# Xintiandi, Shanghai

> Xintiandi is a car-free block of restored shikumen lane houses in central Shanghai, now restaurants, bars and shops — plus the house where the Communist Party held its first congress in 1921. Entry is free and the lanes never close. Allow an hour; the memorial is free with a booking, closed Mondays. Metro: Xintiandi, Lines 10 and 13.

Web page: https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/xintiandi

- City: [Shanghai](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai), China
- YesGo score: 41/100 (Yes, if nearby)
- Time on site: 1 h
- Opening hours: The lanes are open 24 hours; shops and restaurants keep their own hours. CPC First Congress memorial: Tue–Sun 9:00–17:00, last entry 16:30, closed Mondays
- With kids: Better without small kids
- Entry to the district: Free, 24 hours
- CPC First Congress memorial: Free, advance real-name booking, bring your passport
- Memorial hours: Tue–Sun 9:00–17:00, last entry 16:30; closed Mondays except public holidays
- Shikumen Open House Museum: About ¥20, roughly 11:00–22:30 — unofficial
- Address: Lane 181, Taicang Road, Huangpu District
- Metro: Site of the First CPC National Congress · Xintiandi (Lines 10, 13) or … · South Huangpi Road (Lines 1, 14)
- Time needed: About an hour to walk it; 2–3 hours with the memorial and a meal
- Coordinates: 31.22260, 121.47000
- Facts checked: 04.11.2026

## Key facts

- **Free** — to walk the lanes, open around the clock (source: Shanghai government; EastChinaTrip)
- **July 1921** — the Communist Party of China held its first congress in a house here (source: English Wikipedia; Shanghai government)
- **Lines 10, 13** — Site of the First CPC National Congress · Xintiandi station, on the south side (source: English Wikipedia; EastChinaTrip)
- **Shikumen** — "stone gate" lane houses, the Shanghai type the district is built from (source: English Wikipedia; Shanghai government)
- **2001** — the restored shikumen block opened (source: English Wikipedia; EastChinaTrip)
- **Shui On** — the Hong Kong group behind the redevelopment (source: English Wikipedia; Shanghai government)
- **Two blocks** — North and South, divided by Xingye Road (source: Tour Beijing; Treksplorer)
- **3 June 2021** — the new First Congress memorial hall opened (source: CGTN; The Paper)
- **French Concession** — in 1921 the congress house stood there, at 106 Rue Wantz (source: English Wikipedia (articles on the site and the congress))
- **Jiaxing** — the congress's last session moved to a boat on South Lake (source: English Wikipedia; Shanghai government)
- **2021** — both nearby metro stations were renamed after the congress site (source: English Wikipedia (Xintiandi and South Huangpi Road stations))

> **The CPC memorial needs a booking and shuts on Mondays** The lanes never close, but the **First CPC National Congress memorial** opens Tuesday to Sunday, last entry 16:30, and admits visitors on a **real-name reservation**. Book ahead through the memorial's WeChat mini-program, or on site if places are left. Local media report that the new hall and the original congress house are booked separately. Bring your physical passport.

## What is Xintiandi?

Xintiandi (新天地, "New Heaven and Earth") is a pedestrian district in Huangpu built from old Shanghai lanes of **shikumen** houses. The grey-brick façades and carved stone doorways were kept; inside are restaurants, bars, coffee shops and boutiques. There's no traffic, no gate and no ticket.

Shikumen — "stone gate" houses — were two- and three-storey terraces packed along narrow alleys, and most of old Shanghai once lived in them. Hong Kong's **Shui On** group took on the site in the 1990s and opened the restored block in 2001, merging some houses into larger venues and paying for the restoration with new buildings next door.

There are two halves. The **North Block** is the shikumen lanes with restaurants, bars and the Shikumen Open House Museum. The **South Block**, across Xingye Road, mixes old houses with modern buildings, shops and a mall. At the corner of Xingye Road and South Huangpi Road stands the house where the Communist Party first met in July 1921, with the new memorial hall beside it.

## Is Xintiandi worth visiting?

Yes, for an hour or an evening — but know what you're getting. It's a polished, upmarket reconstruction rather than a lived-in neighbourhood, and restaurant prices sit well above the Shanghai average. Come for the architecture in the morning, the First Congress memorial if modern Chinese history interests you, or dinner on a terrace after dark.

If you want shikumen lanes where people still live, go to [Tianzifang](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/tianzifang) instead, or as well: it's about 1.5 km south-west as the crow flies, roughly 20 minutes on foot. And if you want long leafy walks past old villas, that's the wider [former French Concession](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/shanghai-french-concession) to the west — Xintiandi is only its small eastern corner.

## Things to do in Xintiandi

- **The First CPC National Congress memorial** — the house at 76 Xingye Road (106 Rue Wantz in 1921), home of party founder Li Hanjun, plus the new hall at 374 South Huangpi Road. Free with a booking.
- **Shikumen Open House Museum (屋里厢)** — a 1920s–30s family home in the North Block: about five rooms of period furniture and a tiny tingzijian, the room over the kitchen once let cheaply to struggling writers and students.
- **The North Block lanes** — grey brick, carved stone lintels, wrought-iron balconies. Best before the restaurants open, when the alleys are empty.
- **The South Block** — shikumen mixed with glass: shops, a mall and a cinema. More for shopping than for architecture.
- **Evening terraces** — after dark the lanes are lit and tables spill onto the paving. This is Xintiandi at its liveliest.
- **Metro stations named after the congress** — since 2021 both nearby stations carry the name Site of the First CPC National Congress, which makes them easy to spot on the map.

## Memorial of the First CPC National Congress: hours and booking

The memorial opens **Tuesday to Sunday, 9:00–17:00**, last entry 16:30, and closes on Mondays unless it's a public holiday. Admission is free but by real-name reservation, according to Meet-in-Shanghai, the city's tourism portal, and local media. Without a booking you may be turned away once the daily quota is full.

The new memorial hall at 374 South Huangpi Road opened on 3 June 2021 and holds a permanent exhibition on the party's founding. The original house at 76 Xingye Road is where the congress opened in July 1921, in Li Hanjun's home in the French Concession. After the concession police searched the house, the delegates held their last session on a hired tourist boat on South Lake in Jiaxing.

Allow 40–60 minutes. Even if party history isn't your thing, the congress house is the one place in Xintiandi where you can see a shikumen interior roughly as it was a century ago.

## How to get to Xintiandi

1. From the Bund, walk west along pedestrian Nanjing Road to East Nanjing Road station (Lines 2 and 10) — about 10 minutes.
2. Take Line 10 towards Hongqiao for three stops — Yuyuan Garden, Laoximen, then Site of the First CPC National Congress · Xintiandi. Fares start at ¥3.
3. Follow the signs for Xintiandi or Madang Road; the South Block lanes are 3–5 minutes from the station.
4. Alternatively, take Line 1 one stop south from People's Square to Site of the First CPC National Congress · South Huangpi Road, then walk 5–10 minutes south to the North Block.
5. On foot from People's Square it's about 0.9 km as the crow flies, 15 minutes. From Hongqiao airport or railway station, Line 10 runs straight to Xintiandi; from Pudong, take the Maglev to Longyang Road, Line 2 to People's Square and Line 1 one stop.

## Xintiandi vs Tianzifang vs the French Concession

|  | Xintiandi | Tianzifang | French Concession |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| What it is | Two blocks of restored shikumen houses | Lived-in shikumen lanes with small shops | A large district of villas and plane-tree streets |
| Feel | Spacious, polished, pricey | Cramped, busy, souvenirs and cafés | Quiet streets for long walks |
| Do people live there? | Hardly anyone | Yes, on the upper floors | Yes |
| Metro | Xintiandi (10, 13), South Huangpi Road (1, 14) | Dapuqiao (Line 9) | Several stations |
| Time needed | About 1 hour | 1–1.5 hours | Half a day or more |

All three lie in the former French Concession; Xintiandi and Tianzifang are on its eastern side. Times are YesGo's estimates.

## Paying in Xintiandi as a foreign visitor

The lanes and the memorial are free, but restaurants, cafés and the metro aren't. China runs on **Alipay and WeChat Pay**; both let you link a foreign Visa or Mastercard with your passport — set it up before you fly, since verification codes don't always arrive while roaming. QR payments need mobile data.

Metro gates accept foreign contactless cards, and ticket machines sell single journeys. Keep some cash in small notes as a backup: sellers must accept yuan, though they may not have change.

## Before you go

Tick off what's ready — your ticks are saved in this browser.

- [ ] Memorial booked (and the original congress house separately, if I want to go inside)
- [ ] Not planning the memorial for a Monday
- [ ] Physical passport with me
- [ ] Alipay or WeChat Pay set up, plus some cash
- [ ] Decided whether to walk on to Tianzifang, 20 minutes away
- [ ] Dinner planned for the evening — the lanes are quiet by day

## Shanghai after dark compared

Every Shanghai place worth an evening, rated by YesGo.

- [The Bund](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/the-bund) — YesGo score 59/100 (Yes, go) · 1 h · Free
- [Shanghai Tower](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/shanghai-tower) — YesGo score 58/100 (Yes, go) · 1 h 30 min · ¥180; students and 60+ ¥120
- [Shanghai World Financial Center](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/shanghai-world-financial-center) — YesGo score 50/100 (Yes, go) · 1 h 15 min · CNY 180, seasonal
- [Oriental Pearl Tower](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/oriental-pearl-tower) — YesGo score 49/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h 30 min · ¥199 — two spheres
- [Lujiazui](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/lujiazui) — YesGo score 48/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 45 min · Free
- [Jin Mao Tower](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/jin-mao-tower) — YesGo score 48/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h · ¥120; Skywalk from ¥288
- [Nanjing Road](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/nanjing-road) — YesGo score 46/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h · Free
- [Xintiandi](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/xintiandi) — YesGo score 41/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h · Free
- [Bund Sightseeing Tunnel](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/bund-sightseeing-tunnel) — YesGo score 40/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 20 min · ≈ ¥50 one way, ¥70 return
- [Huangpu River cruise](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/huangpu-river-cruise) — YesGo score 39/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h · ≈ ¥120–150; ferry ¥2
- [Tianzifang](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/tianzifang) — YesGo score 39/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h · Free
- [Former French Concession](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/shanghai-french-concession) — YesGo score 38/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 2 h · Free
- [Shanghai Disneyland](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/shanghai-disneyland) — YesGo score 30/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 4 h · ¥475–799, priced by date
- [Xitang](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/xitang) — YesGo score 16/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 4 h · ≈ ¥95 by day, free in the evening

## People's Square to the French Concession via Xintiandi

The square, the shikumen block, the Tianzifang lanes and the plane-tree streets of the old concession — on foot and by metro. Add them to your route — YesGo fits in the timing and transfers.

1. [People's Square](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/shanghai-peoples-square) — YesGo score 42/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 30 min · Free
2. [Xintiandi](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/xintiandi) — YesGo score 41/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h · Free
3. [Tianzifang](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/tianzifang) — YesGo score 39/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h · Free
4. [Former French Concession](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/shanghai-french-concession) — YesGo score 38/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 2 h · Free

## Don't mix them up

Xintiandi isn't the whole French Concession, just a small corner of it, and it isn't Tianzifang, where people still live in the lanes. "Xintiandi" is also the developer's brand for malls in Wuhan, Foshan and other cities, and there's a Xintiandi park in Changzhou. This page is about the original district in Shanghai.

## Tips

- Arrive around 9:00: the lanes are empty, the façades are free of crowds, and you can reach the memorial before the tour groups.
- Evenings are for dinner and terraces, not for architecture photos — the brickwork and carving show best in daylight.
- Restaurants here charge well above the Shanghai average; the streets around the district are cheaper for a quick bite.
- To see a shikumen from the inside rather than just its façade, go into the congress house or the Shikumen Open House Museum.
- Pair Xintiandi with Tianzifang: about 20 minutes apart on foot, they show two very different takes on the same architecture.
- Book the memorial a few days ahead: places are capped each day and go faster at weekends and on holidays.

## Questions

### Is Xintiandi worth visiting?

For an hour's walk or an evening meal, yes. It's a polished reconstruction rather than an authentic neighbourhood, so pair it with Tianzifang if you want lived-in lanes.

### Is Xintiandi free?

Yes. There are no gates or tickets and the lanes are open 24 hours. You only pay in restaurants and shops, and about ¥20 for the Shikumen Open House Museum (unofficial).

### How long do you need in Xintiandi?

About an hour for both blocks; 2–3 hours if you add the First Congress memorial and a meal.

### Which metro station is closest to Xintiandi?

Site of the First CPC National Congress · Xintiandi on Lines 10 and 13, or … · South Huangpi Road on Lines 1 and 14. From the Bund, take Line 10 three stops from East Nanjing Road.

### Is the First CPC Congress memorial free?

Yes, but you need a real-name reservation, made ahead via the memorial's WeChat mini-program or on site if places remain. Bring your passport.

### What are the memorial's opening hours?

Tuesday to Sunday, 9:00–17:00, last entry 16:30. Closed Mondays except public holidays.

### What is the Shikumen Open House Museum?

A recreated 1920s–30s shikumen home in Xintiandi's North Block — around five furnished rooms, including the tiny tingzijian once rented out to poor writers.

### Xintiandi or Tianzifang — which is better?

Xintiandi for dinner, terraces and party history; Tianzifang for narrow, lived-in lanes and small shops. They're 20 minutes apart on foot, so many people do both.

### Is Xintiandi in the French Concession?

It lies within the former French Concession, on its eastern edge — but the concession is a large district to the west, while Xintiandi is just two blocks.

## How we checked

The English core comes from search results and related questions: is it worth visiting, how long, things to do, nearest metro, the First Congress memorial (free, booking, hours), the Shikumen museum and Xintiandi vs Tianzifang. District address and hours are from the Shanghai government; memorial hours and closing day from Meet-in-Shanghai, checked against The Paper (2021) and EastChinaTrip (2026). The memorial's official website wouldn't load (expired security certificate), so booking rules come from media reports and are marked checking; a 2018 China Daily listing gives last entry at 16:00 — we show 16:30 from newer sources. The 2001 opening is from Wikipedia and EastChinaTrip. The Shikumen museum's price and hours appear only on unofficial sites. The district's floor area and the memorial's exhibit count each had a single source, so we leave them out. Distance to Tianzifang is calculated from English Wikipedia coordinates. Payment details come from travel guides, not official sources.

## Sources

- English and Russian Wikipedia: Xintiandi, Site of the First National Congress of the CCP, 1st National Congress of the CCP, Xintiandi and South Huangpi Road stations, Line 10, Shikumen Open House Museum, Tianzifang; Wikidata Q1326515
- Shanghai government (english.shanghai.gov.cn) — district address and hours, the congress house
- Meet-in-Shanghai, the city tourism portal — memorial hours, closing day and admission
- CGTN and The Paper — opening of the new memorial hall, booking
- Xinhua — the memorial and foreign visitors
- EastChinaTrip, Treksplorer, Tour Beijing — the two blocks, metro, time needed
- Qunar and Wanderlog — Shikumen Open House Museum price and hours (unofficial)

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