East Nanjing Road's bustling pedestrian avenue lies between East Zhongshan Road and Middle Xizang Road. Visitors can easily spend an entire day leisurely making their way from some of the country's oldest department stores and cultural sites to the center of the Shanghai Bund, where the world famous Peace Hotel stands.
East Nanjing Road is one half of Nanjing Road. Together, East Nanjing Road and West Nanjing Road combine to offer visitors over 5 kilometers of shopping, restaurants and entertainment. The famed road dates back to the 1800s and has played an important part in the development of the city, and draws crowds of over one million people per day.
From the 1800s to mid-1900s it was a bustling part of the international settlement of Shanghai, making it a popular place to see and be seen. East Nanjing Road's European-style architecture and cafes, as well as its exciting horse races were a favorite past time of residents at the time. After World War II, a considerable amount had changed in the city of Shanghai, and as a result, the entirety of Nanjing Road did as well.
While it has since retained so much of its European charm, the race track gave way to huge department stores, some of which still remain today. Currently, visitors can find a range of luxury stores, shops offering beautiful silk scarves and garments, fine jewelry shops such as The Old Phoenixes (老凤祥), which has been around for a century and a half, and countless food stores selling a wide array of traditional treats. Try some of the local favorites such as the smoked fish and fresh pork mooncakes from Lao Da Fang (老大房), or Shao Wan Sheng (邵万生) a shop that specializes in wine-preserved food from neighboring cities Ningbo and Shaoxing.
For the full experience, visit around sunset, when the street lights up with glittering signs all around. You'll never forget this historical, one of a kind shopping experience in Shanghai.
