Cycle Through Shanghai's Autumn: 3 Best Routes for Discovering Nature and Culture

As Shanghai is about to enter autumn, the weather in the twenties is perfect for a Cityride! Hills has recommended three distinctive cycling routes in Shanghai for everyone, ranging from cultural to natural trails. Be sure to save and share this, and plan an autumn outing with your friends.

At the end of the article, you will find cycling route products carefully designed by Hills. If you're interested, hurry up and click to order!

1. Charm of Hengfu Cycling Route---Golden Plane Tree Journey

This is a leisurely route that combines delicious food and beautiful scenery, featuring both quaint cafés and bustling commercial areas. Just imagine leisurely cycling along a road lined with French plane trees—it's a truly pleasant thought.

-Cycling Route: Changle Road - Anfu Road - Wukang Road - Yuqing Road - Kangping Road - Gao'an Road - Yongjia Road - Taiyuan Road - Yongkang Road - Jiashan Road - Fuxing Middle Road - Sinan Mansions

-Route Highlights: This area represents the openness of Shanghai culture. Streets covered with golden plane tree leaves, ancient lane houses, and trendy boutique shops all display Shanghai's blend of simplicity and luxury, perfectly capturing the city's chic charm.

-Total Distance: Approximately 8KM

-Key Stops Along the Route:

• Shanghai Drama Arts Center: Located at 288 Anfu Road, this is the only national professional drama troupe in Shanghai and one of the finest in China. The center spans about 13,000 square meters and includes a theatre, drama salon, and D6 space, which collectively offer over a thousand seats for audiences. 
• Wukang Building: At the bustling intersection of Huaihai Middle Road, Yuqing Road, Tianping Road, Xingguo Road, and Wukang Road stands an eye-catching brick-red 8-story building designed by Hungarian architect László Hudec, known as the Wukang Building, a highly popular historical building in Shanghai on social media.

• Shanghai Symphony Orchestra Hall: Located at 1380 Fuxing Middle Road, designed by world-renowned architects Arata Isozaki and Taizo Toyoda, this "fully floating building" set on springs is affectionately called "Wonton Skin" by audiences.

• Sinan Mansions: Home to 51 historic garden houses, Sinan Mansions brings together a variety of architectural styles, including detached garden houses and row garden houses with internal courtyards, showcasing a concentration of modern residential architecture in Shanghai.

2. Changning Outer Ring Ecological Greenway Cycling Route----Close up shots of the plane's route

-Cycling Range: From the Suzhou River to near the Huqingping Highway

-Total Distance: 6.25 kilometers, approximately 35 minutes by bike

-Description: The cycling path is "hidden" within a 100-meter forest belt west of the outer ring road, shaded by green trees and offering pleasant scenery. If you pay attention, you will find that there are nine bridges along the route.

They resemble a series of musical notes on a waterway, playfully twinkling as you pass through, adding a fun element. The route can be divided into three segments:

P1--Guangshun North Road to Beizhai Road Overpass (about 2.1 kilometers)

Cycle through dense forests, passing by the Lotus Pond Station, Dream Green Corridor, Rain Garden, and Aerial Green Corridor, crossing three pedestrian bridges. The terrain here is relatively flat. Connected to the Suzhou River waterfront walkway, after a full round of cycling, you can continue strolling along the river.

P2--Beizhai Road Overpass to Xianxia West Road (about 1.6 kilometers)
After the Aerial Green Corridor, you descend into the Dynamic Tunnel under Tianshan West Road, pass through a metasequoia mirror forest, and enter the Art Tunnel under Xianxia West Road. Experience the changing terrain and playful light and shadows along the way.

From the west side of the Dynamic Tunnel, you can directly enter Hongqiao Sports Park. Since this area is directly under the flight path of Hongqiao Airport, locals refer to it as the "Emerald City by the Airport" and "City’s own ‘Emerald Trail’."

P3--Xianxia West Road to Youle Road (about 2.5 kilometers)
Crossing the Cola Bridge, the remaining stretch is a flat dense forest, with orchards and lawns along the way, and occasionally planes can be seen ascending and descending.

During the spring, summer, and autumn, this segment bursts with colorful flowers, making the ride particularly pleasing to the eye.

3. Huangpu Riverside Greenway Cycling Route

-Cycling Range: From Waibaidu Bridge to Rihui Port Bridge

-Total Distance: 8.3 kilometers, approximately 50 minutes by bike

-Route Features:

• Material and Functional Zoning: The greenway primarily uses permeable asphalt, divided into blue walking paths, red running tracks, and grey cycling paths, each designed to meet different recreational needs.

• Landscape and Regional Character Integration: The greenway’s vicinity is divided into distinctive areas such as the Old Bund International Architecture Exhibition Area and the South Bund Waterfront Area, each designed according to its historical and cultural characteristics, enhancing cohesion and scenic beauty between regions.
• Barrier-Free Design and Comprehensive Facilities: The path is designed with accessible ramps and continuous lines, facilitating use by pedestrians, runners, and cyclists. It is equipped with various public amenities such as bathrooms, drinking fountains, resting seats, enhancing leisure and fitness environments.

• Water-Friendly Design and Diverse Vegetation: The section from Nanpu Bridge to the Enterprise Union Pavilion cleverly coordinates flood walls, docks, water-friendly platforms, etc., combined with vegetation such as azalea and rose gardens, enhancing the diversity and water affinity of the landscape.
• Cultural and Ecological Themed Gardens: Along the route, there are themed gardens such as Piano Key Spring Garden, Autumn Garden, Herb Garden, enhancing seasonal landscape experiences and ecological education.

• Modern Riverside Experience: The South Bund section features a wavy shoreline, providing a colorful riverside touring experience and focusing on developing a modern, comprehensive high-end Pujiang cruise terminal to attract more visitors and enhance the area’s value.