Alternative Nightlife: How To Be Social Without Booze
Shanghai nightlife is a nonstop roller coaster of cocktail tours, mega clubs and the seediest of dive bars. You can go out any night of the week and find people taking full advantage of endless happy hours and nightcaps, but there reaches a time in every party monster’s life where they need to chill the f*ck out. This is a list of alternative (read no booze) activities so you can socialize like a pro even if you are off the sauce.
Arts & Crafts
Craft’d has a great variety of classes available in the evenings where you can hang out while learning a new skill. I highly recommend their crochet class. After two lessons, they had me crocheting granny squares like a…granny. Stitching them together though, well I need more practice. Other cool things you can learn to do include: sewing, knitting, candle making. Check out the schedule below and follow them on WeChat for the March schedule.
Craft’d
Address: Building 3, 1228 Fuxing Zhong Lu
WeChat ID: craftd_Sh
Comedy Shows
Sure, comedy shows often take place at bars and bars sell booze, but you will be so busy laughing your ass off that you will not have time to falter on your attempts not to drink. If all else fails, at least you will be distracted from drinking as much, because you won’t want to get up and miss out on the laughs. There are tons of funny people on stage in the city.
Shanghai Comedy Club has weekly standup comedy showcases in addition to their regular open mic nights at Cages and Zapata’s. Kungfu Comedy has landed Kyle Kinane for what is sure to be a great show on February 9th and 10th. Kinane is the voice of Comedy Central, one of Variety’s Top 10 Comics to Watch and star (along with Adam Sandler) of Funny People.
Cages Bar and Sports
Address: 428 Jiangning Lu
Tel: 021 5299 5273
Kung Fu Comedy Club
Address: 4/F, Xiangyang Bei Lu
Tel: 13122674795
Zapata’s
Address: 5 Hengshan Lu
Tel: 021 6433 4104
Late Night Cafes
Meet friends for coffee in one of Shanghai’s most beautiful coffee shops, Rat Tar Art Bar. It’s on the 5th floor of the Reel Department Store and is furnished in an eclectic mix of pretty colorful chairs with ironic “tribal” paintings and graffiti decorating the walls. Plenty of gorgeous light streams in through huge semi circle windows and there is a magnificent view of Jing’an Temple from the spacious outdoor seating area. They close at 11pm, which is pretty late for a coffee shop in this city.
Rat Tar Art Bar
Address: 5/F, Reel Shanghai, 1601 Nanjing Xi Lu
Tel: 4001559788
Hours: 10am-11pm
Group Work Out
There are fitness classes all over the city from MMA to meditation and everything in between. See related articles below for some of our favorite craziest classes. Head with friends and learn how to twerk or pole dance all while burning those calories for a super night out! If you are feeling really crazy, stop for a smoothie on the way home. Who needs happy hours when you can have healthy hours?
Climbing
Continuing on with the healthy night out activities, go out with friends for a challenging climb. Improve your mind and body by working on your strength, endurance, agility, balance and concentration. Plus you are sure to end up with some seriously toned muscles! Try new(ish) gym, Park Climbing just south of Zhongshan Park.
Park Climbing
Address: 199 Yangzhai Lu
Tel: 021 6278 1777
Hours: Mon-Thurs, 10am-10pm; Fri-Sun, 10am-11pm
Disc Kart
How can you not love racing your friends at Disc Kart? It is a great way to get your adrenaline and competitive spirit up. Sure there is a bar, but remember not to drink and drive and you will easily keep your promise not to drink so much this year.
Indoor Karting at Disc Kart
Address: 809 Zaoyang Lu
Tel: 021 6222 2880
Hours: Daily, 1pm-1am
City Tours
Two of our favorite ways to tour the city are on bike with Culture Shock and eating local delicacies with Untour Food Tours. They both offer a unique way to glimpse the city.
Both groups have a variety of tours on offer including night tours, so get out and wander (with a guide) the city after dark. There are plenty of great eats along the way.
Culture Shock Bike Tours
Website: www.culture-shock-tours.com
Tel: 13818782405
Untour Food Tours
Website: https://untourfoodtours.com/
Email: info@untourfoodtours.com
Arcades
Nothing takes one back to their youth quite like playing arcade games, and children don’t drink so you should have no problem committing to such a wholesome activity. You are bound to get lost in the lights and sounds of more innocent times. The Feng Yun Zai Qi Game Center is located in a 1930s underground mall and full of options such as dance games, music games, Street Fighter and Tekken.
Feng Yun Zai Qi Game Center
Address: B1, 221 Renmin Da Dao
Tel: 021 3310 3259
Hours: Daily, 10am-midnight
Movie Viewings
Sure you can check what’s in the cinemas and book tickets there, but we are big fans of movie nights in cool venues like The Pearl. Did you know that they do weekly cinema nights? How cool and fun. Again, don’t let the bar tempt you, go for a soft drink and enjoy their salty (not sweet) popcorn for the ultimate viewing experience.
Travelers Society has just launched their first ever Trvelers Movie Night. They will be screening the documentary “Mission Blue” at WeWork and providing free food and drinks. Go socialize with like minded wanderlust addicts.
For booking go to http://2f7.me/iq036
The Pearl
Address: 471 Zhapu Lu
Tel: 13764889962
WeWork
Address: 696 Weihai Lu
Potlucks
Go the DIY route and invite some friends over for a potluck style feast. It can be festive and seasonal or a chance to showcase everyone’s international recipes. Living in a city as diverse as Shanghai means everyone has a different idea of home cooking. Take advantage of it and the inevitable leftovers.
Mocktails
There are plenty of bars and restaurants serving up nonalcoholic yet grown up beverages in Shanghai. You can ask most bartenders to whip you up something or take a look at our mocktail list in related articles below.
Singing Bowls & Meditation
There are lots of different ways to unwind, focus and spend time on yourself and Shanghai has a number of wellness practitioners eager to help you. Try healing through sound vibrations and/or meditation and make it social by bringing friends along for the experience.
At Sprout Lifestyle they have monthly singing bowl and meditation classes. Zenergy also has a number of classes in the evenings including Full Moon Crystal Meditation, Candlelit Yin Yoga and Sound Relaxation Meditation.
Sprout Lifestyle
Address: 388 Shaanxi Nan Lu
Hours: Daily 9.30am-9pm
Tel: 4008215190
Zenergy
Address: 66 Shaanxi Bei Lu
WeChat ID: zenergyspace
Laser Tag
Can you think of a better way to simultaneously blow off steam and bond with loved ones then by shorting them up with lasers? We didn't think so.
X Club
Address: B/1, 366 Zhaojiabang Lu
Tel: 021 3356 1255
Couples Yoga
Our last, but not least, suggestion is booking a couples yoga and Pilates workshop. It's such a fun way to practice flexibility in your relationship which is bound to make things run more smoothly at home.
Add them in Wechat to find out about next sessions.
Pilates & Yoga by Marie and Jey
WeChat ID: Doing-good
Video Host
Looking for an enthusiastic and bilingual, on-camera personality to host a new video series for top restaurants, hotels and bars around the city. Get your passport ready, as there will opportunities for international travel.
We are also looking for a skilled videographer and director
All interested applicants please send your resume and show reel to jobs@shanghaiwow.com
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