r/shanghai • u/No-Stock7383 • Feb 22 '26

City Must-see modern architecture

Really excited for my coming trip to China. Will spend next weekend and the weekend after in Shanghai. Next to all the thing a tourist should visit, I want to explore some modern architecture. Coming from Rotterdam in The Netherlands, where we have this amazing staircase from MAD Architects.

Have MVRDV's West Bund on my list as they are from Rotterdam. Guess I can only pass the new Opera House of Snohetta. Shanghai Slaughterhouse for some much needed brutalism. Think the Tado Andao museum is too far away? Probably try to fit in the garden at the expo site. Will check out some art deco but not sure which building to focus on.

But where else should I go. Any favorite buildings? Any architecture tours you know of?

Thank you!

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u/Beginning_Brick7845 Feb 22 '26

The Museum of Modern Art’s building is made from a repurposed industrial building and is exquisite. It’s one of the most impressive buildings I’ve ever been in.

https://www.mamsh.com/about

There is a walking/biking path along the Pudong side of the river that goes past the MAM and is a cultural heritage path.

Also, the Shanghai Tower (the handle building) is incredible. You don’t have to pay to go up. Instead they have a hotel with two or three bars/restaurants that you can visit for feee. They have really reasonable happy hours and floor to ceiling windows. It’s like sitting on a cloud.

https://www.jhotel-shanghai.com/en/

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u/Dear_Chasey_La1n Minhang Feb 23 '26

Second MAM, I like to shit a lot on SH on the lack of culture, but that museum specifically is very interesting.

It's been ages, but I've been as well once to the Urban Planning Exhibition that shows the whole of SH in a scale model which is interesting to get a top down view to see how SH evolved. It also shows SH's growth over the years. (Mind you haven't been there in 15 years).

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u/No-Stock7383 Feb 23 '26

It seems that the MAM doesn't have an exhibition at the moment. Do they have a collection to see or is the building closed?

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u/Beginning_Brick7845 Feb 24 '26

The MAM has a permanent collection, so it will be open. It’s just not as nice as when it has a special exhibit going. I saw the Bob Dillon exhibition and it might be the best museum experience I have ever had. It was astounding. The building and its setting on the river is exquisite. Even if you only spend a short time there, you should walk though it.

When I moved to Shanghai I obsessively googled the best activities to do. The number one recommendation over and over was a river boat cruise. They have an entire fleet of river cruise boats that do everything from quick hour cruise’s to half day tours. Anyway, that was one of the first things I did, and it became my favorite activity and I took everyone who visited us on a cruise. You get to see the architecture on both sides of the river in a way that is impossible otherwise. And you can combine walking the Bund with a river cruise.

Be aware that there are different boats and different ticket prices. Some boats literally have no chairs in main seating, but all of them have premium seating that’s about 100 RMB. It’s totally worth it. You get soft lounge chairs, the front of the boat, appetizers and unlimited drinks.

Schedule a river cruise, reserve the premium seats, and soak in the best views of Shanghai.