Checking out the cherry blossoms is a great way to enjoy a sunny spring day. We've compiled a list of popular parks for you to visit, along with some off-the-beaten-track options where you can watch Shanghai's flowers bloom.

Cherry Blossoms

Image via Pexels

Gucun Park 

Gucun Park in the Baoshan Distrcit is Shanghai’s biggest blossom park and arguably the place to be to check out the cherry blossoms. With the annual festival taking place from March 15 through mid-April, the park can get super busy, but its worth it. The Southwestern part of this huge urban forest park is dedicated to the cherry forest with about 4,000 cherry trees. About 500 trees can be found in the eastern part of the Children’s Forest Carnival. The park also hosts a smaller cherry blossom forest. 

See listing for Gucun Park.

Shanghai Botanical Garden

A glorious park to enjoy the blossoms, it's also home to a wide range of greenery including waterways, magnolia-lined avenues and an outstanding garden dedicated to bonsai trees. The little ones can also enjoy the amusement zone.  

See listing for Shanghai Botanical Garden.

Zuibaichi Park

Right before Line 9 ends, you can find Zuibaichi Park. If you're feeling adventurous, head here to see the cherry blossoms and snap some off-the-beaten-track photos. 

See listing for Zuibaichi.

Shanghai Tongji University

One of Shanghai’s most popular areas for photo shoots with the cherry blossoms is the 200-meter lane at Shanghai Tongji University. Don't forget to pack a picnic!

See listing for Tonji University. 

Luxun Park

Luxun park in Hongkou district is one of the parks celebrating the Shanghai Cherry Blossom Festival this month. 

See listing for Luxun Park.

Spot the Difference: Cherry vs Plum Blossoms

Image via Travel Lush

Did you know that cherry and plum blossoms actually look quite similar? Impress your friends by spotting the difference with these simple rules:

1. Cherry blossoms have split ends on their petals while plum blossoms have no split.

2. Cherry blossoms sprout green and unfolding leaves while plum blossoms usually have small purple leaves that are somewhat rolled.

3. Take a look at the bark of the pattern on the cherry tree. It should consist of horizontal lines while the plum tree has darker bark without an obvious horizontal pattern. 

Century Park is a great place to see both varities. See if you can spot the difference, and when you do, don't forget to tag us at @thatsshanghai. 

Tulips 

Shanghai Flower Port

Always wanted to go to the Keukenhof in The Netherlands to enjoy the magnificent view of thousands and thousands of colorful flowers? No need to travel across the globe as a Dutch designer brought it to you in the Shanghai Flower Port. While it doesn't specialize in cherry blossoms, the yearly tulip viewing festival displays 3.2 million flowers of up to 500 different species and is well worth a visit. This year's Tulips Exhibition will last until April 23.

See listing for Shanghai Flower Port.

Magnolias

Century Park

Conveniently located in Pudong, this massive park is a go-to-place to escape the concrete jungle. Big enough to go for a stroll, or jog, you can also rent boats and bicycles to explore the park.  

See listing for Century Park.  

Gongqing Forest Park

With about 400 magnolia blossoms this park is a feast for the eyes. Most magnolia trees are located near the Huangpu River and Southern District area of the park. 

See listing for Gongqing Forest Park

Minhang Cultural Park

Known as the ‘magnolia theme park’. When entering the park, you can see purple and white magnolias everywhere you look!

See listing for Minhang Cultural Park

Xujiahui Park

The Xujiahui Park's white magnolias usually stay until early May, leaving you plenty of time to get your floral photos in. 

See listing for Xujiahui Park

People’s Square

Don’t feel like heading to a park? Take a quick stroll through this inner-city park and admire the magnolia trees in front of the Shanghai Museum.

See listing for People's Square.

Peach Blossoms

Image via Daniela/Flickr

Pudong New Area

Head over to the Pudong New Area to check out the annual Shanghai Peach Blossom Festival. This year, the festival will take place from March 23 until April 15. In addition to checking out all sorts of colorful peach blossoms, visitors can also sample a variety of fruity treats, snacks and drinks. To ease transportation to and from the festival areas, there will be buses shuttling visitors between Line 16 and Pudong's official peach flower towns: Datuan, Huinan, Laogang, Xinchang and Zhoupu. Each town will feature peach blossom-themed events from flower markets to photography competitions to folk performances.

[Image via Travel Lush]