Hostels

When I am travelling alone, I tends to stay in Youth Hostels, it is cheap, and at the same time, I could meet people with similar interest.

If you are travelling and wish to have a stay in any of the following hostels, you can ask me for comments/feedback.

Here is a list of hostels that I have stayed in the past few years (there were more, but I forgot):

Shanghai: Mingtown Hiker International Youth Hostel (Apr 2009)
Suzhou: Mingtown Suzhou Youth Hostel (Apr 2009)
Hangzhou: Hangzhou International Youth Hostel (Apr 2009)
Macau: Augusters Lodge (Aug 2008)
Hong Kong: Mt Davis Jockey Club Youth Hostel (Aug 2008)
Melbourne: All Nations City Backpackers Hostel (Jan 2008)
Melbourne: King Street Backpackers Hostel (Jan 2008)
Tokyo: Tokyo International Hostel (Nov 2002, Aug 2003)
Hakone: Fuji-Hakone Guesthouse (Nov 2002)

2009-04 Shanghai

Shanghai

By the time I arrived at Shanghai (about 13:20), I tried to call James (my ex-colleague in Singapore, who had returned to China for good in 2005), who was supposed to come to airport to pick me. To my surprise, my SIM card could not be used in Shanghai, it was a local SIM card to be used only in Wuhan, Hubei! Luckily, there is a public phone around, which I can use to contact James.

James has bought a car, Buick, and had volunteered to pick me up at the airport and sent me to the hostel! (Throughout this entire week, I had pre-booked my accommodation via Hostels.com. Hostels.com offers very good rates for hostels world-wide. See below for information on those hostels.)

After checking in to the hostel, we went to James' home (which he bought it in 2005 at 世纪公园), where we were going to meet Gu Bei (Lily) and Hong Tao (Aaron), for dinner. Gu Bei and Hong Tao had been working in Singapore as well. In the years of 1999-2004, we had been playing badminton and cards together! It was one of the many sweet memories of my life!

At James' Home: From L-R: James, James' Mother-in-law with James' Son (Zhang Zi Heng), Grace (James' wife), Lily, Aaron and me

Zhang Zi Heng (James' son): Very Intelligent, Chatty and hyper-active! I am amazed at how his lingual abilities, who is only 4 years old! He is Bi-lingual (English and Mandarin).

After dinner, James brought me to the river-side (黄浦江) at 陆家嘴. From there, you could see the opposite bank, the Bund (外滩), it appeared in most movies/serials filmed in Shanghai, for example the famous Hong Kong Serials, 上海滩.


At the bank of 黄浦江：L->R: me, Aaron, James (Shangrila Hotel and 东方明珠 TV Tower, in the background)




The building on the right (Shanghai World Financial Centre, SWFC, 上海环球金融中心) is the tallest building in China. It is the second tallest completed building in the world, standing at 492m, shorter than Taipei 101 (at 509m). By Sep-2009, the tallest building in the world will be replaced by Burj Dubai (which stands at 818m).



南京路步行街

Accommodation
Mingtown Hiker International Youth Hostels (booked from www.hostels.com)

Related Blogs:
Moving around in Shanghai
California Fitness Gym
Train to Suzhou
外滩　Bund (Day and Night)
Lu Jia Zui 陆家嘴
Excursion to Zhu Jia Jiao 朱家角

Shanghai Hostel

Some Information and Pictures are taken from Hostels.com

Mingtown Hiker International Youth Hostels


Address:
No. 450 Middle Jiangxi Rd. Shanghai. P.R.China.
黄浦区江西中路450号
phone: +86-21 63297889
fax: +86-21 63298099
email: mingtown@foxmail.com

My Comments:
Offers Private Rooms or Dormitories. Try to book at hostels.com, and you will see the rates. Prices are very affordable, even for private rooms. I paid RMB 35 for a bed in the 4-Beds dormitory.
The place is clean and safe. What I like about this hostel is its proximity to the Bund (5 minutes walk). Excellent location, with easy access to mini-mart (just two shops away), restaurants, and 5 minutes walk to Nanjing East Road Metro Station.
The dormitories are equipped with security lockers (quite big), whereby you could store your bags/valuables.
Laundry (including drying) charges at RMB 10 for 2.5 kg of clothes.
There are 3 PCs available for free internet access between 7am and 2am. Alternatively, you can surf internet using your own laptop via WiFi.


DIRECTIONS
DIRECTIONS FROM THE PUDONG INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT (PVG):
1) Maglev Train (50rmb) from PVG to Long Yang Road station (龙阳路), then transfer to subway line 2 (costs: 4RMB) to Nanjing Rd(East) station (南京东路), take exit 3 and walk along the east Nanjing Road to the east (towards the Bund). After the second traffic lights turn left (walk along the Middle Jiangxi Road 江西中路 to north), after the 4th block (East Beijing Rd 北京东路) you will find our hostel (on the right).

2) Shuttle bus: Take No. 2 shuttle bus from PVG to Jing'An Temple　静安寺 (that will cost you about 19RMB),　then take subway line 2 (4RMB) to Nanjing Rd(East) station, or take taxi from Jingan Temple to the hostel about 20RMB.

3)　Take taxi : Gate No.3 (Domestic) Gate No.15 (International) on 1F
Taxi fee about 160RMB by day; 200RMB by night (after 23:00)

DIRECTIONS FROM THE HONGQIAO AIRPORT (HQ AIRPORT):
1)Bus No.925 from HQ airport to the last stop the People`s square (4RMB), then take subway line 2 one stop to Nanjing Rd(East) station, or walk along the East Nanjing Rd for half an hour or take a taxi (12RMB) to the hostel.

2)Take a taxi about 50RMB by daytime,100RMB by nighttime (after 23:00)

DIRECTIONS FROM THE MAIN SHANGHAI TRAIN STATION:
1) Take bus No.64 : leave the station at the west-south exit, walk right (to the west) to the bus park and take the bus 64 (2RMB), get off at Middle Jingxi Rd bus stop, then walk north (in the opposite direction of the bus) to the traffic lights and after East Beijing Rd walk about 100metres and you will find the hiker hostel in the right.

2) take the subway (4RMB): the metro station is outside the train station,take subway line 1 to People's Square(the 3rd stop) then transfer onto line 2. It takes one stop to Nanjing Rd(East).

3) Take a taxi about 15RMB, after 23:00 about 18RMB.

DIRECTIONS FROM THE SOUTH SHANGHAI TRAIN STATION:
1) Take the subway (4RMB): metro line 1 from South Shanghai train station to the People's square then transfer onto line 2 to Nanjing Rd(E). Or take No.5 shuttle bus arrive to people's square, then change the subway line 2 to Nanjing(East) Station

2) Take a taxi about 50RMB by daytime, 100RMB by nighttime (after 23:00).

Other links on this hostel:
http://www.yhachina.com/ls.php?id=15