is it better shopping in beijing or shanghai
 

I realize this will depend on what you want to buy but we were trying to decide if we start at Beijing or Shanghai on our trip and thought if the shopping is better in Shanghai perhaps we should leave that to the end of the trip instead of carting whatever we purchase around China. Also we are not planning on going to Hong Kong so can you still get clothes made in Shanghai or Beijing and any suggestions.
Thank you.

I did not find either city to be particularly good for tailoring. But perhaps I did not go to the right places..the easy-to-find tailoring shops seemed to offer few bargains and choosing fabric means dealing with all kinds of potential deceptions..

If you are looking for "antiques" or decorative items for the home, Beijing has the edge, in my opinion. Especially if you can get to the weekend "dirt market." I now have valuable life experience gleaned from carting a 3-foot-tall wooden acupuncture figure on the train with me from Beijing to Shanghai and then back to the US.


Hard to say more without knowing what you are looking for.

As both Beijing and Shanghai offer almost the same stuff to buy, I'd say definitely Shanghai if you are going to take off there.