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Indie Travel Guides

Shanghai

Independent hotel guides, travel articles, and travel videos for Shanghai.

Hotel guides

Travel videos

Attaché

youtube.com

Attaché is a travel channel series hosted by Alex Hunter, exploring cities through food, culture, history, and destination-focused travel guides.

This Shanghai travel guide video draws on five days in the city, offering a thoughtful mix of sights, sounds, stories, and food coverage.

Creative Travel Guide

youtube.com

Creative Travel Guide is a travel channel from a British couple sharing travel vlogs, travel advice, hotel tours, hacks, and destination guides.

This guide video is a practical roundup of ten things to do in Shanghai, including the Oriental Pearl Tower, People's Square, Nanjing Road, the Bund, temples, museums, and Shanghai Disneyland.

Wolters World

youtube.com

Wolters World is a travel channel focused on first-hand destination advice, including culture, planning, budgeting, safety, and travel expectations.

This Shanghai sightseeing video outlines visitor attractions such as Yuyuan Gardens, the Bund, and skyscraper views, making it a good quick orientation to the city.

Syifa Adriana

youtube.com

Syifa Adriana is a YouTube travel channel from a UK-based solo travel vlogger focused on culture, history, daily life, and context.

This solo travel vlog offers a personal Shanghai, China visit video for viewers interested in a creator-led perspective on the city.

Joel and Emilia

youtube.com

Joel and Emilia is a travel channel by Joel Friend and Emilia Beattie, documenting their travels and remote-place adventures together.

This Shanghai vlog follows their first day in the city and their attempt to use a 144-hour transit visa on arrival, giving the video a useful travel-process angle.

denniscallan

youtube.com

denniscallan is a travel channel featuring travel videos from Europe, South America, the United States, Asia, and other destinations.

This walking video shows downtown Shanghai along Nanjing and Fuzhou Roads, with shops, food, color, and pedestrians creating a useful street-level view.

Jason Billam Travel

youtube.com

Jason Billam Travel is a travel channel by a British traveller exploring the world full-time since 2017.

This Shanghai travel video focuses on the skyline from the Bund, giving a strong final city stop before the wider China journey continues by overnight train to Chongqing.

Travel articles & blogs

ViaTravelers
Travel guide

ViaTravelers is a travel media and planning site combining destination guides with structured trip-planning and comparison tools. Their Shanghai guide gives a useful city overview through the skyline, Bund, art scene, dining, and the contrast between colonial and modern architecture.

Visit Shanghai, China — Travel Guide (2026)

Shanghai stands as China's glittering showcase of modernity and ambition. This global financial hub dazzles with its futuristic skyline

viatravelers.com/destinations/shanghai/

Lonely Planet
Travel guide

Lonely Planet is a major travel-publishing brand offering professionally edited destination guides, travel articles, guidebooks, and planning services. Their Shanghai guide is a well-rounded resource for attractions, museums, street food, dining tips, river cruises, and places to visit.

Shanghai travel - Lonely Planet | China, Asia

Explore Shanghai holidays and discover the best time and places to visit.

lonelyplanet.com/destinations/china/shanghai

Wild Junket
Travel guide

Wild Junket is an adventure and experiential travel blog known for detailed destination guides and offbeat travel coverage. Their five-day Shanghai itinerary is a helpful choice for first-time visitors who want to organize major sights into a short city stay.

My 5-Day Shanghai Itinerary for First Timers

Check out our 5-day Shanghai itinerary and see all the must-see spots in Shanghai you should visit during your 5 days in Shanghai.

wildjunket.com/5-day-shanghai-itinerary/

Y Travel Blog
Travel guide

Y Travel Blog is a travel blog covering destination guides, family travel, travel advice, and practical trip inspiration. Their Shanghai things-to-do article gives practical inspiration across eating, sleeping, drinking, shopping, and exploring the city.

19 Exciting Things To Do In Shanghai, China

Here are our insider travel tips on things to do in Shanghai, including where to eat, sleep, drink, shop, explore and more!

ytravelblog.com/things-to-do-in-shanghai/

The Broke Backpacker
Travel guide

The Broke Backpacker is an adventure and budget-travel site focused on backpacking, low-cost travel, gear, hostels, and long-term travel. Their Shanghai itinerary offers a practical, insider-framed route for travelers trying to see the city's main offerings efficiently.

The Broke Backpacker: Shanghai Itinerary

Read the guide at thebrokebackpacker.com/shanghai-itinerary/.

thebrokebackpacker.com/shanghai-itinerary/

The Planet D
Travel guide

The Planet D is an adventure-travel blog combining destination guides, itineraries, travel tips, photography, and personal adventure stories. Their Shanghai attractions list is a useful planning aid for balancing observation decks, shopping streets, and quieter retreat-style places.

24 Top Things to Do in Shanghai, China

Shanghai is one of the most populous cities in the world with a population of about 26.32 million as of 2019. There are so many things to do in Shanghai,

theplanetd.com/things-to-do-in-shanghai-china/

Goats On The Road
Travel guide

Goats On The Road is a travel guide site and travel-lifestyle resource focused on long-term travel and location-independent work. Their list of ten things to do in Shanghai helps visitors make sense of a large, busy, and varied city.

Top 10 Things To Do In Shanghai - Goats On The Road

There are so many things to do in Shanghai! We’ve been to this massive city 10 times over the last 14 months of living and travelling in China. We love this big, bustling metropolis and all it has to offer. There are over 23 million people in Shanghai, from all walks of life. It’s a very ... Read more

goatsontheroad.com/top-10-things-to-do-in-shanghai/

Going Awesome Places
Travel guide

Going Awesome Places is an itinerary-focused travel brand built around detailed guides, trip routes, and practical planning resources. Their Shanghai top-ten guide is a good fit for first-time visitors planning how to approach the city within a broader China trip.

Top 10 Things To Do in Shanghai

To help plan your trip to China, here are the 10 things to do in Shanghai. This is the perfect travel guide especially for those that are first timers.

goingawesomeplaces.com/top-10-things-to-do-in-shanghai/

The Blonde Abroad
Travel guide

The Blonde Abroad is a solo female travel and lifestyle blog focused on stylish, practical travel planning for women. Their local-style Shanghai guide adds useful perspective from two years of expatriate experience in the city.

A Local's Guide to Shanghai, China • The Blonde Abroad

This seasoned ex-pat spent 2 years living in Shanghai and giving and insider's look into visiting with this local's guide!

theblondeabroad.com/locals-guide-to-shanghai-china/

NOMADasaurus
Travel guide

NOMADasaurus is an adventure travel and photography blog covering destination guides, sustainable tourism, gear, and visual storytelling. Their step-by-step Shanghai visa-extension guide is a practical resource for handling office location, required documents, and process details.

Extending Your Chinese Visa In Shanghai | NOMADasaurus

A step-by-step guide on extending your Chinese visa in Shanghai, complete with how to find the PSB office, what documents you need and what the process is.

nomadasaurus.com/extending-your-chinese-visa-in-shanghai/

The Travel Bunny
Travel guide

The Travel Bunny is a budget and slow-travel blog focused on affordable adventures, practical planning advice, and destination articles. Their Shanghai places-to-visit article is a helpful sightseeing guide for choosing things to do around the city.

Best Places To Visit In Shanghai 2026: A Blend Of Past And Future

Best places to visit in Shanghai China. Some of the best places to visit in China and must see places in Shanghai. Top things to do around Shanghai on vacation.

the-travel-bunny.com/best-places-to-visit-in-shanghai-china/

Finding the Universe
Travel guide

Finding the Universe is a travel and photography blog focused on practical trip planning, travel stories, and visual destination guides. Their Shanghai stopover story is useful for travelers weighing whether to go from the airport into the city during a short layover.

Shanghai for a day - Finding the Universe

Our trip to New Zealand is a bit of a mammoth venture, going via both Shanghai and Sydney, with fairly lengthy stopovers in both. Since we were in Shanghai for 13 hours, it seemed to make sense to pop into town and take a look around. The trip from the airport into Shanghai was a […]

findingtheuniverse.com/shanghai-for-day/

Girl Eat World
Travel guide

Girl Eat World is Melissa's one-woman food and travel blog, publishing food stories, itineraries, and practical destination advice. Her Huanghe Road article is a helpful food-focused guide to what to eat on one of Shanghai's food streets.

Shanghai Food: What to eat at Shanghai's Food Streer Huanghe Road — Girl Eat World

A foodie experience in one of Shanghai's food streets.

girleatworld.net/shanghai-food-street-huanghe-road/

Ottsworld
Travel guide

OttsWorld is Sherry Ott's travel blog and travel services site, focused on solo travel, active trips, and practical travel advice. Her Shanghai shopping article is a good pick for travelers looking beyond standard retail toward more distinctive finds in the city.

Same Same and Finding Something Different in Shanghai

Do they call it China Town in China? In the shopping mecca of Shanghai - you have to search, but it is possible to find hidden gems.

ottsworld.com/blogs/shanghai-shopping-something-different/

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