ShopCrazy

With its fleet of dazzling Armani stores and breathtaking shrines of art, commerce, and contemporary urban living, Shanghai, the largest city in China, is certainly a hotspot of modernity and one of Asia’s top shopping destinations.

And you can get a chance to go to Shanghai through Q Channel 11’s Shop Around Asia on Q promo, which takes one winner per week to one of the four destinations (that also includes Thailand, Hong Kong, and Singapore) for the shopping spree of a lifetime—plane fare, accommodations, and shopping money to be given for free to the winner and her best girlfriend.

Q VJs Hilary, Ysa, and Steph also shared some tips on making the most of your Shanghai trip on the next page.

Q VJ Hilary’s tips:

• Check out famous spots like the Bund (Shanghai’s world-famous, pristine waterfront walkway), Oriental Pearl TV Tower, Shanghai Museum, and Yu Garden. For some serious shopping, go to Nanjing Dong Lu.
• The Bund offers a lot of attractions even for a seasoned traveler. It’s lined with some of Shanghai’s most famous restaurants and art-deco buildings. There are also souvenirs stands and clothing shops. You also get a great view of Pudong’s futuristic skyline.
• People-watching is a national pastime in Shanghai, so indulge when you’re in the city—and enjoy being watched.

Q VJ Ysa’s tips:

• The temperature in the city is highest in July and August (it can be as hot as 35 degrees centigrade), while it is coldest from end of January to early February, which is usually when the Chinese Spring Festival is held.
• Best weather conditions are usually from March to May. If you’re in town in April, check out the Shanghai International Tea Culture Festival. The International Dragon Boat Race in the Qingpu District happens in May.
• Bring rain gear if you’re in town between June to September.
• Participate in the Shanghai Tourism Festival, which includes several celebrations and activities, when you’re in town from September to October.

Q VJ Steph’s tips:

• Avoid the three big national holidays: Chinese New Year, Labor Day, and National Day (first week of October). These are fun but you wouldn’t want to end up fighting with thousands of residents for holiday fun and space.
• The language of the streets is Shanghainese. However, Mandarin is understood and spoken fluently by almost everybody. Have your destinations and hotel address written in Chinese so that taxi drivers can take you there. If you want to get the best bargain when you shop, a calculator would be useful when you haggle.
• Majority of the shops and restaurants have business cards (which are usually in pidgin and Chinese characters). Collect these so if you need to return to the place, you can just show the card to the taxi driver.

Now that you know these Shanghai shopping tips, get ready to shop ‘til you drop in China’s cosmopolitan city. To do this for free, tune in to Q Channel 11 and answer the questions posted by the Q VJs for a chance to win a shopping spree in Shanghai!

This entry was posted on Friday, September 5th, 2008 at 10:00 am and is filed under Contests/Promos, Travel. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.