Shanghai: Reservation for visits to the newly renovated western part of the compound, which consists of 16 historic buildings that now house international brands including Arcadia club, Vacheron Constantin and Moet & Chandon, starts on Nov 27 through the WeChat mini program “Shanghai Zhangyuan”.
Located just off Nanjing Road West at the corner of Taixing Road and Wujiang Road, Zhang Yuan – or Zhang’s Garden – is widely known as Shanghai’s largest, best-preserved and most diverse shikumen compound.
The compound was named after its founding owner Zhang Shuhe (1850-1919), a merchant from Wuxi in Jiangsu province. Zhang had bought a piece of farmland in Shanghai from a Briton named Francis Groom before building a garden home for his mother. Zhang opened the garden to the public after his mother’s death in 1885 and later built a Western-style mansion called Arcadia Hall, a place where people could enjoy a bird’s-eye view of Shanghai. He also expanded the garden space to more than 4 hectares. With the introduction of entertainment options such as a rollercoaster, circus performances and paddle boats, Zhang Yuan quickly became a famous public space and one of the few private gardens that were open to the public in Shanghai.
–The Daily Mail-China Daily news exchange item
