Hi all

Heading to Shanghai in a few months for a long weekend with my cousin (also gay). We’re both (very) white and not rice queens so keen to visit some more mixed/expat gay venues (I understand the Shanghai gay scene is quite divided between Asian and non-Asian). Im a bit lost as to where we should stay for what will mostly be a partying weekend.
The gay venues in Shanghai seem to be constantly closing down and re-opening. There seems to be a small cluster of venues around Xuhui in the French Concession so Im thinking it would make sense to stay there? I was recently in Shanghai and stayed with straight friends in the French Concession and while beautiful, it didn’t feel Chinese at all. Given we are only there for a few days Im wondering if staying somewhere more quintessentially ‘Chinese’ might be a better option?

On the last trip visited some fabulous restaurants in the FC and also some stunning, pumping rooftop bars around the Bund which I’ll definitely be taking my cousin to but wanting to understand what the gay scene is before selecting where to stay.

Does anyone have any recent experience?