Shanghai and the Bottle Opener: the view from above

The most memorable evening in Shanghai was undoubtedly spent visiting the World Financial Center, which was, at the time we went there, the tallest building in China (492m). The second tallest in the world at the time of its opening (2008), it was continuously downgraded and now (in 2021) is on the 11th place. Its observation deck is on the 100th floor, 474m high, right above the cutout that gave it the accurate nickname Bottle Opener.

Down in the lobby a scale model of the Pudong area (the east side of the river) prepares you for the cityscape you’re about to see from above, and then an ultra-fast elevator (36 km/h) will take you to the 100th floor in no time, making you feel as if you were in a rocket. For all the city’s extreme pollution, the view is still phenomenal. And if you visit the building in the afternoon, you’ll also see the city light up during the blue hour.

All the skyscrapers for which you were twisting your neck while you were down on the ground are now below your knee level: the Jin Mao Tower (421m), the Oriental Perl TV Tower (468m) and the Shanghai Tower (under construction when we saw it, but projected to reach 632m).

After you’ve had enough of the view (we spent there more than an hour, but we also waited for the sunset and the city night lights), on your way down you can eat at one of the many international restaurants located in the same building. After a week of exclusively Chinese food, usually picked blindly from a non-English menu, we chose the Blue Frog, where we indulged in a good old burger with fries and a pint of beer. Or two. (And while you’re there, you must not miss the high-tech toilets in the building, they are a unique experience).

You can check out more photos of the Bottle Opener in Shanghai in the gallery below.