Where to seek out the Cherry Blossoms in Shanghai

Once again that glorious time is upon us once again! The winter is on its way out and spring is here at last! I am beyond ready to have the cold, grey days leave us and instead bask us all in colour and sunshine. Along with the sunshine comes the blooming of all the plants and flowers that are a feast for the eyes. The biggest eye-feast at this time of year has to be the beautiful Cherry Blossom trees. Although the cherry blossoms are mostly associated with Hanami in Japan,(an age old custom of viewing and enjoying the cherry blossoms) they are scattered around the beautiful city of Shanghai too, appearing as a feature on a busy street, or in picturesque parks hosting festivals dedicated to them. Below I have listed some of the beautiful and popular spots where you can find these sublime trees so that you can take a trip to see them if you fancy and elevate your mood in tune to a sea of pastel pinks and whites and move away from the greys of cold days past.

First up on the list is the beautiful Gucun Park in Baoshan District. This park is one of the most popular parks in the city, and it’s not hard at all to see why. It’s a very easy to navigate park, full of weeping willow trees, forested areas, water features and plenty of activities such as sailing and barbecuing on open-air grills all available at a supplemental fee within the park. Gucun Park is host to a cherry blossom festival at this time of year, reportedly sporting at least 12,000 of these beauties. It most certainly is beautiful! After you enter the park there are a number of routes to follow, mostly in Chinese, but the cherry blossoms on the signage are a pretty clear indicator of the direction you should be going in. After you follow one of these routes you come to one of the many designated areas in which these stunning trees are growing in. It’s a beautiful array of pink and white all gleaming in the spring sun. If you’re lucky, you might spot some of the various cosplay and wedding photo shoots people come to do in this park, it really adds to the atmosphere and can add to your own photo collection too! A perfect day spent at this park would be to rise early, view the blossoms in the morning before the crowds start filling in and have an outdoor lunch at one of the barbecue pits available for hire. Supplies are also available for purchase at the park or you can BYO and it goes without saying to BYOB！

Details in English: 4788 Hunan Road, Baoshan District, Shanghai. Take metro line 7 to Gucun Park Station

Details in Chinese: 上海市宝山区沪南路4788号。顾村公园地铁站7号线。

Opening Hours：Open daily from 06:00-18:00 Last entry at 16:30

The dreaded costs：Entry tickets cost 20RMB. For the other activities available in the park there are supplemental charges

Second up on the list to see the wondrous cherry blossoms is the beautiful and somewhat remote Shanghai Haiwan National Forest Park. This enormous park also hosts the peony festival at the end of April and it is claimed that these enormous beauties are in fact China’s National Flowers. The forest park makes for quite an excursion out of the city but it is definitely worth it. There are tons of routes to explore, complete with moon bridges and gorgeous pavilions which provide a stunning backdrop to the cherry blossom trees. There are also a few small restaurants located within the park which sell ice-cold Tsingtao beer to enjoy lakeside as you take in all the stunning surroundings. There are an incredible amount of cherry blossom trees to view at this park and the parks sheer size make it a worthwhile day trip from the city.

Details in English: Shanghai Haiwan National Park, 1677 Suitanghe Road, Fengxian District, Shanghai. Take line 8 to Pujiang Town and then call a Didi (Uber) to the above address. The Didi should cost between 40-50RMB.

Details in Chinese: 上海海湾国家森林公园 上海市奉贤区随塘河路1677号。浦江镇地铁站8号线。然后打的到上海海湾国家森林公园的地址。

Opening Hours: Open daily from08:30-15:30.

The dreaded costs: Entry tickets cost 80RMB. (Tip! If you have the app Dazhong Dianping which is almost like China’s version of Groupon, you can get a 10RMB discount on the ticket price!)

Next up on the list is one of Shanghai’s most well-known parks and, like Gucun Park has its own metro station but unlike Gucun Park is a more convenient stop on the metro. Century Park is one of the city’s most beautiful and accessible parks being located on line 2 which is one of Shanghai’s most central lines. I must say I was blown away by the display of cherry blossoms at this park. It was simply stunning. There were trees as far as the eye could see, all flowering the stunning pink and white flowers they are famous for. There were people of all ages out enjoying the sights, taking pictures and having picnics. We even sat down and had two cheeky bottles of wine under the trees. It was a glorious day!

Details in English: Century Park, 1001 Jinxiu Road, Pudong New Area, Shanghai. Take line 2 to Century Park metro station and go out exit 1/4.

Details in Chinese: 上海市浦东新区锦绣路1001号。世纪公园地铁站2号线1/4号出口。

Opening Hours: Daily from 07:00-18:00. Last entry 17:30.

The dreaded costs: Entry tickets cost 10RMB.

These three parks are a great place to view the cherry blossoms and will not disappoint! There are numerous other options around the city for viewing the trees on both a small and large scale. I shall list the details below should you ever fancy making an excursion to the other stunning locations on offer around this city!

Inner City

Xujiahui Park: Take line 1/9/11 to Xujiahui Station and take exit 14. 徐家汇公园：徐家汇地铁站1/9/11号线14号出口。Free to enter!

Jing’an Sculpture Park: Take line 2 to West Nanjing Station or line 13 to Shanghai Natural History Museum.(The park is in the grounds of the museum.) 静安雕塑公园：南京西路地铁站2号线或上海自然博物馆地铁站13号线。Free to enter!

Zhongshan Park: Take line 2/3/4 to Zhongshan Park metro station and take exit 4. 中山公园：中山公园地铁站2/3/4号线4号出口。Free to enter and it’s ooen 24/7!

People’s Park: Take line 1/2/8 to People’s Square metro station and take exit 11. 人民公园：人民广场地铁站1/2/8号线11号出口。Free to enter!

Outer Areas

Shanghai Chenshan Botanical Gardens: Take line 9 to Dongjing station and then take bus 15 to the gardens. Alternatively you can take a taxi from Dongjing station which will cost around 25RMB. 上海辰山植物园：洞经地铁站9号线 》15路公交车到辰山植物园。25RMB从地铁到辰山植物园打车。60RMB to enter!

Zhoupu Huahai: Take line 16 to East Zhoupu Station and then you can take bus 52 to the park. Alternatively you can take a taxi from East Zhoupu Station which will cost less than 20RMB. 周浦花海：周浦东地铁站16号线 》52路公交车到周浦花海。>20RMB从地铁站到周浦花海打车。50RMB to enter!

All of these places I have listed would be a wonderful way to see the cherry blossoms in full bloom. Never fear if you can’t make an excursion to these parks however, because in Shanghai you never know where you might come across these beauties, so a chance to see them is almost definitely guaranteed. Happy Cherry Blossom Festival everyone!