October 1 on the Bund, When the Whole City Comes Out
It is just after dark on October 1, and the Bund promenade is a slow river of people moving between the colonial facades on one side and the lit towers of Pudong on the other. Flags are everywhere — clipped to strollers, wrapped around shoulders, held up for photographs with the skyline behind them. Somewhere ahead of you a group is singing, and the smell of roasted chestnuts and grilled skewers drifts over from the side streets. This is the opening night of Golden Week, the seven-day public holiday that runs October 1–7, and Shanghai throws itself into it.
National Day marks the founding of the People's Republic of China. The ceremony at Tiananmen Square took place on October 1, 1949, and the date was declared National Day by a resolution passed the following day; it has been celebrated annually since 1950. Golden Week is the longest public holiday in China apart from Chinese New Year, and it falls in autumn, when the weather is clear and the temperatures comfortable — which is precisely why the whole country travels at once.
What Actually Happens in the City
National Day celebrations across China follow a recognisable pattern, and Shanghai participates in all of it. Expect:
- Flag-raising ceremonies — held on National Day morning, and the most solemn moment of the holiday.
- Dance and song shows — public performances staged in the city's squares and parks through the week.
- Firework displays — a standard part of the National Day programme nationwide.
- Painting and calligraphy exhibitions — the holiday's cultural strand, and a good rainy-afternoon option.
- Serious retail discounts — shopping malls across the city mark the holiday with large sales, and this is as much a part of Golden Week as the parades.
The grand military reviews and civilian parades that follow them are a Beijing event on Tiananmen Square — fourteen have been held on October 1 since 1949, with the largest marking the major anniversaries and smaller-scale reviews now occurring every five years. In Shanghai, the celebration is civilian: ceremonies, performances, exhibitions, fireworks and the streets themselves.
Eat Your Way Through the Holiday
Golden Week is a eating holiday as much as a civic one, and the autumn timing works in your favour. The chestnut roasters and skewer stalls that line the approaches to the Bund and the old city are out in force, and the city's restaurant floors fill early — book ahead or eat on the early side. Shopping malls, which drive much of the holiday's retail energy, are also where you'll find the food halls and chains that stay open late. Wherever you eat, treat the meal as part of the spectacle: the point of the week is that everyone is out at once, and the dining rooms are where that energy concentrates.
Timing It Right — and Dodging the Crush
Be honest with yourself about what Golden Week means logistically. It triggers heavy domestic travel: attractions are overcrowded, train tickets are scarce, flight prices rise, and hotel rooms run short. The practical countermeasures are well established:
- Travel just before or just after the holiday if you can, rather than inside it.
- If you must travel during Golden Week, avoid the first two days and the last day — those are the busiest for transport, carry the highest airfares, and have the hardest-to-buy train and bus tickets and the most crowded attractions.
- Skip the most popular destinations in favour of quieter ones.
- Book flights, trains and hotels well in advance. China train tickets go on sale 15 days before departure and can sell out within minutes; business hotels sometimes still have last-minute rooms.
The 2026 National Day holiday runs October 1–7. If you're planning around the opening ceremony and the first night's atmosphere, arrive before the 1st rather than on it.
Build the Week Around the City, Not the Checklist
Because the sources don't hand you a dated Shanghai programme, plan around what the city reliably does: be on the Bund or a riverfront promenade for the evening of October 1; find a flag-raising ceremony on the morning of National Day; spend an afternoon in a painting or calligraphy exhibition; catch a dance or song performance in a public square; and let the mall discounts and the food streets fill the gaps. Use the neighbourhoods themselves as your itinerary — the historic streets near the Bund for the crowds and the lights, the shopping districts for the sales and the food halls — and keep your days loose enough to move when a street gets too full. Book your train and hotel now, aim to be in the city before October 1, and let Golden Week do the rest.