Shanghai at a Slower Pace

A winter family trip based in Pudong

Introduction

This trip to Shanghai was my 2nd highlight trip this year, and it was chosen deliberately.

My wife and I wanted to travel somewhere English is not the dominant language - to see how well we'd cope relying on limited Mandarin, gestures, app and patience. While Mandarin is common in Singapore, real conversations are a different story. Shanghai felt like the right balance: unfamiliar enough to be challenging, but structured enough not to be too intimidating.

We also wanted winter, a proper seasonal contrast to Singapore, and a city that's fundamentally different.

A family trip - exploration first, bonding always - with one non-negotiable goal: Disneyland!!

Why Pudong Made Sense for Us

We chose to stay in Pudong instead of central Shanghai for a few practical reasons.

First,food! Pudong - especially around Yu Garden - was close to the Chinese Muslim community. From our research and travel vlog, this area consistently showed up as one of the easier areas to find halal food.

Second, location. It's still tourist-friendly and well connected. With kids, that matters. This area felt central enough, and not too overwhelming.

Getting There: Flight, Arrival, and First Shock

We flew from Singapore to Shanghai Pudong International Airport via Spring Airlines.

• Flight time: ~5 hours
• Arrival: around 6:15am

Spring Airlines is exactly what you’d expect from a budget carrier — no surprises, no complaints. The early arrival was intentional. The plan was to take the Maglev train to Longyang Road, then navigate to the hotel from there.

First impression?
Cold. Really cold!!

Stepping out of the airport early in the morning, Shanghai felt modern, chaotic, and freezing — exactly as expected. Immigration queues were long, the airport was busy, and the city was just starting to wake up.

Winter in Shanghai (December Reality)

December in Shanghai is winter, but not extreme.

• Early mornings / nights: ~5–7°C
• Daytime: up to ~16–18°C

If you’ve been to Korea in winter, it feels similar. We came prepared, so the cold didn’t change our plans much. In fact, the weather made walking more pleasant once properly layered.

This was the weather we came for.

Staying Near Yu Garden: Familiar, Comfortable, Easy

We stayed at Mercure Hotel Shanghai Yu Garden.

I chose Mercure partly because it’s familiar. I’ve worked with the brand before in Singapore, so I knew roughly what to expect — a comfortable, reliable four-star experience.

The hotel made things easy:

• Helpful staff who actively used translators
• Spacious room (we booked one of the largest suites)
• Quiet enough to rest properly
• About 10 minutes’ walk to the metro
• Walking distance to Yu Garden

We didn’t spend much time in the hotel beyond resting and resetting — which, honestly, is exactly what a family trip needs. I’d stay in the same area again without hesitation.

Disneyland: A Must-Do, No Compromises

We dedicated a full day to Shanghai Disneyland, and it was non-negotiable.

For me, it was about TRON Lightcycle Power Run.
For my wife, Toy Story and Zootopia.
For the kids — everything.

Disneyland Shanghai is huge. One day is barely enough, especially once queues come into play. We didn’t overthink spending — the focus was on experience, not optimisation.

By the end of the day, we were exhausted.
Was it worth it? Yes!!

Halal Food in Shanghai: Easier Than Expected

Halal food turned out to be abundant.

From:

• Lanzhou Muslim Traditional Beef Noodles
• Xinjiang cuisine
• Turkish and Lebanese food
• Even Western options

Food itself wasn’t the challenge. Navigation was.

Google Maps was unreliable, likely due to China’s mapping and GPS offsets. Instead, we relied heavily on:

• A-Map
• Alipay’s built-in navigation

Getting to food often meant a mix of metro rides, walking, and short cab trips. Shanghai is massive — distances are not always obvious.

With planning, halal food is easy. Without planning, it’s frustrating — especially if you don’t speak Mandarin.

Pace, Guilt, and Reality With Kids

We slowed down often — not by choice, but by necessity.

Toilet breaks.
Kids getting tired.
Unexpected naps.
Cranky moments.

That’s family travel.

I did feel some guilt — especially skipping long queues (like waiting two hours for TRON). But realistically, four or five days in Shanghai is never enough anyway.

Once I accepted that, the trip felt lighter.

Closing Thoughts

This Shanghai trip wasn’t about doing everything.

It was about:

• Experiencing a non-English-first city
• Feeling winter again
• Letting the kids explore freely
• Choosing pace over pressure

Shanghai is fast.
Pudong allowed us to slow down.

And for this stage of life, that mattered more than ticking boxes.