and graphic materials from the Expo era, allowing visitors to relive the history of the Expo event and serving as the core area for inheriting Expo culture.
Shanghai Greenhouse Garden
Shanghai Greenhouse Garden is a characteristic science popularization venue in Expo Culture Park, with a construction area of about 8,000 square meters, being a large-scale comprehensive plant greenhouse in the Yangtze River Delta region. The greenhouse is divided into multiple exhibition areas such as the tropical plant area, subtropical plant area, succulent plant area, fern and moss plant area, collecting and displaying more than 2,000 species of rare plants from around the world. It integrates the functions of plant science popularization, display and protection, serving as an important window for the public to understand plant diversity.
Riverside Promenade
Expo Culture Park has a Huangpu River riverside promenade of about 3.3 kilometers long, being an important part of Shanghai's Huangpu River riverside public space. The entire riverside area is open to the public, equipped with footpaths, bicycle lanes, water-friendly platforms and other facilities, with supporting facilities such as landscape seats and river viewing stations distributed along the line. It not only preserves the riverside industrial heritage style from the Expo era, but also creates an ecological riverside landscape, being an excellent area for the public to take a leisure walk and enjoy the river scenery.
Tour Route
Recommended one-day tour route covering the core scenic spots of Expo Culture Park: Enter from Gate 1 of the park (the entrance of Expo Avenue), first visit Expo Garden, which takes about 1 hour to relive the Expo history and characteristic plant landscapes; walk for about 10 minutes to Shen Garden to experience the beauty of Jiangnan classical garden in an immersive way, with a suggested visiting time of 1.5 hours, and you can rest and taste tea in Qinghe Hall in the garden; exit from the north gate of Shen Garden, walk for about 15 minutes to Twin Peaks, climb the mountain trail to the top for viewing, which takes about 1 hour for visiting and climbing; after going down the mountain, walk for about 10 minutes to Shanghai Greenhouse to visit various rare plants, which takes about 1 hour; finally walk slowly along the Riverside Promenade, go west all the way along the riverside footpath to enjoy the Huangpu River scenery and the whole view of the park, which takes about 1.5 hours, and finally leave from Gate 3 of the park (the entrance of Tongyao Road). The total walking distance of the whole route is about 6 kilometers with a slow pace, allowing you to fully experience the ecological, cultural and landscape characteristics of the park.
Travel Tips
- The best time to visit is spring and autumn. Various flowers are in full bloom in Shen Garden from March to April in spring, and the vegetation of Twin Peaks is rich in color from October to November in autumn. The temperature is pleasant, suitable for long outdoor activities;
- It is recommended to visit Shen Garden during off-peak hours. There are fewer visitors within 1 hour after the garden opens at 9:00 every day or after 15:00, which is convenient for taking photos and visiting in an immersive way;
- It is recommended to climb to the top of Twin Peaks on a sunny morning with high visibility, where you can clearly overlook the Huangpu River and urban landscapes such as Lujiazui and Nanpu Bridge;
- It is recommended to wear comfortable walking shoes when visiting. The park covers a large area, and the daily walking distance for visiting is about 5-8 kilometers;
- You can bring a picnic mat and have a simple meal and rest in the leisure lawn area of Expo Garden, which is open from 9:00 to 17:00 every day;
- The temperature inside Shanghai Greenhouse is relatively high (maintained at 25-30℃ all year round), so it is recommended to bring a thin coat when visiting to avoid discomfort caused by temperature difference.
Notes
- Pets are not allowed to enter the park (except guide dogs and other working dogs), and camping and barbecuing are prohibited in non-designated areas;
- Climbing ancient buildings, picking flowers and trees, and using drones for aerial photography are prohibited in Shen Garden;
- Cycling is prohibited on the mountain trail of Twin Peaks, and smoking is prohibited in the mountain area. Bringing fire sources into the mountain is strictly prohibited during the forest fire prevention period (from November to April of the next year);
- Please pay attention to safety in the water-friendly platform area of the Riverside Promenade. Climbing over guardrails is prohibited, and children must be accompanied by adults when playing;
- Making loud noises is prohibited in all venues and scenic spots of the park to keep the public environment quiet;
- Waste sorting and disposal is implemented in the park, with four types of trash cans for recyclables, residual waste, food waste and hazardous waste. Please discard waste according to the requirements;
- In case of extreme weather (heavy rain, typhoon, high temperature red warning, etc.), some areas of the park (such as Twin Peaks and Riverside Footpath) may be temporarily closed. Please pay attention to the official announcement of the park before traveling.
Transportation
- Metro: Take Shanghai Metro Line 13 to Expo Avenue Station (Exit 4), walk for about 5 minutes to reach Gate 1 of the park; take Shanghai Metro Line 7 to Houtan Station (Exit 1), walk for about 8 minutes to reach Gate 2 of the park;
- Bus: Take Bus No.1030, 177 or 82 to Expo Avenue Shangnan Road Station, get off to reach Gate 1 of the park directly; take Pudong Bus No.36 to Tongyao Road Yaolong Road Station, walk for about 3 minutes to reach Gate 3 of the park;
- Self-driving: The park has an underground parking lot with the entrance near Shangnan Road on Expo Avenue;
- Cycling: Shanghai's non-motor vehicle lanes lead directly to all entrances and exits of the park. There are non-motor vehicle parking areas in the park, and shared bikes are not allowed to enter;
- Ferry: Take the Huangpu River ferry to South Wharf Ferry Terminal, walk for about 15 minutes to reach the entrance of the riverside area of the park.
Opening Hours
Daily from 5:00 to 22:00, with different opening hours for various scenic spots in the park: Shen Garden is open daily from 9:00 to 17:00 (admission stops at 16:30); Shanghai Greenhouse is open daily from 9:00 to 17:00 (admission stops at 16:30) and closed every Monday (except legal holidays); the mountain trail of Twin Peaks is open from 5:00 to 22:00, consistent with the overall opening hours of the park; Expo Garden and the Riverside Promenade are open in sync with the overall opening hours of the park.
Tickets
Open to the public for free. Tickets are required for Shanghai Greenhouse Garden, starting from 98 RMB per person. You can search for "上海世博文化公园" on WeChat to get the latest updates or buy tickets online.
Online Booking
Click here to jump to the Trip.com ticketing platform for ticket purchase.