Ho Tung Residence (何东旧居): The Lawn With a Tree Through the Building
Mentioned in 2 local notesGarden free · open all day
Both field notes reach for the same word here: green. "A space full of greenery, with a tree growing straight through the building — full of life," writes one; the other simply puts it first on the list of places every visiting friend gets taken. The mansion at 457 Shaanxi North Road was built in 1926–28 for Sir Robert Ho Tung, the Hong Kong tycoon, in mock English Renaissance style — and since a late-2023 renewal, its lawn and garden have been open to anyone, free, all day.
For sixty years the house itself held the editorial offices of the Cihai (辞海) — China's great dictionary — until the publisher moved out in 2021. The interior now opens only for occasional ticketed art exhibitions; the garden is the everyday gift.
The essentials
| What | The garden and lawn of a 1926–28 tycoon's mansion (a Shanghai Outstanding Historical Building) — free public green space since December 2023 |
|---|---|
| Where | 457 Shaanxi North Road 陕西北路457号, Jing'an District |
| Metro | West Nanjing Road 南京西路 (Lines 2 / 12 / 13), a short walk up Shaanxi North Road |
| Cost | Garden: free, open all day. Interior: only during temporary exhibitions, ticketed separately |
| Hours | Garden: open-access daily; interior opening depends entirely on what's showing |
| Booking | None for the garden; exhibition tickets when they happen — Kora checks what's on |
Why locals rate it
Central Shanghai rations its lawns, and this one comes with a story attached: a comprador-era mansion, a dictionary's worth of history, and mature trees — including the one the building appears to have politely grown around — a few minutes from the West Nanjing Road towers. It's the rare landmark you can use like a park: sit, read, photograph, leave, pay nothing.
- The garden is always on; the house isn't. Don't plan around going inside — interiors open only for limited-run exhibitions (the first came in 2024). Ask Kora whether anything is showing before you build a day around it.
- Combine it with the temple. You're one straight walk from Jing'an Temple — lawn first, gold roofs after, both essentially free.
- Shaanxi North Road itself rewards the walk — it's one of the old mansion streets, and the residence is its best free interior... exterior. Kora drops a pin that works; Google Maps in China often doesn't.
Around it
Jing'an Temple is the natural pairing to the west. The full ranked list is on the Shanghai local map.
Sources
Compiled from 2 public Xiaohongshu field notes by Shanghai locals — roughly 39,000 likes between them at collection time (14 July 2026; each note covers several places):
Text and photos in the original notes belong to their authors; everything above is rewritten in our own words and we don't republish their photos. History and access status verified against public sources including district government reporting, July 2026. Compiled by Kora's team on the ground in China.
First time in China? Kora checks what's showing, drops working pins, and handles the payments and menus in between.
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