Major credit cards i.e. Visa, Masters, HSBC are accepted throughout Shenzhen. But note that in many establishments only local Chinese and not International Visa etc cards are recognised. Ask first if they accept international cards. JCB and American Express have limited coverage. Cirrus, Plus & Maestro facilities allow owners to withdraw money from banks (but not all bank ATMs. Bank of China ATMs at all Metro stations accept foreign cards). Remember to activate your card for the pin usage. MixC has ATMs for some of the international credit cards, where cash can be withdrawn in those ATMs against your credit limit.
Bank of China, China Merchants Bank, and many but not all Chinese banks accept foreign cards. You may check with your bank to see if they have a local branch here. Most ATMs are open for 24 hours. Some are only opened if you swipe the card at the security doors.
At places in Luo Hu, cash is highly recommended. Some places charge an extra 10% for credit card purchases. The shop assistants will bring you to shops that have credit card processing machines. At shopping centers, remember to check with the cashiers to see if they accept credit cards before making purchases. There are few shopping centers that accept credit card with passport verification, though you may lose your discount on the purchase.
Be careful when getting change from large notes as people may try to give you Hong Kong dollars instead of Yuan. The Hong Kong dollar is worth less than Yuan.
For currency information, see the China page.
Luohu (Cantonese Lo Wu) Commercial City, (Just across from the Hong Kong border; Luohu Metro Station, exit A). Offers a very different experience to shopping in Hong Kong and is therefore worth a visit if only spending a short time in China. Spread over several levels are many small stores, each selling similar products: watches, jewellery, handbags, clothes and DVDs. These products are rarely authentic but they are often very well made and detailed fakes. There are many stallholders pressuring shoppers to part with their money but the atmosphere is one of enjoyable bartering. This is the place to go for Western sizes in clothing and shoes. This is also the place to go to have massages and nails done dirt cheap as well. But remember, this is not really Shenzhen. It is rough, dirty and infested with touts. Take the plunge and go another hundred yards into the city and you will find that your Luohu experience is not representative of the rest of the city. �
Dong Men Pedestrian Street (东门步行街; Dōngmén Bùxíng Jiē), (Lao Jie Metro Station, exit A). The place to go for clothes and small-ticket items. This place is better than Luohu Commercial City in terms of price and range of items. Other than several department stores, most are smaller stalls. The price is cheap, even at local standards. You can easily spend a day there. �
Carrefour 家乐福. Probably the biggest foreign hypermarket chain across China (nearly 200 stores). This French brand provides expats, tourists and Chinese people with all local and imported products they need. You will find food, wine, appliances, clothe, etc...There are 8 stores in Shenzhen and you just need to say "Jia le fu" to a taxi driver to take you there �
Wal Mart. Currently there are 8 stores but more are being built all the time. Also check out Carrefour, and Sam's Club (山母会员店). Sam's is a favorite shopping choice for Shenzhen's enormous and ever growing bourgeoisie and it's fun watching them. Be warned. They can be scary on a busy Sunday evening. Sam's membership is ¥150. Walmart's China HQ is in Xiangmi Hu (香密湖), above an enormous mall/cinema complex which includes a Sam's Club. Make sure you check out the crocodile of which there is always one at the fish counter. �
B&Q 百安居. This English chain offers DIY supplies and goods for the home and garden. �
Decathlon 迪卡侬. The French sports supplies retailer Decathlon has got more than 30 stores in the country in all major cities. You will find 2 stores in Shenzhen. �
MixC Shopping Mall, (Da Ju Yuan Metro Station, exit C-3). The largest (and easily the most expensive) shopping mall in Shenzhen. Highlights include the following: Olympic size indoor Ice Skating Rink, Golden Harvest Cinema movie theater, Ole (high end supermarket with many imported items), Spaghetti House and Starbucks. Good option �
Hua Qiang Bei, (In the SEG Building (赛格广场) on the corner of Huaqiang Bei and Shennan; Hua Qiang Lu Metro Station, exit A). Much like Dong Men, this is the place for anything electronic. This is the absolute epicentre of the world's electronics industry and you can buy anything electronic here. This most famous electronics market has seven floors of small stalls selling electronics items. The first two floors are wholesale components and the rest is dedicated to consumer goods. There are several other markets situated on both sides of Huaqiang and particularly in the small streets and lanes running parallel. One famously devotes itself to stealth and security. If haggling isn't your thing, you can also get good prices on consumer electronics at Suning. Gome and Sundan stores at the northern end of the street. There are good small restaurants in the streets crossing Huaqiang Bei. Starbucks is here too. Most of the stores will close at around 5 or 6 p.m. �
SEG Electronics Market, (At the corner of Huaqiang Road and Shennan Boulevard, Huaqianglu Metro Station). A huge market for all things electronic. The first two floors are components (ICs, wires, switches, etc.) and the other 4 floors will supply you with any electronic device your heart desires. �
Mingtong Electronics Market, (Few minutes from the SEG market). Houses watch parts, electronic toys, and mobile phone parts. �
Jusco. The Japanese supercenter and supermarkets. It has several locations in Shenzhen, next door to the CITIC Mall (中信广场), Metro: Ke Xue Guan, exit D, at Coco Park (Metro Gou Wu Gong Yuan) and in Coastal City (海岸城) Nanshan. �
KingGlory Plaza, (Guo Mao Metro Station, exit A). A mall, along the lines of MixC. It is fairly high priced. It includes a movie theater as well as the "IN" bar/nightclub (that's the name of it) and "Yellow" bar. Eight floors connected by criss-crossed escalators give you enough stores to stay occupied for a few hours. Lots of restaurants in the sub-ground levels. Connected by a walkway to Rainbow Mall. There's a Pacific Coffee on the ground floor. �
Shekou, (Buses 113, K113, 204, K204 and 328 to the end of the line (to the west)). The expat hangout with everything Western that you might be accustomed too. �
Shenzhen Book City, Fu Zhong Road 1, Futian District (Shao Nian Gong Metro Station (少年宫站), a.k.a. Children's Palace, exit C or D). This is a huge bookstore with a great selection of books, music, movies, and multimedia products. It bills itself as the biggest bookshop in the world. There is a small shop which specialises in English books, Eon Books. The DVD and CD section sells more or less legal versions of excellent movies at prices slightly higher than you will pay to street vendors. This often reflects better quality (but not always). Make sure you go on Sunday mornings when story telling competitions are held for children between the ages of 4 and 8. You may not be able to understand a word but they are cute. �
Coco Park, (near Gou Wu Gong Yuan Metro Station (购物公园)). New shopping mega complex. Sports, clothing, fashion, coffee, some restaurants, including "Norway.Oslo" which has some outdoor seating. When you get bored you can go outside and hit up McCawley's or the Mexican restaurant for dinner, then visit any of a number of bars just across the street from the mall. Coco Park is close to the Shenzhen Convention Exhibition Center. �
Central Walk, (Located one block away from the exhibition centre on Fuhua Road. Take Metro to Exhibition Centre stop and Central Walk is located at exit B. 5 minutes walk from Coco Park.). Another Shopping complex in Shenzhen. Base tenant is Carrefour, but also has usual shops, restaurants and a cinema. Three floors of shops arranged in a circle. Mostly women's clothes. Starbucks and Italian Best Coffee (Illy Coffee) are located here. Subway (Sandwiches) also has opened here. �
Tea World Terminal Market, (Close to Lo Wu/Luohu station, walk up the Bao'an south road, and it will be on your right side). A whole warehouse with many stores selling all things related to tea. Wonderful selection of everything from Pu'er-teas to tea-ware. They seem not to be focused on selling to tourists, which is very nice, but they still take time with you if you want to go through the tea ceremonies. �
Jiahua Foreign Trade Clothing Market, Address: 广东省深圳市福田区华强北路2007号 English: No.2007, Huaqiang North Road, Futian District, Shenzhen (How to get there: take the subway to Huagiang Lu, and take exit a. Walk north along Huaqiang Lu and once you cross Zhenhua Road go past NICO Womens World and in between NICO/KFC and MOI/Starbucks you’ll see a wide lane way that leads to the market. (from shenzhenshopper.com)). Series of stalls selling lots of cheap clothing. It's not quite as huge as Luohu Commercial City, but it's worth a look. low. �
Shun Hing Square ((Diwang Building)). On Shennan Road, across from the MixC. Go to the Da Juyuan (大剧院) metro station. You won't miss it, because Diwang Dasha is the second-biggest building in Shenzhen after the Kingkey building. The shopping center is actually very small, with just a few stores on three small levels, but it's in a nice area of town with lots of other attractions, so you might dart in to see what's to be found. Starbucks on the ground floor, McDonald's in the basement level. �
The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Shenzhen
Where To Stay & Best Hotels in Shenzhen - updated May 2024
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Shenzhen Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.
