Shanghai City Walk Guide: Nanjing West Road [EP.3]

Many people are probably familiar with Nanjing Road as one of Shanghai’s most famous streets. But what many may not realize is that this road is clearly divided into two very different sides: Nanjing East Road and Nanjing West Road. And honestly, the mood and atmosphere of the two sides are completely different. The eastern side is lively, touristy, full of shops and neon lights, while the western side feels more local and has far more to explore than many people expect. In this review, I’ll take everyone on a proper walk through Nanjing West Road.

This Shanghai City Walk route is easy and relaxed, connecting everything from a public park and museum to shops, cafés, and an old temple in the heart of the city. All of these places are linked together by Nanjing West Road, making it perfect for a day when you want to walk around, observe the city, watch local life, and soak in Shanghai’s lifestyle at a softer pace. If you want to know what makes Nanjing West Road so charming, let’s walk this route together.

Getting to Know Nanjing West Road

Nanjing West Road is one of the main streets in Jing’an District and one of the areas that best reflects Shanghai’s growth. From a former concession area and a residential neighborhood for the middle class, it gradually developed into one of the city’s modern business and lifestyle districts. Today, old buildings, public parks, and important civic spaces still sit alongside high-rises and contemporary architecture, giving the neighborhood a layered character and making it one of Shanghai’s key urban centers.

What makes Nanjing West Road interesting is how much it offers within one walkable stretch. You can start the day with a stroll in a park, visit a museum, continue with shopping, stop for coffee at a café, then walk along the street watching shops and people moving through their real everyday routines. Just keep walking and there will always be something to stop for. Overall, the vibe here feels cooler and more stylish than the eastern side, showing another side of Shanghai that is not just a tourist city, but a real city where people live, work, shop, and spend their days. Nanjing West Road is the kind of neighborhood that makes walking around Shanghai even more enjoyable, and it might make you fall for the city a little more.

Jing’an Sculpture Park

Although Jing’an Sculpture Park is not located directly on Nanjing West Road, it is very close and connects easily on foot to the Shanghai Natural History Museum. That is why I think it works perfectly as the starting point for this Shanghai City Walk route before gradually moving toward Nanjing West Road later on. It lets the walk begin slowly, shifting from greenery and outdoor art into the urban rhythm of the city in a very gentle way.

Jing’an Sculpture Park is one of Shanghai’s green spaces that stands out for how naturally it blends city greenery with contemporary sculpture. Wherever you walk, there are artworks to stop and look at or photograph. If you visit during spring, around March to April, this is also when the park is at its most beautiful. Cherry blossoms and colorful tulip beds bloom across the park, making the whole place feel much brighter, sweeter, and more photogenic.

Inside the park, there are walking and jogging paths that weave through trees of different sizes, with benches placed along the way for resting. As you walk, you will see sculptures scattered throughout the park, some of them created by contemporary Chinese artists. That makes a stroll here feel like both a relaxing park walk and a casual outdoor art exhibition at the same time.

One area not to miss is the cherry blossom zone, where dozens of trees bloom in soft pink clusters. The scene is lovely: pale pink cherry blossoms above green lawns, mixed with contemporary sculptures. It honestly feels like stepping into a very cute anime scene. Starting the Nanjing West Road walk here is such a nice way to let nature and art reset the mood before moving into the museum and then into the busier parts of the city.

Shanghai Natural History Museum

After spending some time outdoors in the park, I want to take everyone into the Shanghai Natural History Museum next. This is one of China’s largest and most impressive natural science museums, and it is also beautifully curated. If you want to see animals from almost every corner of the world up close, with displays that look realistic, well-made, and genuinely fun to walk through, this place is perfect. The entrance fee is also very friendly at around 30 yuan (around US$4).

The first thing that catches your eye here is the building design, which was inspired by a nautilus shell. The structure has flowing curves and a façade with large cell-like openings, making the building itself feel like an exhibit before you even step inside. It is the kind of museum that makes you say wow before reaching the actual exhibitions.

Inside the museum, there are more than 240,000 biological specimens displayed across over five levels. Each zone presents nature from a different perspective, from the origins of the Earth and the evolution of life to ecosystems from different regions. The underground levels focus on fossils, dinosaur bones, and evolutionary history. Another zone that many visitors love is the recreated African savanna, where lions, elephants, giraffes, and other large animals are displayed in environments that look very close to nature. Walking through it almost feels like stepping onto another continent.

But the floor I would call the real highlight is the first floor near the entrance, because the moment you arrive, you are greeted by huge displays. There is a massive Mamenchisaurus dinosaur model that does not just stand still, but moves in a realistic way, along with a giant blue whale model suspended in the central hall. This space feels truly grand. There are also many kinds of animals on display, from snakes, monkeys, polar bears, camels, and birds to live-animal zones with butterflies, lizards, starfish, sea cucumbers, and sea anemones that you can observe up close.

Overall, what I loved most was the quality of the exhibition work. The details of the fur, skin, expressions, and poses are so well done that many displays look almost real. The lighting and layout also make the museum fun to explore without feeling tiring or boring. Personally, I would place the Shanghai Natural History Museum among the museums that deliver knowledge, fun, and scale all at once. It is easy to walk through, photogenic, and a great way to warm up before continuing the Nanjing West Road city walk.

Nanjing West Road

Finally, we enter Nanjing West Road, one of Shanghai’s most glamorous streets and another side of Nanjing Road that many visitors may not know well. In fact, Nanjing Road was first built in 1845 and gradually developed into one of the city’s major commercial arteries. It later became clearly divided into two sides: Nanjing East Road, close to The Bund, and Nanjing West Road, where we are walking now. This side brings together luxury shops, world-class hotels, and the lifestyle of modern city dwellers in one dense and polished district.

Looking back to 1862, Nanjing West Road began as Jing’an Temple Road because it was the main route leading to Jing’an Temple. It was also known as Bubbling Well Road, named after the natural spring in the area. After World War II, it was officially renamed Nanjing West Road, linking with the eastern side to form a continuous road more than 5 kilometers long. It may sound like one road, but the feeling and atmosphere of each section are clearly different.

Today, Nanjing West Road has grown into one of Shanghai’s busiest retail and business districts. Along the street, you will find people, restaurants, cafés, and popular dessert shops with long queues almost every day. Some of the popular bakeries that have gone viral among café and bakery lovers are here too, including Butterful & Creamorous Butter and Bread, known for croissants, blueberry rolls, and burnt cheesecake, as well as AMAM Lonbakery Town, a London-inspired bakery that bagel and croissant lovers should not miss.

There is also a major highlight area called Zhangyuan, a pedestrian street transformed from historic buildings into a luxury shopping district filled with major brands. You will find everything from the Tiffany & Co. flagship with China’s first Blue Box Café to Starbucks Reserve Roastery, which many visitors come specifically to see. There are also global fashion and lifestyle brands such as Dior, Louis Vuitton, Maison Margiela, and LOEWE Perfumes, which has a dedicated fragrance store here. To put it simply, Nanjing West Road is the kind of neighborhood where walking feels effortless, time disappears, and your wallet can disappear just as easily, because food, cafés, and luxury shopping are all packed into one street.

Starbucks Reserve Shanghai Roastery

If you are visiting Shanghai, one landmark that café and coffee lovers should not miss is Starbucks Reserve Roastery. This is not an ordinary Starbucks. It was the first Reserve Roastery in Asia and once held the title of the largest Starbucks in the world, with a space of around 2,787 square meters. The first time I walked in, it felt more like entering a world-class coffee factory than a regular café. To put its scale simply, it is hundreds of times larger than a typical Starbucks branch, and you can walk around in circles without feeling cramped at all.

The store has two floors and was designed as a premium flagship experience that brings every part of the coffee world into one place, from roasting beans and brewing to experimenting with special drinks and telling the stories of beans from around the world. The main highlight is the large coffee roaster in the center of the store. It is not just there for show; beans are actually roasted, packed, and transported through the copper pipes above your head right in front of you. Another impressive detail is the 88-foot-long bar counter, along with the use of AR technology through the app, allowing visitors to scan and explore information about coffee, production processes, and other stories interactively. It is genuinely fun to walk around.

The area I especially liked was the second floor. Apart from special drink counters that you do not find in regular Starbucks stores, there is also an alcohol bar serving coffee cocktails, as well as a bakery area created in collaboration with Princi, the famous bakery from Italy. There are croissants, fresh bread, and hot pizza. On the day I visited, I ordered Shanghai Nostalgia for 52 yuan (around US$7), a smooth espresso-based drink with milk that was easy to drink and clearly coffee-forward. I paired it with banoffee for 88 yuan (around US$12), which was creamy, not too sweet, and worked really well with the drink. It was the kind of place where you can sit and relax for a long while.

Although the title of the world’s largest Starbucks Roastery has since been taken by the Chicago location, Starbucks Reserve Roastery Shanghai remains one of the brand’s most iconic and important stores in terms of design, experience, and scale. If you want to see the coffee world up close, sit with a drink inside a real roastery, or simply experience Starbucks in one of its most elaborate forms, this is definitely a spot to pin on your Nanjing West Road City Walk.

AMAM Lonbakery Town

Let’s add a little sweetness to the walk at AMAM Lonbakery Town on Nanjing West Road. This bakery claims to take inspiration from London, and there are honestly so many pastries to choose from, from bagels, croissants, and egg tarts to all kinds of breads. It is easy to walk around browsing and accidentally pick up more than you planned.

The most recognizable feature of this shop is its colorful dog mascot, especially the orange dog standing out in front of the store. If you walk past and see it, you know you have arrived. The shop is located opposite Butterful & Creamorous Butter and Bread, so you can easily turn this into a bakery-hopping stop. AMAM is quite popular thanks to social media buzz among café and bakery lovers, so the queue can be long almost all day.

Inside, the bakery has a vintage atmosphere that feels like stepping into a small bakery somewhere in England. The shop uses a lot of wood, giving it a homey and cozy feel. You can walk around and choose your pastries yourself. The first item I tried was the British Blueberry Butter Sea Salt Bread for 16 yuan (around US$2), which the shop marked as one of its top items, and almost everyone ahead of me was picking it up too. The outside was crispy, the inside soft, and it came with a whole sausage inside. The flavor was rich, lightly salty, filling, and genuinely tasty. This one is easy to recommend.

Another piece I tried was the British Signature Caramel Bakewell Tart for 13 yuan (around US$2). It was a good egg tart with a crisp shell that was not too thick or crumbly, a smooth filling, a nice egg aroma, and balanced sweetness. It was not greasy or heavy, making it an easy and safe choice. I also tried the British Strawberry and Vanilla Wheel Puff for 25 yuan (around US$3.50), which the shop marked as its current number one item. For me, it tasted decent. The cake texture was on the denser side, while the cream had a classic nostalgic feel, almost like the kind of school-style cake you might remember from childhood. It was not overly sweet, but if eaten on its own, I would want a drink with it.

Overall, AMAM Lonbakery Town is a bakery with good-tasting pastries, friendly prices, and generous portions that can actually fill you up. I recommend visiting with a few people and sharing several items so you can try more. If you love sweets and are walking around Nanjing West Road looking for a place to rest and grab something fun to eat, this is definitely one stop worth making.

Jing’an Temple

After eating, walking, and shopping to your heart’s content, Nanjing West Road still has one important stop that I want to recommend as a meaningful way to end this City Walk: Jing’an Temple. This is an old Buddhist temple in the middle of metropolitan Shanghai, known for its grandeur and for the way it contrasts so beautifully with the skyscrapers around it.

The history of Jing’an Temple dates all the way back to 247 during the Three Kingdoms period. The temple was not originally located where it stands today, but was moved to the city center in 1216 during the Song dynasty. It has remained one of Shanghai’s important temples ever since. Of course, before reaching the beautiful condition we see today, the temple went through difficult times, especially during the Cultural Revolution in 1966, when it was closed and converted into a plastic factory. It was returned to the Buddhist community in 1983 and underwent major restoration before reopening to visitors in 1990. Today, the entrance fee is 50 yuan (around US$7), and you can buy tickets at the temple using Alipay.

As soon as you step inside, the first thing you see is a large courtyard surrounded by traditional Chinese-style buildings glowing in gold. In the center of the courtyard stands a large multi-tiered incense burner. Locals often toss coins into it because it is believed that successfully landing a coin inside brings good luck. It is a small but lively ritual that fills the temple atmosphere with faith and movement.

Walk up the stairs to the Main Hall, the temple’s highlight, and you will find the Sandalwood Buddha, one of China’s largest sandalwood Buddha statues. It stands 8.8 meters tall and weighs around 15 tons. People often come here to pray for health, inner peace, and children. Apart from the Buddha statue, do not forget to look up at the ceiling and walls. The paintings and decorative details inside are incredibly delicate and beautiful, the kind of work you can look at for a long time without realizing how much time has passed.

The temple also has several other important buildings to explore, including the Hall of Three Saints, which enshrines Amitabha Buddha, Avalokitesvara, and Mahasthamaprapta, as well as the seven-story golden Jing’an Temple pagoda and the drum and bell towers, which are still well preserved. These corners help complete the image of a traditional Buddhist temple standing right in the middle of a modern megacity.

For me, Jing’an Temple is one of Shanghai’s important temples that I really recommend visiting. Its grand traditional Chinese architecture sits among modern high-rises in a way that feels surprisingly harmonious. The temple is peaceful, sacred, and beautiful from every angle. If you are walking along Nanjing West Road and want to pause the city rhythm, make a wish, reset your energy, and take beautiful photos, Jing’an Temple is a stop you should not miss.

Summary: Shanghai City Walk on Nanjing West Road

For me, walking along Nanjing West Road is one of the most balanced Shanghai City Walk routes, combining greenery, culture, and the polished glamour of a major city. We start at Jing’an Sculpture Park, continue into the Shanghai Natural History Museum, get impressed by Starbucks Reserve Roastery, then let ourselves wander through food, shopping, and lifestyle stops along Nanjing West Road before ending the day with prayers at Jing’an Temple. It gives you a little bit of everything.

If you are looking for a Shanghai City Walk that is easy to enjoy, filled with good food, beautiful photo spots, and a classier side of the city, Nanjing West Road is a route that does not feel exhausting but gives you so much in return. It works perfectly as a relaxed day in the itinerary, or as a softer break from the city’s major landmarks when you want to spend time with Shanghai at a slower pace. By the end of the walk, you will understand the city a little better for sure.

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