15 things to do in Shanghai this winter
Warm up with winter street snacks
Chestnuts roasting on the street corners of Shanghai herald the coming of the winter months. Within a few blocks’ walk throughout the city you’ll find carts selling sweet potatoes and chestnuts fresh from their ovens. You can find a list of our favourite breakfast street foods on our website.
Dip into the best hotpots in town
When the winter chill seeps into your bones, one of the best ways to warm up is with a group of friends hunkered over a steaming hotpot. Check our website for the best hotpot restaurants in town, from Shabu Shabu chains to spicy Sichuan style broths and even one with a completely organic menu.
Gather around the grill
Turn up the grill and fire up your taste buds at the myriad Korean joints in Shanghai. From eateries staffed by 'volunteer' North Korean students to cheap street-side bimbimbaps and the best of Gubei, our guide to Shanghai's Korean restaurants is on our website for one and all.
Get a good dose of culture
Take shelter from the cold by spending an afternoon in one of Shanghai’s many museums. The city has so many world-class exhibition centers; it can be hard to know where to start. Check our website for the best and most quirky museums the city has to offer.
Knead your worries away
Our bodies work extra hard in the winter, fending off pollution, cold, and… more pollution. This winter, take advantage of the wide variety of places in Shanghai to pamper your body and soul with massages and other spa treatments. Check our website for our shortlist of spa and beauty venues of the year.
Visit a bathhouse
As we head into winter, there are few better ways to while away a chilly day than heading to one of Shanghai’s bathhouses. Where else can you spend hours doing the essential things in life: watching television, napping, snacking on treats while lounging around on heated floors, playing table tennis with friends, and of course, getting your body scrubbed down from head to toe? Visit our website to see our list of Shanghai's best bathhouses.
Upgrade your wardrobe
There is really only one redeeming factor to the arrival of winter in Shanghai: the excuse to revamp our wardrobes with a trip to the fabric market. Bring a photo of that couture jacket you’ve been coveting, and leave with a version of your very own, tailored to size. Plus you can expect the price to have a nice cut too.
Foster a new friend
What better way to get those warm snuggles than chillin’ on the couch with a furry friend? Winter is one of the toughest times of the year for animal shelters, and you can help by taking in a foster pet, which is generally cost-free for volunteers. If you want to learn more, reach out to People for Pets, Best Friends China, Jaiya’s Animal Rescue or Second Chance Animal Aid, and stay tuned to Time Out’s Weekly fluff blog to meet animals who need foster and forever homes.
If you don't want to take on a pet full-time, you can also get in touch with Spare Leash to become a pet sitter.
Curl up with a good book (about China)
Curl up by the fire and pluck out one of Time Out’s best Chinese books since 1900. We called in the experts: 25 literature lovers and sinologists, including publishers, authors, translators, literary agents and academics, who were kind enough to share their top ten best Chinese fiction books and top ten works of non-fiction published since 1900. You can find the list on our website.
Jump around
There’s no doubt about it: the best way to warm up is to get active. Shanghai has no dearth of indoor activities to keep you moving this winter. For a more traditional sport, try one of many indoor wall climbing clubs or golfing centers. For a more wacky experience, try out bubble football, where you’ll be encased in an inflatable sphere while kicking around a ball, trampoline studios or laser tag. Get the full info by clicking 'read more'
Visit a Christmas market
Get into the festive spirit and sort all your Christmas gifts with holiday markets, fairs and bazaars around Shanghai this winter. We've got all the news on Shanghai's Christmas market offerings this year, and you can also see the full list of Christmas markets in Shanghai - just click 'read more' below.
Head to Yu Garden's Lantern Festival
Every year when winter is at its darkest the market at Yuyuan garden becomes a glowing spectacular of Chinese lanterns and lights, with a central theme of the zodiac animal of the year. This winter's festival will kick off in the middle of January and will be celebrating the year of the rooster - expect some clucking great lights.
Pop into an arcade or virtual reality centre
When the real world is just too much to handle, step inside a virtual one instead. Time Out reviewed two venues hosting Shanghai’s latest craze - VR arcades. For a more old-school version, hit up one of Shanghai’s many amusement arcades. From dusty retro havens to gleaming mall venues, our website has the best of the button-blasters, dance mats and shoot-em-ups.
Escape the room
There’s nothing like being trapped inside the dungeon of a mad scientist, surrounded by aliens and having to crack a code to crawl your way out to make you forget about the frigid weather outside. Head over to a room escape like Mister X or X-Room with a group of friends to warm up your brain for the evening. Full details on 'read more' below.
Get crafty
Want to avoid being stuck inside with idle hands? We've got you covered. Time Out tried a selection of the city's craftiest classes, including pottery, screen-printing, woodworking and soap-making workshops - hit 'read more' for the lowdown.
For the complete list of things to do this winter, click 'read more' at the bottom of this page.
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