Fodor's Pocket Shanghai, 1st Edition: What to See and Do If You Can't Stay Long (Fodor's Pocket Guide to Shanghai) [Paperback]

Fodor's (Author)

Book Description

Series: Fodor's Pocket Guide to Shanghai | Publication Date: May 26, 1998

Pocket Guides are designed for leisure and business travelers who want the highlights of a
destination. They contain full, rich descriptions of the best a destination has to offer -- the most
worthy sights, the best restaurants and lodging in all price ranges, plus shopping, nightlife, and
outdoors highlights.



The best of Shanghai -- with all the essentials
Walking tours along the Bund, in the old French Concession, in the former Jewish quarter
Important Buddhist temples, world-class art museums
River cruises, garden walks, tai chi in the parks
Golf courses, gyms, tennis courts, swimming pools
Sizzling nightlife, from Chinese opera and Shanghai acrobats to nightclubs and karaoke
Great shopping in antiques markets, street bazaars, department stores, and arts and crafts emporiums



Where to stay and eat, no matter what your budget
Modern high-rises, traditional guest houses, historic Art Deco masterpieces
The top hotel restaurants, dining rooms with views, cafés, traditional Chinese mahogany-and-marble salons




Endorsed by the American Society of Travel Agents


Pocket Shanghai is excerpted from Fodor's China



"Fodor's can't be beat." -- Gannett News Service


"Fodor's always delivers high quality...thoughtfully presented...thorough." -- Houston Post


"Packed with dependable information." -- Atlanta Journal-Constitution


"An excellent choice for people who want everything under one cover." -- Washington Post

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

Pocket Guides are designed for leisure and business travelers who want the highlights of a
destination. They contain full, rich descriptions of the best a destination has to offer -- the most
worthy sights, the best restaurants and lodging in all price ranges, plus shopping, nightlife, and
outdoors highlights.



The best of Shanghai -- with all the essentials
Walking tours along the Bund, in the old French Concession, in the former Jewish quarter
Important Buddhist temples, world-class art museums
River cruises, garden walks, tai chi in the parks
Golf courses, gyms, tennis courts, swimming pools
Sizzling nightlife, from Chinese opera and Shanghai acrobats to nightclubs and karaoke
Great shopping in antiques markets, street bazaars, department stores, and arts and crafts emporiums



Where to stay and eat, no matter what your budget
Modern high-rises, traditional guest houses, historic Art Deco masterpieces
The top hotel restaurants, dining rooms with views, cafés, traditional Chinese mahogany-and-marble salons




Endorsed by the American Society of Travel Agents


Pocket Shanghai is excerpted from Fodor's China



"Fodor's can't be beat." -- Gannett News Service


"Fodor's always delivers high quality...thoughtfully presented...thorough." -- Houston Post


"Packed with dependable information." -- Atlanta Journal-Constitution


"An excellent choice for people who want everything under one cover." -- Washington Post

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

City on the Sea



Shanghai -- literally "City on the Sea" -- has in the 1990s become the center of China's economic
resurgence.  Shanghai's allure begins with its glamorous past of sepia-lit halls, opium dens and French
villas. A gathering of cultures, it was once a place where rich taipans walked the same streets as
gamblers, prostitutes, and beggars, and Europeans fleeing the holocaust lived alongside Chinese
intellectuals and revolutionaries.



Today's Shanghai is a metropolis of 13 million.  It is the New York City of China. Nowhere else in
the country can you feel the same pulse, dynamism, and fervor.  Unlike sprawling Beijing, Shanghai is
a true city laid out on a grid. It is one of the world's most crowded urban areas.



Foreign influence has made today's Shanghai a Chinese consumer heaven. Domestic stores rub
shoulders with the boutiques of Louis Vuitton, Christian Dior, and Ralph Lauren. Shanghainese women
are among the most fashionable in China, having abandoned Mao's blue uniforms.  Among the youth, mobile
phones and pagers are de rigueur, essential accessories for their newfound stylish image.

In Shanghai, it's all about image, and the owner of the highest-priced goods goes home the winner.
It is not surprising then that the Shanghainese enjoy one of the highest living standards
in China.  Higher salaries, more goods, and more and more venues for entertainment, nightlife, and
culture complement the lives of China's most cosmopolitan and open people.

Product Details

• Paperback: 164 pages
• Publisher: Fodor's (May 26, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0679000380
• ISBN-13: 978-0679000389
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.2 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 2.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,274,861 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Really is a pocket guide, May 19, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Fodor's Pocket Shanghai, 1st Edition: What to See and Do If You Can't Stay Long (Fodor's Pocket Guide to Shanghai) (Paperback)

As the title implies, it can fit in your pocket. However, as such, it doesn't contain much information. I'd stick with the bigger guide to all of China or to the cityguide, which is an extract of Shanghai and Suzhou from the main guide to all of China.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Very Out of Date and Incomplete, June 14, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Fodor's Pocket Shanghai, 1st Edition: What to See and Do If You Can't Stay Long (Fodor's Pocket Guide to Shanghai) (Paperback)

I spent two months in Shanghai this year and found this book to be totally out of date and full of erroneous and incomplete information. Virtually every phone number was wrong (I called the number for the Shanghai Acrobats and it was someone's home, I went to the location listed and it was a supermarket; I called every travel agency listed to arrange for travel tickets and all were wrong as well), information such as extending a tourist visa was incomplete, information about the easy to use subway was lacking. Many fun things to do are not mentioned (try seeing the Shanghai Sharks if you enjoy basketball or visit Circus World) and it never mentions many of the fabulous local restaurants but instead focuses on tourist and western style restaurants. It reports that shopping in not good, but I found the shopping to be excellent if you know where to go and this book is no help at all. Bottom line, wait until it is updated.