Five ways into this guide
Go straight to the question you came with. Each card jumps to its answer.
A short list
Spectrum of the Seas, MSC Bellissima and Azamara, plus the luxury lines that overnight.
Jump to lines →Japan, Korea, Taiwan
Busan, Kagoshima, Keelung, Hong Kong and Tokyo.
Jump to destinations →Two terminals
The North Bund for small ships, Wusongkou for the big ones.
Jump to the terminals →Flying into Pudong
The Maglev, Metro Line 2 and the city’s taxi tariff.
Jump to getting here →Twelve hotels, ranked
By each terminal, on the Bund and at both airports.
See the hotels →In brief
Shanghai has two cruise terminals, and they aren’t interchangeable. Small ships use Shanghai Port International Cruise Terminal on the North Bund, at No. 500 Dongdaming Road. Big ships use Wusongkou International Cruise Terminal, at No. 1 Baoyang Road in Baoshan, per the city’s tourism administration. By our pins they’re about 10 miles (16.6 km) apart in a straight line.
Who actually starts a cruise here is the honest problem. The ships that turn around most often — Royal Caribbean’s Spectrum of the Seas and MSC Bellissima — run short round trips to Japan and Korea sold mostly in China. You can book them. They’re just not built around a US traveler.
The lines US cruisers book more often mostly call. Holland America, Oceania and Regent stay overnight on the voyages we found, which start in Tokyo, Hong Kong or Incheon; Silversea’s Silver Muse shows up only as port departures on CruiseDig. Azamara is one of the few we found starting a voyage in Shanghai. We found no Princess or Celebrity voyage starting or ending here.
This page is for starting or ending a cruise here. If your ship only calls, our Shanghai port-day guide covers the visa rules ashore, and our shore excursion picks cover the tours.
Who starts or ends cruises here, 2026–27
Deployments change every season, so this roster is dated and sourced. It’s a short list for US travelers, and we say so.
Checked October 20, 2026. Most dates here come from listings, not the lines’ own sites, so confirm your ship.
Royal Caribbean’s Spectrum of the Seas repositioned to Shanghai in mid-January 2026 and returns in late January 2027, on two- to eight-night trips to Japan and Korea, per Cruise Industry News. Global Journeys lists its round trips into 2028. MSC Bellissima homeports here too, with four- to nine-night round trips, per the Shanghai government and Global Journeys. Both sell mostly to the Chinese market.
Azamara Pursuit starts an eight-night Shanghai to Hong Kong voyage on October 23, 2026, sailing at 1:00 PM the next day, per CruiseWeb’s listing. CruiseDig shows Azamara Quest and Pursuit leaving Shanghai again in April and September 2027 — port departures, not confirmed voyage starts.
Holland America, Oceania and Regent call here overnight on the voyages we found. Westerdam’s November 8, 2026 voyages from Tokyo stop in Shanghai on days 11 and 12, per Taoticket; Oceania Vista’s Hong Kong to Tokyo segment from March 29, 2027 includes an overnight, per Luxury Travel Advisor; Regent’s Seven Seas Explorer calls on an April 25, 2027 Incheon to Tokyo voyage, per Taoticket. Celebrity’s 2026 Asia page names Hong Kong, Singapore, Tokyo and Bali as departure ports, not Shanghai. We found no Princess voyage starting here.
Sources, read October 20, 2026: Cruise Industry News, the Shanghai government, Global Journeys, CruiseWeb, CruiseDig, Taoticket, Luxury Travel Advisor, Cruise Hive and celebritycruises.com. A port departure on an aggregator isn’t a voyage start. Confirm your own ship and date before you book around it.
Where you can go
From Shanghai most sailings head east to southern Japan and Korea, or south to Taiwan and Hong Kong. The ports below are named on the sailings we found; one voyage won’t call at all of them.
Destinations
Where Shanghai sailings go
Ports named on the 2026–27 sailings we found. Check your own itinerary.
Showing all 10
Southern Japan
6The short round trips.
Fukuoka
Japan
On Spectrum’s short round trips.
Nagasaki
Japan
On Spectrum’s short round trips.
Naha (Okinawa)
Japan
On Spectrum’s trips and Azamara’s October 2026 voyage.
Korea, Taiwan and Hong Kong
4North or south of the Yangtze.
Jeju (Seogwipo)
South Korea
On Spectrum’s short round trips.
No destination matches that. Clear the filter to see all 10 again.
Entry: the US State Department says you must get a visa before arriving in China, with limited exceptions, and wants a passport valid six months beyond arrival with two blank pages. China’s 240-hour visa-free transit covers US citizens heading on to a third country or region; the 15-day cruise-group rule covers round-trip calls, not people flying in. The airport page sets out both, with sources.
The State Department rates mainland China Level 2, exercise increased caution, citing arbitrary enforcement of local laws, exit bans and the risk of wrongful detention, in an advisory issued October 19, 2026. For the wider region, see Asia Cruises, Decoded.
Two terminals, about 16 km apart
Check your documents for the terminal before you book anything else. The hotel, the taxi and the time you leave all follow from it.
The North Bund terminal — Shanghai Port International Cruise Terminal — is at No. 500 Dongdaming Road in Hongkou, with three large berths, per the city’s tourism administration. Azamara’s port document sends its passengers here. ChinaTravel, a booking platform, says it takes ships of 70,000 tons and below and puts International Cruise Terminal Station, on Metro Line 12, about 600 m away.
Wusongkou is at No. 1 Baoyang Road in Baoshan, where the Huangpu meets the Yangtze. Its first phase has 774 m of quay with berths for 100,000- and 200,000-ton ships, per the tourism administration. Spectrum of the Seas and MSC Bellissima use it, per our port-day guide. We couldn’t find a Metro stop at the terminal itself; in 2018 China Daily described a free shuttle to Line 3’s Baoyang Road station every 15 minutes, which we couldn’t confirm is still running.
We couldn’t find published check-in hours, luggage storage or a cruise-parking rate at either terminal. Wusongkou has a service station with currency exchange and SIM cards, per the city.
| Quay | Where | What we know |
|---|---|---|
| North Bund (Shanghai Port International Cruise Terminal) | No. 500 Dongdaming Road, Hongkou | Three large berths, per the tourism administration; Azamara uses it, per Azamara; Line 12 nearby |
| Wusongkou International Cruise Terminal | No. 1 Baoyang Road, Baoshan | 774 m of quay in phase I; berths for 100,000- and 200,000-ton ships; currency exchange and SIM cards on site, per the city |
Send us your ship and sail date and we’ll tell you which quay and which night. Ask us ↓
Sources: the Shanghai Culture and Tourism administration’s terminal list, Azamara’s Shanghai port document, the Shanghai government (April 2025) and China Daily (2018), read October 20, 2026. Confirm with your line — the quay can change with the ship.
Parking, in short
We couldn’t find a published cruise-parking rate at either terminal. Almost everyone starting here flies in.
A few hotels print parking for your stay — free at the W and Delta Baoshan, CNY 8 an hour to a CNY 64 daily maximum at Holiday Inn Express Baoyang, ¥120 a day or ¥840 a week at the St. Regis — but we found no hotel saying it covers a cruise. Ask before you leave a car.
Getting here
Fly into Pudong (PVG). It’s about 30 km from downtown, per the city, and roughly 20 miles (31 km) from the North Bund terminal in a straight line by our pins. Hongqiao (SHA), about 13 km from the centre, handles mostly domestic and regional flights; the Airport Link Line joins the two in about 40 minutes.
The city’s taxi meter is ¥14 for the first 3 km, ¥2.7 a km after that, and 50% more a km beyond 15 km, with a 30% night surcharge. By our arithmetic, Pudong to the North Bund runs roughly ¥170 by day before tolls; the city itself puts Pudong to People’s Square at around ¥180.
| From | Taxi | Public transport |
|---|---|---|
| PVG — to the North Bund | Around ¥170 by our arithmetic from the city’s tariff; ChinaTravel says about ¥200 and 50 minutes. | Maglev, ¥50, to Longyang Road, then Metro Line 2; or Line 2 all the way, about ¥7 and an hour to People’s Square, per the city. |
| PVG — to Wusongkou | About ¥200 and an hour, per ChinaTravel, a booking platform. | Line 2 and Line 3 to Baoyang Road, then a taxi; long with bags. |
| SHA — Hongqiao | About ¥70 to the North Bund and ¥150 to Wusongkou, per ChinaTravel. | Line 10 from both terminals, Line 2 from Terminal 2, per the city. |
Landing the day before? Booking.com lists airport taxis you can book ahead. See airport taxis on Booking.com →
Booking.com links are affiliate links: Seabound Journeys may earn a commission if you book, at no extra cost to you. Affiliate disclosure.
About 2,000 Dazhong cabs take international cards, per the city; every taxi takes cash. Pudong to the ship has the rest.
The night before, ranked: we’ve scored twelve hotels for the night before a Shanghai cruise, by each terminal, on the Bund and at both airports, on what each brand publishes. We found no hotel ride to the ship. Five worth knowing:
| Hotel | Where | One thing to know |
|---|---|---|
| W Shanghai | Lvshun Road, North Bund | About 400 m from the North Bund terminal, with two pools. |
| Holiday Inn Express Bund | Renmin Road, by the Bund | Breakfast in the rate, 0.3 km from the Bund. |
| Holiday Inn Express Baoyang | Tongji Road, Baoshan, near Wusongkou | Free breakfast, about 2.4 km from Wusongkou. |
| Delta Baoshan | Shuangqing Road, Baoshan, near Wusongkou | A pool and a spa by Wusongkou, with a priced airport car. |
| Holiday Inn Express PVG | Airport Avenue, by Pudong | A free Pudong shuttle until 3:30 a.m. for a late landing. |
Planning a Shanghai cruise?
Tell us your ship and date, and we’ll tell you which terminal and which night.
Most Shanghai questions come down to the terminal, the entry rule and the flight. Send the ship and the date, and Seabound Journeys will sort the flight, the hotel and the paperwork questions.
We say where each fact comes from, and date it.
Shanghai FAQ
Where do cruise ships leave from in Shanghai?
From two terminals: Shanghai Port International Cruise Terminal on the North Bund, for smaller ships, and Wusongkou International Cruise Terminal in Baoshan, for the big ones. Your documents name yours.
Which cruise lines start cruises in Shanghai?
Mostly Royal Caribbean’s Spectrum of the Seas and MSC Bellissima, on round trips sold largely in China. Azamara Pursuit starts a Shanghai to Hong Kong voyage on October 23, 2026, per CruiseWeb. Holland America, Oceania and Regent mostly call, overnight on the voyages we found.
Do US citizens need a visa to start a cruise in Shanghai?
The State Department says you need one, with limited exceptions. The 240-hour visa-free transit can cover a US citizen flying in whose onward travel goes to a third country or region; the 15-day cruise-group rule doesn’t cover flying in. Ask your line which applies to your voyage.
How far is Pudong airport from the cruise terminals?
Roughly 20 miles (31 km) to the North Bund and 25 miles (40 km) to Wusongkou in a straight line by our pins. ChinaTravel puts both at about 50 minutes to an hour by taxi.
How much is a taxi from Pudong to the Shanghai cruise terminal?
By our arithmetic from the city’s tariff, roughly ¥170 to the North Bund by day before tolls. ChinaTravel says about ¥200 to either terminal.
Is there a metro to Wusongkou cruise terminal?
Not to the door. Line 3’s Baoyang Road station is the nearest; China Daily described a free terminal shuttle from it in 2018, which we couldn’t confirm today. The North Bund terminal has Line 12’s International Cruise Terminal Station nearby.
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