Shanghai Children’s Palace

Shanghai


A grand, two-storey 1920s building, the Shanghai Children’s Palace was formerly Kadoorie House, named after its wealthy Jewish owner. It's closed to the public, but architecture buffs can wander its grounds and still peek in the rooms of Elly Kadoorie’s mansion, once the site of Shanghai’s most extravagant balls. As a reminder of Mao's vision for the palace, the building's stately lawn is dotted with socialist realism statues, and the facade is topped by a communist star.

Find it west of Jing'an Park, in between West Nanjing Rd and Middle Yan'an Rd.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Shanghai attractions

1. Jìng'an Park

0.17 MILES

Across from Jing'an Temple, this atmospheric landscaped garden is 33,600 sq metres in size and a nice little oasis in the city. Stroll past flowerbeds,…

2. Jing'an Temple

0.17 MILES

With the original temple dating back to AD 1216, the much-restored Jing'an Temple was here well before all the audacious skyscrapers and glitzy shopping…

3. Paramount Ballroom

0.18 MILES

This art deco theatre was once the biggest nightclub in the 1930s. The first Chinese jazz band, Jimmy King, played here, and both the former ruler of…

4. Former Residence of Liu Changsheng

0.29 MILES

Inside a red-brick villa, this museum details the rise of the Chinese Communist Party (CPC). It's the former residence of underground CPC leader Liu…

5. Salvador Dalí Sculpture

0.32 MILES

On the corner of ritzy West Nanjing Rd sits Nobility of Time, a bronze sculpture created by Salvador Dalí, who constructed this signature dripping clock…

6. Changde Apartment

0.34 MILES

A great example of art deco architecture, this 1933 apartment building is the former residence of Eileen Chang (Zhang Ailing; 1920–95), the celebrated…

7. Mao Zedong's 1920 Apartment

0.36 MILES

Though Mao Zedong only lived at this two-storey apartment for a few months in 1920, it's here the seeds were laid for the formation of the CCP. Within is…

8. Mao Space

0.36 MILES

Located within the former short-term 1920s residence of Mao Zedong, this somewhat paradoxical pop-art gallery offers an intriguing insight to modern China…