Shanghai Useful Contact Information

With a pleasant northern subtropical climate, Shanghai enjoys four distinct seasons with generous sunshine and abundant rainfall every year.

Following are some useful contact information and telephone numbers in Shanghai.

Shanghai United Family Hospital
Address: No.1139 XianXia Road, Shanghai
Tel: £¨8621£©5133 -1999

Shanghai Ruidong Hospital
Address: No. 50, 1507 Nong, Luoshan Road, Shanghai
Tel: (8621) 5833-9595

Boai Hospital International Center
Address: No. 1590 Huai Hai Mid-Road Shanghai
Tel: £¨8621£©6431-5107

The police is known as the PSB (Public Security Bureau, gong'an ju). The Shanghai police force has its headquarters at Fuzhou Lu 185 and can be contacted at telephone numbers as follows:

• (021) 6231-0110
• (021) 6854-1199

ATMs

ATMs that accept international cards are available at the Hong Kong Shanghai Bank at:

• People's Square (Renmin Guangchang) located north of the Park Hotel at the intersection of Huanghe Lu and Gulin Lu
• City Supermarket at Shanghai Centre at 1376 Nanjing Xi Lu
• Hong Kong Plaza at 282 Huaihal Zhong Lu on the ground floor of Hong Kong Plaza

The Citibank has a branch at the Peace Hotel on the Bund (19 Zhongshan Dong Yi Lu) that can change American Express USD traveler's checks (maximum $250 per day) and USD cash. There is also an ATM there that accepts international cards. Another ATM can be found right after immigration at Pudong International Airport.

Currency Exchange

The most convenient place to exchange currency is at a hotel, where the rates are similar to those at the Bank of China and exchange desks are often open 24 hours.

Bank of China provides many convenient locations for currency exchange and credit card cash withdrawals and the Bank of China can be found at the following locations:

• The Bund located at 23 Zhongshan Dong Yi Lu 23 (tel. 021-6329-1979)
• On the north side of the JC Mandarin Hotel at 1221 Nanjing Xi Lu (tel. 021-6247-1700)
• At 2168 Yan'an Xi Lu (tel. 021-6278-5060)
• At 1207 Huaihai Zhong Lu (tel. 021-6437-8753)
• and at 2550 Hongqiao Lu 2550 (tel. 021/6268-8866).

The Bank of China's business hours are Monday through Friday from 9am to noon and 1:30 to 4:30pm, and Saturday from 9am to noon. Although many foreign and international bank cards can be used at The Bank of China, travelers should always check with their local bank to locate the best place to conduct monetary transactions.

Offices are open Monday through Friday from 9am to 5pm, although some still close at the lunch hour (about noon-1:30pm); a few maintain limited Saturday hours. Bank opening hours vary. Sights, shops, restaurants, and transportation systems offer the same service 7 days a week. Department stores are typically open from 10am to 10pm. Restaurants outside of hotels are generally open from 11:30am to 2pm and 5 to 9:30pm, while those catering to foreign visitors usually stay open later. The official closing time for bars is 2am, though some bars stay open later on weekends.

Business centers at most three-star-and-up Shanghai hotels now provide online access and e-mail services, including PC rentals using familiar English-language software programs. Internet cafes are subject to periodic government crackdown. The most reliable and the cheapest Internet access can be found at the Shanghai Library located at 1557 Huaihai Zhong Lu (tel. 021-6445-2001), in a small office on the ground floor underneath the main entrance staircase. It's open from 9am to 8:30pm daily (RMB4.50 per hour), and is always packed with Chinese students.

Shanghai's area code is 021. In mainland China, all area codes begin with a zero, which is dropped when calling China from abroad. The entire area code can be dropped when making local calls. The international country code for China is 86. The city code for Shanghai is 021.

To call Shanghai from Other Countries:

• Dial the international access code: 011 from the US; 00 from the UK, Ireland, or New Zealand; or 0011 from Australia
• Dial the country code, 86, for China
• Drop the first zero and dial the city code, 21 for Shanghai, and then the number.

  To call within China :

Local calls in Shanghai require no city code; just dial the eight-digit Shanghai number (or the three-digit emergency numbers for fire, police, and ambulance).

Calls from Shanghai to other locations in China require that you dial the full domestic city code (which always starts with 0).

Similarly, if you are calling a Shanghai number from outside the city but within China, dial the city code (021) and then the number.

Public pay phones require either a deposit of a RMB1 coin or an IC card available from post offices, most convenience stores, and street stalls. Card values begin at RMB20

To make international calls from China :

To make international calls from China, first dial 00 and then the country code:

• U.S. or Canada 1
• U.K. 44
• Ireland 353
• Australia 61
• New Zealand 64

Then dial the area code and number. For example, if you wanted to call the British Embassy in Washington, D.C., you would dial 00-1-202-588-7800.

You can also use your calling card (AT&T, MCI, or Sprint, for example) to make international (but not domestic) calls from Shanghai. The local access number for:

• AT&T is tel. 10-811
• MCI is tel. 10-812
• Sprint is tel. 10-813

Check with your hotel for the local access numbers for other companies. The directions for placing an international calling-card call vary from company to company, so check with your long-distance carrier before you leave home.

To save money, however, use an IP card, available from post offices, most convenience stores, and street stalls, but bargain for less than the face value of the card (in other words, you should bargain to pay around RMB 80 to RMB100 per card). Depending on where you call, a RMB50 card can yield you up to an hour's talk time depending on where you are calling. Instructions in English should be on the back of the card.

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