karmasalad

I'm having some trouble figuring out how many days I should allocate for the cities of Shanghai and HK for my upcoming trip to China.

Right now I have 2 days in HK, 5 days in Shanghai, with about 1.5 days taken out for Hangzhou (so about 3.5 in Shanghai itself).

Is Hangzhou worth visiting? I really like scenic vistas, especially those with lovely sunsets/rises, but I've read some posts saying Hangzhou might not be worth the time and effort.

Should I cut out Hangzhou altogteher? Or take a day from Shanghai for HK? Which city has more to see/do?

Neil_Oz

Purely my opinion, but I liked Suzhou more than Hangzhou, and it's closer to Shanghai. The lake and surrounds in Hangzhou are very pretty, but the city itself lacks character, unlike Suzhou.

You'll have no trouble filling in 3.5 days in Shanghai, depending on your interests. Just walking around the Bund and Nanjing East Road (Nanjing Dong Lu), the French Concession, the Old Town and nearby Dongtailu "antiques" market will keep you busy for a while.

cwn

HI,

Was there in the fall for the first. One day in Hong Kong, and two days in Shanghai, both are interesting and very different cities. If you have never been to either, you might like another day in Hong Kong. The air quality in Shanghai was very bad when we were there and it was a problem for both of us the second day. We could have easily filled three days in Hong Kong and you won't have trouble with finding things todo in Shanghai either. Have a good time!

travelfeet

Not sure what you are interested in doing. Shopping is great in both HK and Shanghai. Shanghai has more bootleg stuff, like bags, pashmina scarves, apparel, CDs, DVDs at the famous Xiang Yang Road Market. You can also find fabulous tailors in both cities. For suits and shirts, HK is better, but for Chinese-style apparel, Shanghai has better tailors.

If you are more interested in sight-seeing, neither city is particularly great for that. Both Hangzhou and Suzhou are more interesting in that aspect.

Have you ever heard of Zhou Zhuang? A canal town that is roughly an hour away from Shanghai by car. It has quickly gained popularity among the Chinese travelers in the last few years. Until recently, Zhou Zhuang has not been touched by modernization and has somehow managed to preserve many of its ancient traditions. You can find more information on http://www.zhouzhuang.com, which is maybe an indication that this place is getting way too popular.

This may be more worthwhile than Hangzhou, although Hangzhou is beautiful as well.

Hope this helps.

glorialf

Hangzhou and Souzhou are both wonderful. Either is definitely worth going to. I like Shanghai a lot but with your limited time I would say two days is about right. I'd say both Hong Kong and Shanghai have about the same amount to see and do. Shanghai has a great museum. If I were you I'd eliminate one of the cites and spend more do both Suzhou and Hangzhou.

LazyPaul

Unless you are planning to do a lot of brand name or boutique shopping, then 2 days in HK should be enough. You'll be able to hit all the major areas with a little time to hang out too. Major areas like: Victoria Peak, Star Ferry, Tsim Sha Tsui (& HK cultural center waterfront) and its environs for shopping/eating, Causeway Bay (for shopping/eating), MongKok (electronics, and women's street for street vendors), and LangkwaiFong for the restaurant/bar/clubs.

I would not stay 1.5 days in Hangzhou. The lake is nice and there is the famous resting place of a former general there (YueFeh) but I agree that the city itself is not that interesting. It's a nice day trip.

I also agree that you should hit ZhouZhuang (Chinese village on canals) and Suzhou. I was able to visit ZhouZhuang on the way back to Shanghai from Suzhou I believe (albeit it was getting late by the time I got there). I would suggest planning a little over 1/2 day for a trip out to ZhouZhuang if you want to visit separately.