Oriental Pearl Tower

The Oriental Pearl Tower: Shanghai’s Most Recognisable Structure and Why It Is Worth More Than a Passing Glance

The Oriental Pearl Tower opened on 1 October 1994, China’s National Day, and for the following thirteen years held the title of tallest freestanding structure in both China and Asia. It has since been overtaken by several towers within Shanghai itself, including the Shanghai Tower directly behind it, but it remains the structure most associated with the city’s transformation into a global financial centre. The design did not emerge from a particularly romantic process: twelve proposals from three firms were submitted in September 1988, and the East China Architectural Design Institute’s scheme, led by chief architect Jiang Huancheng, was selected. The result is 11 steel spheres of varying sizes arranged along three cylindrical columns, rising to 468 metres including the antenna mast.

The tower is officially a radio and television transmission facility, which is what the spheres are partly there for. Most visitors focus on the three platforms accessible to the public, the most dramatic being the Space Module at 351 metres.

Tickets and Getting In

As of 2026, two main ticket tiers cover the observation experience. The standard Two-Sphere ticket costs 199 RMB (around 27 USD) and includes the 263-metre main observation deck, the 259-metre glass-floor skywalk, the 90-metre lower sphere, and the Shanghai History Museum at ground level. The Three-Sphere ticket at 220 RMB adds access to the Space Module at 351 metres. Seniors aged 65 and over pay half price with valid ID. Children under 1 metre enter free; those between 1 and 1.4 metres require a child ticket and adult accompaniment.

The tower operates 08:00-22:00 with last admission at 21:30. Online tickets can be purchased through official booking platforms and major travel apps; walk-up queues can be lengthy on weekends and public holidays. The tower is on Century Avenue in Lujiazui, reachable in minutes via the Lujiazui metro station on Line 2.

What the Observation Decks Actually Offer

The 263-metre deck is the most practical vantage point for photography. The Huangpu River curves south and west below, with the Bund’s colonial-era European facades on the opposite bank and a continuous line of towers behind you in Pudong. The framing from this height is particularly good at dusk, when the light on the Bund shifts from hard white to orange and the Pudong towers begin their LED sequences.

The glass-floor walkway at 259 metres unsettles some visitors more than they expect. The panels are ultra-tempered and rated to support several tonnes, but the psychological experience of seeing the ground several hundred metres directly beneath your feet through nothing but glass is reliably vertiginous. A solid-floor alternative runs along the perimeter for those who prefer to keep standard flooring underfoot.

The Space Module at 351 metres is a revolving capsule that completes a full rotation every 30-40 minutes. The views here extend further on clear days, reaching the outer districts of Pudong and, if conditions are right, a haze-free horizon over the Yangtze Delta. Smog and humidity are Shanghai realities; the best visibility comes on the days following a cold front in autumn and winter, when northwest winds have cleared the air.

At ground level, the Shanghai History Museum is underrated. The museum occupies the lower sphere and traces Shanghai from small fishing town through treaty port to megacity, with particular attention to the colonial-era districts, the 1930s heyday of the International Settlement, and the rapid Pudong construction of the 1990s. It is included in the standard ticket price and takes an hour to cover properly.

Dining

Inside the tower, the Revolving Restaurant sits at approximately 267 metres and operates a buffet covering Chinese and Western dishes. The rotation takes roughly two hours for a full circuit, giving decent views in multiple directions over a meal. Reservations are recommended for weekend evenings.

For dining with views of the tower rather than from it, Flair Restaurant and Bar at The Ritz-Carlton Shanghai, Pudong occupies the 58th floor and is among the highest al fresco dining venues in the city. The Ritz-Carlton also operates Jin Xuan on the 53rd floor, a Michelin-starred Cantonese restaurant with a focused menu and a quieter atmosphere than the rooftop bar above it. Both sit within a 10-minute walk from the tower.

For a considerably cheaper meal before or after your visit, the food courts in the basement of the nearby IFC Mall (International Finance Centre) serve Shanghainese dim sum, roast meats, and noodle dishes for 30-80 RMB per person.

Where to Stay

The Pudong Shangri-La sits between the tower and the river and offers direct views of the Huangpu waterfront. Standard rooms run 1,500-2,500 RMB per night. The Grand Hyatt Shanghai occupies floors 54 to 87 of Jin Mao Tower, another Pudong landmark with a distinctive tiered exterior, at a similar price point. Both put you in walking distance of Lujiazui’s cluster of towers and the ferry crossing to the Bund.

Budget travellers tend to base themselves across the river in the former French Concession or around People’s Square, where mid-range hotels run 400-800 RMB and metro access to Lujiazui on Line 2 is fast, taking about 15 minutes from People’s Square station.

The Bund and Lujiazui Loop

The Oriental Pearl Tower is best understood as the anchor of a cluster rather than a standalone attraction. From the tower, the Pudong waterfront walk extends south past the Shanghai International Convention Centre to Riverside Promenade, a quieter stretch with river views and benches. A pedestrian tunnel (10 RMB, though tourists find the ferry far more pleasant for 2 RMB per crossing) connects to the Bund’s northern section, where the 1920s-1930s bank buildings and customs house present a concentrated study in the various European architectural schools that competed for prominence in the old International Settlement.

The three supertall towers of Pudong, the Oriental Pearl, Jin Mao, and the Shanghai Tower, are visible together from the Bund’s central viewing area. The Shanghai Tower at 632 metres is the world’s second-tallest building; its observation deck at 546 metres offers the highest public viewing platform in China and is arguably a more dramatic physical experience than the Pearl, though the Pearl’s exterior design photographs better and carries more of the city’s symbolic weight.

Practical Notes

Shanghai in summer (June-August) is hot, humid, and often hazy. Winter (December-February) brings cold winds but also the city’s clearest air. April-May and September-October offer the most comfortable combination of temperature and visibility. The tower is busiest on weekends and Chinese public holidays, particularly National Day (1-7 October) and Chinese New Year (dates vary, usually late January to mid-February). Arriving when it opens at 08:00 on a weekday morning gives the observation deck near-empty for the first hour.

The tower’s exterior is illuminated nightly and the full LED display sequence runs on major Chinese public holidays. Viewing from the Bund between 19:00 and 21:00 is the most practical position for photographs of the full Pudong skyline with the Pearl in the foreground.