Expo Riverside: China Art Museum, PSA & the World Expo Museum

The walk begins at 中华艺术宫 (China Art Museum), and it is worth treating the first half-day as belonging to this one building. The 2010 World Expo China Pavilion was the expo's literal crown: a red dou-gong structure of stacked beams whose silhouette became the event's emblem, and it is the most recognisable Expo survivor still standing. Since 2022 the building has also housed 上海美术馆, so you get the national pavilion and the city art museum in one red shell. The headline draw is the multimedia 多媒体版《清明上河图》 on the 49 m level; whether it is included with free entry or carries a small separate ticket, confirm at the gate. Tue–Sun 10:00–18:00, last entry 17:00, with free entry but reservation required through the official WeChat account or mini-program.

Caution: Free entry but reservation required (official WeChat / mini-program); the multimedia 清明上河图 may carry a separate ticket, confirm at the gate. Last admission 17:00, so enter in good time if the interior is your priority.

Photo suggestion: The red dou-gong crown from the esplanade, and the 清明上河图 hall if you go inside.

From China Art Museum, the 梅赛德斯-奔驰文化中心 (Mercedes-Benz Arena) is about 0.2 km away, a three-minute walk along the Expo axis. This was the 2010 Expo's Cultural Centre, a domed arena whose curved shell is pure event architecture rather than a museum, so on this walk it is an exterior landmark only, with no fixed visiting hours. I like pausing here because the contrast tells the Expo story: the pavilion that became a permanent museum next to the arena that stayed a temporary-use showpiece. Check the event calendar only if you actually want to go inside; otherwise let it frame the walk and keep moving toward the water. The open lawns between the two buildings are where the expo axis feels most like a park, and they make an easy first rest before the crossing.

Photo suggestion: The arena's curved shell against the China Art Museum's red crown, the two Expo survivors side by side.

To reach the river crossing on foot, walk east along the Pudong 世博滨江 promenade toward 南码头. This stretch is part of the 22 km East Bund greenway, with 望江驿 rest stations every roughly kilometre offering toilets and drinking water. It is flat, open and exposed, so in summer the sun is the real challenge rather than any hill. The path passes the expo-axis lawns and then runs beneath Nanpu Bridge's great spiral approach, which coils above the 南码头 ferry pier. I would walk this leg in the cooler part of the day, carrying water, because there is little shade once you leave the museum cluster. If the heat or time is against you, the Metro-Line-8 crossing from 中华艺术宫 is the shortcut that skips this approach entirely.

Caution: Open and unshaded in summer; carry water and use the 望江驿 stations. The promenade can route onto parallel roads where the riverside path is absent, so keep the river on your left.

Photo suggestion: Nanpu Bridge's spiral ramp above the ferry pier, the Pudong promenade opening toward the crossing.

This is the spine of the day, and you have two honest options. The 南陆线 ferry from 南码头路1号 to 外马路1279号 costs ¥2 and takes about 10 minutes, with sailings roughly 07:00–23:00; it is the scenic choice and it lands you on the Puxi 世博滨江 a short walk from PSA. The alternative is Metro Line 8 from 中华艺术宫 under the river to 西藏南路站, then a 15-minute walk to PSA, which keeps the total near ~4.5 km and beats the heat. PSA's own listing notes it 'faces China Art Museum across the river', which is exactly the pairing this walk is built around. Pick the ferry if the light is good and you want the river itself as a stop; pick the metro if you are short on time or energy.

Photo suggestion: The ferry deck with the Pudong Expo skyline behind, or the under-river metro if you chose speed.

On the Puxi bank, the 上海当代艺术博物馆 (Power Station of Art, PSA) is the walk's second headline and its best story. It opened in 2012 as China's first state-run contemporary art museum, inside the former 南市发电厂 (Nanshi Power Plant), whose 165 m chimney still marks the Puxi skyline and is visible across the river from the China Art Museum. The raw industrial structure, steel trusses and that chimney are the photo subject. General admission is free; special exhibitions are ticketed (current prices confirm at the gate). Tue–Sun 11:00–19:00, last entry 18:00, closed Monday. From the ferry landing, follow the 世博滨江 west and south; PSA is about a 15-minute walk from 西藏南路站. Step inside even briefly, because the scale of the converted turbine hall is the point.

Caution: Closed Mondays and from 18:00 daily; the free general admission covers the building, special exhibitions are ticketed. PSA is calmer than the China Art Museum, so save the busy interior stops for the Pudong side.

Photo suggestion: PSA's 165 m chimney and steel-truss facade from the riverside lawn, the Puxi counterpoint to the red crown.

Leaving PSA, the route follows the continuous Puxi 世博滨江 promenade south, a wide riverside path about 1.5–2 km from PSA to the World Expo Museum near Lupu Bridge and Rihui Port. This is the quietest stretch of the day: a flat, open waterfront with the Huangpu on one side and the low Puxi riverside on the other, and it is the same greenway the 黄浦滨江 page covers in full, so treat this segment as the shared spine rather than a separate discovery. Benches and the occasional pavilion make natural pauses, and the light over the water is the reason photographers favour the late afternoon here. Keep ~0.5 L of water for this open run, because the summer sun is steady and shade is thin between the two museums.

Photo suggestion: The open Puxi promenade looking back at the PSA chimney and the river bend toward Lupu Bridge.

The walk ends at the 世博会博物馆 (World Expo Museum), opened in 2017 as the world's only official Expo-themed museum, a free walk-in just steps from Line 13 世博会博物馆站. Eight themed galleries tell the 160-year story of world's fairs, from the Great Exhibition of 1851 to the present. Tue–Sun 09:00–17:00, last entry 16:15, closed Monday, with no reservation for individual visitors (groups above 100 call ahead). I would time the Expo Museum for the early afternoon, after the PSA visit and the riverside stretch, so you finish inside before the 16:15 last entry. It is a fitting full stop, the expo collected into one quiet, free finale.

Caution: Last entry 16:15 and closed Mondays; no reservation needed for individuals. If your walk lands on a Monday, both Puxi museums are dark and the river crossing becomes the whole point instead.

Photo suggestion: The Expo Museum's calm facade at the greenway's end, the finish marker beside Line 13.