Travel Notes Oriental Pearl Tower: a 468-metre television tower
Named after pearls on a jade plate
Three nine-metre columns, a space capsule, upper and lower spheres, five small spheres and a base make up the tower, inspired by a line from Bai Juyi’s poem about pearls falling onto a jade plate — spheres of different sizes strung on one vertical axis. The foundation was laid in July 1991, the antenna went up at the end of 1994, and the height reached 468 metres.
Choosing among the three decks
The upper sphere at 263 metres is the main deck, with a transparent walkway at 259 metres, 150 metres long and 2.15 metres wide, the river directly beneath. The space capsule at 351 metres is a fully glazed 360-degree corridor and on clear days looks out to the mouth of the Yangtze. The lower sphere at 90 metres leans to entertainment, with virtual-reality and motion rides that will absorb an hour if you bring children.
The city’s history in the base
Inside the base sits the Shanghai urban history museum, about 10,000 square metres of objects, models and reconstructed scenes covering six thousand years from the port’s opening to today. It is usually skipped, but on a rainy day it beats standing in the queue for the lifts.
The revolving restaurant and the night view
The revolving restaurant in the upper sphere sits at 267 metres and seats 500, serving Chinese and Western buffets; one revolution takes about an hour and covers the Bund and Lujiazui in turn. The tower lights up nightly, and since the switch to LEDs in 2018 the show is dynamic. The spheres reflected in the river are the most photographed sight seen from the opposite bank.
How to buy tickets
An adult ticket is 220 yuan and covers the upper and lower spheres plus the history museum; the space capsule costs another 100. Children and seniors pay 110. The 220-yuan combination is already plenty, so add the capsule only if you want to linger at 351 metres. Queues thin sharply after eight in the evening, though the lights look best between seven and eight.
Getting there and what to pair it with
Metro Line 2 or 14 to Lujiazui, exit 2, puts you at the gate. Parking under the tower is limited, so take the metro. After the visit, walk north along the riverside promenade toward Shanghai Tower, all of it facing the water, or take the ferry back to the Bund and buy a completely different angle for two yuan.
The Oriental Pearl is no longer Shanghai’s tallest tower, but it picks its spot better than any other. A transparent gallery at 263 metres, a capsule at 351 and an unobstructed stretch of riverbank below add up to the most complete set of views on the far side of the Bund.
Practical information
- Hours: daily 8:00-22:00, last entry 21:30.
- Tickets: 220 yuan adult including the upper and lower spheres and the history museum; the space capsule is another 100; children and seniors 110.
- Getting there: Metro Line 2 or 14 to Lujiazui, exit 2.
- Parking: limited under the tower, so public transport is easier.
- Tip: go up between seven and eight in the evening for day and night in one visit, and take the ferry back to the Bund.
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