Huangpu River cruise or the 2 yuan ferry: which one?
Take the 2 yuan ferry if you want a cheap, short ride with a river view. Take the cruise if you want one boat that loops past both the Bund and Lujiazui, by day or at night. They are two different services. The ferry is public transport for pedestrians and cyclists crossing between Pudong and Puxi. The cruise is a sightseeing boat from Shiliupu that sails towards Yangpu Bridge and turns back.
The Shanghai government's English guide, posted in September 2025 (the date is in its web address), calls three of the 17 regular ferry lines "economic options for sightseeing": the Taigong, Dongfu and Dongjin lines. If you only want a skyline photo from the water, one of those is the budget route. We'd pick the cruise when you want the full Bund-and-Lujiazui loop, and ride the Dongfu Line when you want a night view for 2 yuan.
We can help you plan the day around either one and tell you how to book. We don't sell cruise or ferry tickets.
Huangpu River cruise ticket price: day, night and off-peak
The prices below are from that September 2025 government page. That page does not say they stay fixed for 2026, so treat them as the Sept 2025 listing and confirm the price on the booking screen before you pay.
| Period | Day voyage | Night voyage |
|---|---|---|
| Peak season (Feb 26 – Nov 25) | 120 yuan per person | 150 yuan per person |
| Off-peak season (Nov 26 – Feb 25) | 100 yuan per person | 120 yuan per person |
| Public holidays | 150 yuan per person | |
The page does not say which public holidays count, or whether the 150 yuan holiday price covers both day and night. If you travel around a Chinese holiday, look at the price on the ticket page for your date.
Huangpu River cruise discounts for children and seniors
- Children under 1.3 m: free ticket.
- Children from 1.3 m to 1.5 m: half price.
- Seniors aged 70 or above: half price.
The page does not say which document proves a senior's age, and it lists no discount for children above 1.5 m. It also gives no ferry fares for children or seniors: only the 2 yuan pedestrian fare is listed.
Where to board the Huangpu River cruise
The cruise leaves from Shiliupu Piers 1 and 2, heads towards Yangpu Bridge and turns back. On the Puxi side you pass the Bund, including Waibaidu Bridge and the Monument to the People's Heroes. On the Pudong side you pass Lujiazui: the Oriental Pearl Tower, Jinmao Tower, Shanghai World Financial Center and Shanghai Tower.
The Suishenxing Q&A (February 2025) lists a longer route for reference: Shiliupu, Old Wharf, Nanpu Bridge, M2 Expo Pier, the Shanghai World Financial Center, Jinmao Tower, Shanghai Tower, the Oriental Pearl Tower, Yangpu Bridge, North Bund, Magnolia Plaza (白玉兰广场), Waibaidu Bridge, the Monument to the People's Heroes, the Bund and back to Shiliupu. It adds that the route is for reference and the actual route follows the ship.
Neither the government's boat guide nor the Suishenxing Q&A gives a street address for the cruise pier, a cruise length or departure times. The Q&A says to use the trip planner (出行规划) on the Suishenxing app home page to find your way there. Check departure times on the ticket page when you choose your date.
Shanghai ferry times and the best line for night views
Shanghai has 17 regular ferry lines serving nearly 34 ferry stations on both banks. The fare is 2 yuan for a pedestrian, 2.8 yuan for a bike or e-bike and 4 yuan for a motorcycle. The three sightseeing lines are below, with the hours as published in September 2025.
| Line | Side | Pier and address | Operating hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Taigong Line | Pudong | Taigongzhan Pier, No 1 South Pudong Road | 6 am – 9:50 pm |
| Taigong Line | Puxi | Gongping Road Pier, No 1 Gongping Road | 6 am – 9:40 pm |
| Dongfu Line | Pudong | Dongchang Road Ferry Pier, No 3510 Binjiang Avenue | 7:15 am – 9 pm |
| Dongfu Line | Puxi | Fuxing Road Ferry Pier, No 1 East Fuxing Road | 7 am – 9 pm |
| Dongjin Line | Pudong | Dongchang Road Ferry Pier, No 3510 Binjiang Avenue | 7:15 am – 6:15 pm |
| Dongjin Line | Puxi | East Jinling Road Ferry Pier, No 141 East Zhongshan Road Number Two | 7:15 am – 6:30 pm |
- Night views: the Dongfu Line is the one the page recommends for night scenery, with views of both banks as the city lights come on.
- Sunset: the Taigong Line is billed as the "most beautiful sunset ferry route".
- Daytime only: the Dongjin Line shows the Lujiazui skyline but stops in the early evening, so it is not suitable for night views. It carries pedestrians only.
The page tells you to check updated hours on the WeChat account 上海轮渡 (Shanghai Ferry), under 云上航线 (online ferry routes). It does not give sailing frequency or crossing time.
How to buy Huangpu River cruise tickets as a foreigner
The Shanghai Municipal Commission of Transport (Q&A dated 7 February 2025) describes a two-step process. You book in the Suishenxing app, then turn the order into a QR code inside WeChat.
- Open the Suishenxing (随申行) app. Its English version is called SH MaaS, and you can sign up with a mainland or overseas phone number.
- Go to Home, then Mall (商城), then 浦江游览, then "Huangpu River Cruise (Shiliupu Pier)" (黄浦江游览（十六铺码头）).
- Choose the day-voyage ticket (日航船票) or the night-cruise ticket (夜游船票) and tap to book.
- Pick your date and number of tickets, read the purchase notice (购买须知), fill in the traveller information and submit the order.
- In WeChat, search for the mini-program 黄浦江旅游官方票务平台, tap 网购预约, and enter the pickup code and the phone number used for the order. You get a QR code.
- On the day, show that QR code to board.
Step 5 happens in WeChat, so you need it installed. The Q&A uses Chinese menu names and does not say whether the Mall appears in the English version of the app.
What the pages leave open
The booking steps only say "fill in traveller information". They do not say which ID a foreign visitor needs for a regular cruise ticket, or whether foreign bank cards work in the app's Mall or the WeChat mini-program. The purchase notice (购买须知) in step 4 is where to look. They also do not say whether you can buy at the pier.
Huangpu River cruise ticket refund
The same Q&A says you can refund a cruise ticket if it is unused, not activated and not expired. An order you have not paid for is cancelled automatically after 15 minutes. The Q&A does not mention refund fees, a cut-off time before sailing, or weather cancellations.
How to pay for the Shanghai ferry with a foreign bank card
Shanghai's transport pages from 2024 describe three products that take foreign cards, and the April 2024 announcement says the metro, buses and ferries began to accept them. In all three, the foreign card is bound to Alipay or WeChat first, and charges are settled in the card's own currency, as shown on your Alipay or WeChat bill.
- Shanghai public transport ride code (上海公共交通乘车码): works on buses, ferries and the metro. You show the code to the scanner, ride first and pay later, with no top-up. It runs in a WeChat mini-program, the Shanghai Public Transport Card app and Alipay.
- NFC phone transport card: lives in the Shanghai Public Transport Card app. You top it up through the Alipay or WeChat channel that has your foreign card bound.
- Physical transport card: topped up at CVM machines offline.
To switch on the ride code in Alipay, go to Home, then Travel (出行), then Bus (公交) or Metro (地铁), and choose 上海公共交通乘车码. In WeChat, setup asks you to authorise the phone number tied to WeChat and to turn on password-free payment, which is how the fare is charged after the ride. That needs a bank card already bound in WeChat Pay. If you have not done real-name registration in WeChat, you are asked to do it.
The Suishenxing English app is another route. Its Shanghai QR Code (随申码) works on the metro, buses and ferries, and one phone can add up to 2 travel companions, so a single phone can scan for you and them in turn.
The 2024 foreign-card pages say these products exist. They do not list which of the 17 ferry lines accept which method, and they do not say whether cash is accepted on board. We'd set up one of the codes before you reach the pier.
One-day travel pass with the Huangpu River cruise
A one-day travel pass launched in September 2025 gives unlimited metro, bus and ferry rides for 24 hours from first use. It includes a choice of 4 from 10 attractions, and the Huangpu River Cruise is on the list, described as the pick "for a night cruise". You buy it on the "Easy Go" platform in Alipay, which accepts Visa and Mastercard. You register with an overseas passport and show the original ID at the attraction.
The promotional price on that page ran only until 15 September 2025, so it is not a current price. The page does not say whether the pass is still on sale in 2026. Among the cruise-related pages, it is also the only one that names a passport and Visa or Mastercard, and it covers the pass, not the regular cruise ticket.
A different route: Longhua Terminal
The Shanghai government's English news item of 5 September 2025 describes a separate Huangpu cruise from Longhua Terminal. It is a one-hour loop that turns back at Lupu Bridge, with regular service on Saturdays and Sundays from 5 September 2025 and changes planned from October. The listed price was 150 yuan per person, and the 80 yuan early-bird price ran only to the end of 2025, so it has ended. This is not the Shiliupu cruise.
That item says tickets were sold through the "Huangpu River Cruise" (浦江游览) WeChat mini-program, with plans to add Ctrip and Meituan. It does not say that happened, and it is about the Longhua route, so do not treat those apps as confirmed channels for Shiliupu. For more on the city, see our Shanghai travel guide.
