Shanghai Summer 2026 Makes the City Easier to Explore with New Travel, Payment and Visitor Services

From July to October, Shanghai Summer 2026 will introduce a series of visitor-focused services aimed at simplifying the experience for international travelers. The campaign, themed "Shanghai Summer, Join the Family Fun," unites payment networks, banks, hospitality groups, and mobility providers to enhance the overall visitor journey.

Visa, a global strategic partner of Shanghai Summer, is broadening its contactless "Tap to Pay" network across the city. This service covers dining, accommodation, transportation, tourism, shopping, and entertainment. Recent data from Visa indicates that offline card spending by international visitors in Shanghai surged by over 50% in the first quarter of 2026, with transaction volumes increasing by more than 60% compared to the previous year.

China UnionPay is strengthening its support for international visitors through the Nihao China App, a comprehensive digital platform that integrates payments, transportation, travel information, and multilingual services. The app is accessible in more than 160 countries and regions and enables users to load international Visa or Mastercard cards for payments.

Users can also utilize UnionPay QR codes at over 100,000 merchant locations for metro and bus travel, real-time translation, navigation, and instant tax-refund services.

During Shanghai Summer, Bank of China Shanghai Branch has launched an enhanced Tax Refund 2.0 program. This initiative extends tax-refund services to hotels, supermarkets, restaurants, attractions, and international talent service centers. The program incorporates integrated POS refund functions and self-service tax-refund machines to streamline the process for travelers.

To provide a seamless travel experience, Shanghai Pass has been introduced. This card combines transportation, sightseeing, and merchant benefits into a single product. It can be used on Shanghai’s metro, buses, ferries, suburban railways, Maglev services, and taxis. Cardholders also gain access to privileges at nearly 150 merchants throughout the city.

Jin Jiang International has adopted a similar integrated approach through its "2026 Jin Jiang ∞ Journey, Shanghai Summer" program. This initiative combines hotel stays with cultural attractions, dining experiences, guided city tours, and family entertainment options. Additionally, Jin Jiang’s Shanghai Gourmet Passport 2.0 connects dining, hotels, and cultural experiences, catering specifically to international travelers.

By interconnecting payment, transportation, tax refunds, hotels, dining, and attractions, these new products are making it easier for international visitors to move more freely, pay more simply, and experience more of Shanghai.