Asia July 2026: Shanghai

We made it to our 43rd country!
China! 

On Tuesday, we checked out of the Tokyo Disneyland Hotel and took a car to the airport for our flight to Shanghai. Since we were flying business class, we were directed to a separate check-in area, and we were sure it would be smooth sailing. Wrong!

China has strict immigration rules and you have to have all of your ducks in a row before you'll be checked in for a flight whose destination is China. There are different kinds of visas and the one we planned on applying for upon arrival allows a maximum stay of 240 hours. However, because our next stop after Shanghai is Hong Kong, there was a great deal of debate among the airline staff at the check-in counter; although Hong Kong is under Chinese rule, it is considered a special administrative region with its own regulations about visas. So while our stay in Shanghai would not exceed the 240 hour limit, the airline staff were concerned that because our stays in Shanghai and Hong Kong combined would exceed 240 hours and therefore we would need a different type of visa for entrance to China. Luckily, C, as always, had all of our ducks in a row and even though four different staff members got involved and were researching the regulations on a variety of ipads, they ultimately found the confirmation of what C what saying and they checked out suitcases and sent us to the lounge. The relief we experienced!

Of course, as the saying goes, when something seems too good to be true, it probably is, and when we went to the gate to board the flight, we were stopped and questioned again while a new group of airline employees questioned our plans and the impact they may have on our visas in China. This took less time than it had at the check-in counter, but it still took time and I'll be honest, I was holding back tears because with the language barrier and the butterflies about going to China and the general exhaustion that just comes with travel, I was feeling very overwhelmed. Thankfully, one of the things that makes C and me an amazing team is that when things become stressful, usually only one of us freaks out at a time while the other person is able to think rationally! LOL!

They finally gave us the go-ahead and we were able to board and enjoy the roughly 2.5-hour flight to Shanghai! When we arrived, we had to get the transit visas sorted out and then get through immigration, which was no easy feat, as the officer asked many questions and required all of our documentation and proof of where we were staying, and more importantly, what flight we were scheduled to leave Shanghai on before the 240 hours expired. After a very lengthy and nerve-wracking interview, he waved me through with an ominous warning, "Don't change your flight," spoken in a rather scary tone. Then he went through the same procedure with C, but asked many more questions of him while I stood awkwardly waiting for him to be let through!

In the end, we were granted entrance and our transit visas, we picked up our bags from the carousel, and we took a taxi to the Conrad Shanghai for our three-night stay!

the Haneda airport is beautiful!

there are vending machines for just about everything
in Japan - including ice cream and ramen

this is the ANA lounge!

absolutely enormous!

the safety video on the plane
features Pokemon characters

this was when C woke me up because we were about to land
and I emerged from my travel blanket cocoon :)

The hotel was beautiful and in a great location for sightseeing and we would absolutely stay here again!

there were two of these Disney Store
vending machines at our hotel!

we loved our view!

this is in the executive lounge in the hotel
so of course I had to get a pic of the
Sorcerer Mickey they had with the other
plushies on display

these Sanrio characters were on the rooftop terrace

I don't know what I was expecting of Shanghai, but I had no idea that I would fall in love with it like I did! It is, without question, one of the best cities we've ever visited. I was seriously SO surprised with just how quickly I became enamored with Shanghai! We had two full days there, because we arrived Tuesday evening and we left Friday morning, but we made the most of our time!

On Wednesday, we spent time wandering around and exploring before we had an evening tour that included a hot pot dining experience and a night river cruise to admire all of the buildings lit up! Our guide was so fun and knowledgeable and we had a great time eating dinner with her and chatting throughout the evening! We just loved her! Our driver didn't speak English, but she was very friendly as well! The craziest "it really is a small world" discovery of the evening was that our guide worked at the Japan pavilion at Epcot before the pandemic! So in addition to Shanghai info, we also discussed WDW!

On Thursday, we took another tour - this time a seven-hour "city highlights" tour that also came with a driver and a guide (again, the driver didn't speak English, but was a very distinguished gentleman!). Our guide was incredible! We spent the entire day learning about the history of Shanghai and also discussing religion, politics. culture, and travel at great lengths. She was brilliant and insightful AND hilarious! Our favorite stops on the tour were Shanghai Tower, Jade Buddha Temple, and Yu Garden!

Two unexpected things happened during our tour on Thursday. 1) Our vehicle was hit by another car changing lanes. Luckily we weren't going at a particularly high speed, so no one was hurt, but our driver had to slam on the brakes and it did startle all of us. Our car was damaged and we had to wait while insurance info was exchanged and the police were called. Turned out to be a minor interruption to our tour with no injuries, so all's well that ends well on that front. 2) When we were at Yu Garden, while Craig and our guide were chatting and I had stopped to take a picture, an elderly Chinese couple approached me, smiling and gesturing to their phone. Despite my confusion, I ended up taking a selfie with the cute older lady. Afterwards, our guide explained that some Chinese citizens visiting Shanghai from rural areas have never seen a Caucasian person before and want a picture to share with family and friends when they return home!

our first hot pot experience

everything was delicious!

cats live at the temple and they have
their own shelters built for them
that include cat shaped doors!

we stopped for lunch at a vegan
restaurant and the food was amazing!

On Friday morning, we packed up after breakfast and checked out of the Conrad Shanghai for the next leg of our trip. There have definitely been some one-and-done places we've traveled to over the years, but Shanghai is NOT one of them! What a spectacular city! We'd already been planning a return trip to China so we can visit The Great Wall, but now that we've experienced Shanghai, we want to spend more time here!

As you probably know, my dad adopted me and he is Chinese, and visiting Shanghai turned out to be somewhat of a spiritual journey for me. I am forever changed for having been here!

Happy Tails to you!