Free coffee to welcome travelers to Shanghai
A traveler records his free cup of hot coffee.
Free coffee, together with seals of iconic attractions of Shanghai, is served at Hongqiao transport hub to welcome travelers to the city.
People pass by the No.2 south exit of Hongqiao Railway Station can follow the sign board, as well as the aroma of the coffee, to find the service booth by walking toward Terminal 2 of Hongqiao Airport.
Xiao Lu, a passenger arriving at the hub, received a free cup of hot coffee and a unique stamp that bears iconic Shanghai attractions, under a program that will run through mid-December.
"I love the idea which makes tourists feel the 'warm and beautiful facet' of Shanghai," Xiao said. "I am also a seal collection buff and it's just like an unknown adventure to explore the stories behind the stamp."
The seal incorporates iconic attractions of Shanghai, such as the Bund, Wukang Road, China Art Museum and the Oriental Pearl TV Tower.
Passengers pass the coffee booth.
It is a program jointly hosted by the Shanghai Cultural and Creative Industry Promotion Association, the Publicity Department of Minhang District, Xinhong subdistrict, Hongqiao Railway Station, and the Shanghai branch of the China Construction Bank. Passengers need to have the app of the bank to access the treatment.
Organizers said the aim is to deliver a warm "Shanghai experience" to people from home and abroad.
Shanghai is home to more than 8,500 cafés, the most in the world and up from 7,857 last year, according to the China Urban Coffee Development Report 2023 released during the 3rd Shanghai Coffee Culture Week in May.
The unique coffee culture of the city has become an important manifestation of haipai (Shanghai-style) culture.
A worker prepares a coffee for a woman.
