Discover Shanghai
Wukang Mansion and Wukang Road
武康大楼 / 武康路
A 1924 flat-iron apartment block by Hungarian architect Ladislaus Hudec, shaped like a ship's prow where six streets collide - now the most photographed building in Shanghai for Chinese visitors and the anchor of the plane-tree-shaded Wukang Road conservation street.
The story
What makes this place special
The Normandie Apartments were completed in 1924 to a design by László Hudec, the Hungarian-Slovak architect responsible for much of inter-war Shanghai, on the wedge of land where Wukang Road meets Middle Huaihai Road in the former French Concession. Eight storeys and 30m tall in reinforced concrete, French Renaissance in dress, with a flatiron plan forced by the site - the article calls it the oldest veranda-style apartment block in Shanghai. It originally held 63 flats, 30 servants' rooms and three lifts. It was renamed Wukang Mansion in 1953, and Red Guards called it the 'Anti-Revisionist Tower' during the Cultural Revolution. It was a building of film people: the actors and directors Wu Yin, Wang Renmei, Zhao Dan and Zheng Junli lived there, and Sun Daolin for some thirty years until his death in 2007. The Xuhui district government restored it in 2008.
What you’ll discover
The building itself - a sharp brick prow rising above a five-way junction, which is why it has become the most photographed facade in Shanghai; there is a dedicated viewing spot on the opposite corner where crowds queue to stand. It is still residential, so you look rather than enter. Wukang Road running north from it is the real attraction: a 1km plane-tree avenue of 1920s and 1930s villas and apartment houses, several with plaques, now interspersed with independent cafes, bookshops and small galleries.
A little local insight
Good to know before you go
- Walk the road, don't just photograph the building. Wukang Road north of the mansion is the best surviving concession-era street in Shanghai and most visitors take one picture at the junction and leave.
- The viewing corner is organised with barriers and queue management at busy times, and there is a crowd there most afternoons. Early morning gives you the same shot with nobody in it, and better light on the prow.
- It is a private residential building - people live in those flats and there is no public access to the interior. The standard mistake is to try to walk in.
- Branch off into the surrounding streets - Anfu, Fuxing West, Hunan, Taiyuan - which are the same architecture with no crowd at all, and where the good small restaurants are.
- There is a small exhibition space on the mansion's ground floor that gives the building's history and a view out from inside; it is easy to miss behind the photographing crowd.
- This is a walking neighbourhood, not a sight. Give it two hours on foot and a coffee stop, rather than twenty minutes and a taxi.
When to come
Early morning for the building without crowds, or late afternoon for the light down the plane-tree avenue. Late October and November, when the plane trees turn, is the best time of year; the trees give deep shade in summer.
Getting around
Good. The pavements along Wukang Road and Huaihai Road are broad, flat and tree-shaded, with dropped kerbs at most junctions, so a wheelchair or a bad knee can do this walk comfortably - it is one of the easiest and most rewarding accessible walks in Shanghai. The viewing corner itself is level. Many of the small shops and cafes along the road have a step or two at the door and narrow interiors, and the junction is a complex five-way crossing with heavy scooter traffic.
Worth knowing before you go
The classic head-on shot is taken from the pavement traffic island at Wukang Road and Huaihai Middle Road - police marshal the crowd at weekends, so come on a weekday morning. Walk north up Wukang Road for the Soong Ching-ling and Ba Jin former residences.
Compare established providers
Check live tours and tickets
Search for Wukang Mansion and Wukang Road in Shanghai. Prices, availability, payment and confirmation are handled by the booking provider.
China Travel Select does not take payment or create the reservation. Confirm the exact name, dates, inclusions and cancellation rules on the provider’s page.
Take a closer look
Maps, videos & more
Prices and hours change. These are the places to check on the day.
