Landmark
The Bund
Historic waterfront promenade featuring 52 colonial-era buildings and stunning views of Pudong skyline.
24/7 (outdoor)
Free
Shanghai became a county in 1292 during the Yuan dynasty, but its global story began much later. In 1843, after the Treaty of Nanjing, Shanghai opened as a treaty port. British, American, and French settlements developed along the Huangpu River, creating the banking houses, warehouses, clubs, and civic buildings that later formed the Bund's famous architectural corridor.
By the 1920s and 1930s, Shanghai was one of Asia's most cosmopolitan cities, known for publishing, cinema, finance, department stores, jazz clubs, and dense lilong neighborhoods. In 1949, the city entered a new socialist industrial period, becoming one of China's most important manufacturing and commercial bases. A second transformation began in 1990, when the central government announced the development and opening-up of Pudong.
The 1990 establishment of the Shanghai Stock Exchange and the rapid construction of Lujiazui reshaped Shanghai's role in national finance. In 2010, the World Expo brought global attention to the city's waterfront renewal, and in 2013 the China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone was launched. Since 2018, the China International Import Expo has further reinforced Shanghai's identity as a gateway for trade, services, and international exchange.