Flying Melbourne to Shanghai: airlines, flight times, jet lag and which airport you land at

Shanghai is closer to Melbourne than most people think: about ten and a half hours in the air, roughly the same as Melbourne to Honolulu, with a time difference of only two or three hours. It is the easiest long-haul trip an Australian can take in terms of jet lag, and the flight is usually the cheapest part of a China holiday. Here is how to book it well.

Who flies, and how

Schedules change, so check current timetables, but the pattern at the time of writing:

• Non-stop. China Eastern flies Melbourne to Shanghai Pudong daily or near-daily, typically departing Melbourne late morning or late evening. Flight time is about 10 h 30 min northbound and about 10 h southbound (the jet stream helps on the way home). Non-stop is the right choice for families; the ten hours pass faster than a connection adds.
• One stop. Cathay Pacific via Hong Kong, Singapore Airlines via Singapore, Malaysia Airlines via Kuala Lumpur, China Southern via Guangzhou, Air China via Beijing, and Qantas or its partners via Sydney or Hong Kong. Total journey 14 to 18 hours. Worth it for a particular airline, a frequent flyer programme, or a fare that is clearly cheaper.
• Via Sydney. Sydney has more non-stop options to Shanghai, so Melbourne travellers occasionally fly up and connect. It rarely saves money once the domestic leg is counted.

Qantas and the Chinese carriers price Melbourne to Shanghai competitively; the China Eastern economy fare is often the cheapest non-stop long-haul leaving Melbourne.

Overnight or daytime?

• Overnight departure (around 10 pm from Melbourne, landing around 6 am): you lose a night’s sleep and gain a whole first day. Good for adults who sleep on planes; hard on small children and on anyone who then has to stay awake until 9 pm local time. Book a hotel that lets you check in early, or at least drop bags and shower.
• Daytime departure (around 11 am, landing around 6 pm): you arrive tired but at a sensible hour, go to the hotel, eat, sleep, and start fresh on day two. This is what we recommend for families, and it is why our Shanghai essentials tour starts with an easy evening rather than a morning dash.

Flying home, the overnight southbound flight (departing Shanghai late evening, landing in Melbourne early afternoon) is the comfortable choice for most people.

Time difference and jet lag

Shanghai is UTC+8 all year. Melbourne is UTC+10 in winter and UTC+11 in summer (daylight saving, October to April). So Shanghai is two hours behind Melbourne in the Australian winter and three hours behind in the Australian summer. The jet lag is close to nil; the tiredness you feel is the flight, not the clock. Set your watch to Shanghai time when you board and eat on local time from the first meal.

Airports in Shanghai

Nearly all international flights from Australia land at Pudong (PVG), 45 to 60 minutes east of the city by car, 45 minutes by metro, or 8 minutes to the Longyang Road metro interchange by Maglev. Terminal 1 and Terminal 2 are connected by a walkway and the airport is well signed in English. Our Pudong airport guide covers immigration, SIM cards, the Maglev and the real cost of each way into town.

Hongqiao (SHA), the older airport west of the city, handles domestic flights and the Hongqiao high-speed railway station next door, which is where the trains to Suzhou, Hangzhou and Beijing leave. If your trip continues to Beijing by train, a hotel in Jing’an or the French Concession sits between the two airports and is 30 minutes from Hongqiao.

Arrival: what happens at Pudong

1. Health and immigration. Australian passport holders currently enter visa-free for up to 30 days (details and the current end date here). You fill in an arrival card (paper or on a kiosk), queue for immigration, have fingerprints taken on first entry, and are through in 30 to 60 minutes depending on how many flights have landed.
2. Baggage and customs. Normal; the green channel for nothing to declare. Limits on cash (USD 5,000 equivalent), medicines in original packaging, no fresh food.
3. Phone and money. If you have not set up an eSIM and Alipay before flying, the airport has SIM counters and ATMs, but doing it at home is far easier; the eSIM guide and the Alipay guide take fifteen minutes each.
4. Into the city. A pre-booked car with a sign at arrivals, the official taxi rank (follow the signs, there is a marshal, ignore anyone approaching you inside), the metro, or the Maglev plus a taxi. On our tours and day-guide bookings the guide or driver is waiting with your name.

Booking tips

• Open-jaw tickets. If you are doing Shanghai and Beijing, book into Shanghai and home from Beijing (or the reverse). Most airlines price a “multi-city” booking the same as a return, and it saves a day of backtracking. Our Shanghai to Beijing tour is built around this.
• When it is cheap. February to March (after Chinese New Year), late May to June, and November are the cheapest months; the Australian school holidays, Chinese New Year (late January to February) and the first week of October are the most expensive. Midweek departures are a little cheaper than weekends.
• Baggage. Economy allowances vary by airline and fare: typically one or two 23 kg bags on the Chinese carriers’ international fares, sometimes one on the cheapest Qantas fares. Check before you buy the ticket, not after; the difference matters if you are bringing gifts for relatives or bringing samples home.
• Seats. On the overnight flight, a window seat for sleep; on the daytime flight, an aisle. Families can usually select seats together at booking on the Chinese carriers without a fee.
• Insurance. Buy travel insurance that covers mainland China when you buy the flight, so cancellation cover starts from that day. It is a condition of our tour bookings and a good idea on your own.
• Passport validity. Six months beyond your return date, and at least one blank page. Check it now, not the week before.

Flights are the one thing we do not book

We quote land arrangements only, because you will almost always do better on flights yourself or through a flight agent, and because you may be using points. Tell us your flight numbers once you have them; we plan the first and last days around them, and the guide is at the gate when you land.