Trying to plan a few nights in Shanghai and struggling to find review of places (restaurants / bars / playground / parks etc).

For example, I normally use Google Maps or TripAdvisor to get a "feel" for the place but these don't seem to be the correct platforms for China.

Does anyone have any suggestions ? Preferably web based instead of app.

English language web/app/print resources for Shanghai aren't especially good or plentiful these days, but Smart Shanghai is okay (small outfit so don't expect extensive features)
https://www.smartshanghai.com/

And, you'll almost certainly want a good map app or two. I suggest browsing the last ~5 pages of the really long map thread (the one with "Google" in the title) here to get some ideas; I've more or less settled on Baidu because I'm willing to tolerate its busy UI in exchange for its accuracy, currency, and level of detail, but other people have different preferences.

ExploreShanghai is a light app because it's basically only a subway map. I like it though because the interface is clean and I find it nice to use in conjunction with (much denser) map apps.

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Is the Shanghai Daily still in print?

Yes, but PDFs and its website (https://www.shine.cn/) are the main distribution methods now. It is state run (as opposed to merely state approved, which is/was the case with most other foreign language media). While I won't knock it for this (in fact, I enjoy some of their articles), I don't think it's an especially useful resource for identifying events, venues, or things to do in Shanghai (I.e. the OP's objective) .

Search the Shanghai Reddit.

That thing is a little too toxic for my tastes.

thank you all for the suggestions.

I'm still trying to find a resorce which either has reviews from multiple parties (like social media / tripadvisor) or if it's from a single point of view has several reviews so it's possible to gauge their taste/preference.

For example when I was looking at Kuala Lumpur I used https://www.eatdrinkkl.com/ and from there narrowed down the places I wanted to read up on.

Based on the part of your post I've bolded, I suppose I can throw out https://rachelgouk.com/ Rachel's tastes are quite different than my own, but she's honestly the only in-depth Shanghai food blogger I know who writes in English (very different situation than we had 10-15 years ago when Time Out, City Weekend, That's, etc. were still around and staffed with dozens of ground troops). I reach out to her from time to time when I have friends in town who have specific requests that aren't in my wheelhouse, and she always responds with suggestions that simultaneously please the visitors and me.

If you want to evaluate venues based solely on popularity, 点评 is a useful tool, but like TA, the reviews themselves are mostly just white noise.

I can't comment on FB groups at all because I don't use FB, and I'm hard pressed to think of anyone who does that participates in Shanghai scene type groups.

Exactly what I was looking for, thank you for that site !

Just wondering what others would do different with this itinerary :

Day 1 Land 2pm - Intercontinental Wonderland
Day 2 Conrad Shanghai
Day 3 Check in Disneyland (Deciding between Disney Resort or Toystory)
Day 4 Disneyland
Day 5 Depart 3pm

Intercontinental Wonderland and Disneyland are "must dos". Conrad Shanghai is in there as it'll be a shame not to see abit of the city while we're there.

A concern with this is the long car ride from Pudong Airport to Intercon Wonderland (1 hour?) and if the flight gets delayed, missing the light show. Will be traveling by car as it's a family trip with a mix of very young and old. Any suggestions for transport hire or is DiDi good enough ?

Fly into Hongqiao instead, and just grab a taxi. This will save you at least 1.5 hours in aggregate.

I'll keep that suggestion in mind for the next time ! But flight tickets have been booked so PVG will the arrival/departure airport

Departing from PVG is okay since you'll be at Disney, which is only 15 km away, but IC Wonderland is about as far as you can go from PVG and still be in the Shanghai municipality (which is bigger than some of the smaller US states).

The SHA arrival won't just save you time because it is closer, but because it's possible to get from the plane to a taxi in 20 minutes (PVG can take A LOT longer).

HKG-SHA tickets only cost around $150, and sometimes less than $100 close in. You could presumably refund or amend your existing tickets without much of a penalty.

flying MYY - KUL - PVG

Oops, my bad; I got you confused with another poster. Coming from KUL, you are kind of stuck with PVG. From there to Sheshan, the two most logical (well, convenient, at least) transportation options are Didi or metered taxi. Some Didi alternatives (e.g. Dida) are a little cheaper over long distances, but Didi is a bit easier to use.

My vote is for taxi, in this case, though. Others might chime it about Didi being cheaper, accepting foreign cards, and the possibility of a taxi trying to scam you. While these are all valid points, the taxi queues are much easier to pull off than meeting up with a Didi driver. If you decide on a taxi, and don't have Ali or WeChat pay, just plan on stopping by an ATM before you join the queue.

If you decide on Didi, install the app before you leave and set up your account. Then, you'll need to request a car when you get to the pickup area. In theory, you can do this via the airport free WiFi, but the signal drops off pretty quickly when you step outside and it can be flaky in general at times. As such, having some sort of data access is kind of important (you won't have to use much data in any event).

I suppose a hotel car might be an option, but that would probably set you back at least 1000 (I'm guessing more like 1500).

Would it be possible for you to flip the order of Wonderland and Disney?

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