the city consistently attracts investment and is seen as an ideal venue for business gatherings. it is also a must on any agenda during a tour of china. shanghai has fostered a comPhensive transportation network that incorporates land, sea, and air travel, as well as a convenient urban transportation system. more than airlines serve the city, proving direct flights to more than countries and regions. the addition of the shanghai pudong international airport, which went into operation in , is expected to increase the annual passenger volume to some million.
special tourist trains running between shanghai and the neighboring provinces of jiangsu and zhejiang, as well as tourist bus routes along newly-constructed exPssways, offer great convenience for regional travel. shanghai has more than travel agencies to assist visitors, and the star-rated hotels offer a total of , guest rooms.
visitors to shanghai are not only dazzled by the modern metropolis and gateway to a developing china, but are also able to immerse themselves in the unique shanghai culture, a combination of chinese and western elements. colorful festivals and celebrations dot the yearly shanghai activities calendar, such as the shanghai nanhui peach blossoms festival, shanghai international tea culture festival and shanghai china international art festival.
shanghai has also introduced special tour packages aimed at the different interests of visitors, such as bicycling tours, hiking tours, gourmet tours, rehabilitation and health care tours, study tours, japanese young women\'s tours, honey moon tours, and convention and exhibition tours.
the well-known bund is a must for visitors to shanghai. fifty-two buildings lining the narrow shoreline of the huangpu river offer a living exhibition of gothic, baroque, roman, classic revival and renaissance architectural styles, as well as combinations of chinese and western styles. they are also a condensation of the recent history of the city. the wide embankment offers ample room for strolling and is used by locals for morning exercises and evening gatherings. in the evening, colorful lights illuminate the area and create a shimmering image deserving of the name pearl of the orient.
the yu gardens are a classical landscape in the southern chinese style with a history of more than years. pavilions, halls, rockeries and ponds display the finest in landscaping from the southern style as seen in the ming and qing dynasties. more than landscapes were ingeniously separated by latticed walls, winding corridors, and lattice windows.，
