Wukang Road runs north to south through the western part of the old French Concession, crossing Huaihai Road at its southern end. With the lanes around Anfu Road to the north and Fuxing Road to the east, it forms a district of low buildings, mature plane trees and quiet side streets that is now the most enjoyable place in Shanghai simply to walk.
What makes it different
The streets here were laid out in the early twentieth century and built up with garden villas, apartment blocks and shophouses in a mixture of European and Chinese styles. Most survived, partly because the area was protected from redevelopment. The plane trees, planted decades ago, arch over the road and close the sky in summer. Because the streets are narrow and residential, traffic is slow, and the pavements are genuinely walkable - a rarity in a city of this size.
What is on the street
The ground floors have filled with small businesses. Coffee shops occupy corner sites and villa gardens, several of them with a handful of tables outside under the trees. There are wine bars, bakeries, gelato counters, florists, second-hand bookshops, clothing boutiques, and a number of small restaurants serving everything from Yunnan noodles to Italian pasta. A few historic buildings are open to the public, including the Norman-style Wukang Mansion itself, the flat-iron building at the northern end of the road that has become an unofficial symbol of the district.
Walking the district
Start at the Wukang Mansion, walk south along Wukang Road past the villas, turn east onto Anfu Road and follow it towards Fuxing Road, then loop back through the lanes in between. The whole circuit is about three kilometres and takes two hours with stops. Detours are worthwhile - the smaller lanes off Anfu Road hold restaurants that do not appear on the main street, and the side streets south of Fuxing Road have some of the best-preserved houses.
Practical notes
The nearest metro stations are Shanghai Library on Line 10 and Jiaotong University on Lines 10 and 11. The area is best in the late afternoon, when the light comes through the trees and the cafes fill with people. Weekends are busy, particularly around the Wukang Mansion, where photographers gather for the building itself. Most of the businesses are independent and many close by nine in the evening, so it is not the place for a late night.
