Shanghai · Visitor Guide
Jade Buddha Temple (玉佛寺, Yùfó Sì)
Jade Buddha Temple (玉佛寺) is Shanghai's most important active Chan Buddhist monastery, built 1918-1928 to house two white-jade Buddhas a monk named Huigen carried back from Burma in 1882 — a 1.9-metre seated figure weighing close to a tonne and a 0.96-metre reclining Buddha. The saffron-walled Song-style complex is the only Shanghai monastery to survive the Cultural Revolution intact, and roughly 70 monks still live and chant here. Visitors are watching real worship, not walking a museum.
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Quick Answer
Is Jade Buddha Temple worth visiting?
A working Buddhist monastery in Shanghai's Putuo District, built 1918-1928 around two white-jade Buddhas a monk carried home from Burma in 1882 — the seated one 1.9 m tall and nearly a tonne. Entry is free, allow 1-2 hours, and the ¥30 vegetarian noodles are the real reason locals keep coming back.
Quick facts
| Ticket | Free (as of 2026) — no entrance fee; optional incense ¥5-10. Reservation required during Chinese New Year. |
|---|---|
| Hours | 08:00-16:30 daily (last entry 16:00) |
| Recommended duration | 1-2 hours |
| Best time to visit | Weekday mornings right at 08:00 opening, to catch morning chanting before tour groups arrive. |
| How to get there | Metro Line 13 to Jiangning Road (江宁路站), Exit 1, then a 5-min walk west to 170 Anyuan Rd; bus 19/36/112; DiDi about ¥20-30 from People's Square or the Bund. |
| English signage | partial |
| Wheelchair accessible | partial |
| Founded | 1882 (current buildings 1918-1928) |
| Seated Buddha | 1.9 m tall, ~1,000 kg, white Burmese jade |
| Status | Active Chan monastery, ~70 resident monks |
| Admission | Free (as of 2026) |
| UNESCO | Not listed |
| Location | Putuo District, 170 Anyuan Road |
What to expect
You enter through the Hall of Heavenly Kings, where a fat, smiling Maitreya faces the door and the armored Skanda guards behind him, flanked by the Four Heavenly Kings. Past it opens the main courtyard with its incense braziers and the saffron-yellow walls that make this temple instantly recognizable — the color is a giveaway you're at a Chan monastery, not a tourist prop. The Daxiong Grand Hall holds three gilded Buddhas each about four meters tall: Sakyamuni center, Amitabha left, Medicine Buddha right. The prize is upstairs in the Jade Buddha Chamber: a 1.9-meter seated white-jade Buddha, jewel-encrusted, weighing close to a tonne, brought from Burma in 1882. Photography there is forbidden and a monk usually watches — buy the postcard at the shop instead. In the Reclining Buddha Hall next door, a smaller 0.96-meter jade Buddha lies on a redwood bed behind glass, depicting the Buddha's parinirvana.
The temple exists because of one monk's legs. In 1882 Huigen, an abbot from Mount Putuo, walked a pilgrimage route through Mount Wutai and Mount Emei to Tibet, India, and finally Burma, where an overseas Chinese donor named Chen Junpu paid to have five jade Buddhas carved. Carrying them back toward China, Huigen left two — one seated, one reclining — in Shanghai's Jiangwan suburb and built a temple to house them before dying shortly after. That first temple was wrecked in the 1911 upheaval and the statues moved; the original was destroyed in 1918, and the current Song-dynasty-style complex rose between 1918 and 1928 under abbot Ke Chen, funded by Qing official Sheng Xuanhuai. The miracle is what came next: during the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976), when most Shanghai temples were ransacked, monks here survived by selling handicrafts and quietly protected both jade Buddhas and the temple's relics intact — it was the only Shanghai monastery to emerge whole. It reopened in 1978 and has been an active monastery since, with roughly 70 resident monks today.
Most guidebooks pitch this as a quick stop on a temple-and-shopping circuit, but the real draw is that it's a functioning monastery — show up at 08:00 on a weekday and you'll catch morning chanting and locals buying incense for ¥5-10 a bundle inside (outside incense is banned, so ignore the touts at the gate). Entry has been free for years as of 2026, though a reservation is needed during the Chinese New Year rush when the place is shoulder-to-shoulder — skip that window entirely. Budget 90 minutes; the complex is compact and the layout follows a single central axis (Hall of Heavenly Kings, Daxiong Grand Hall, Jade Buddha Chamber), so you won't get lost. The vegetarian restaurant is the unsung highlight: separate entrance on the side, no temple ticket needed, and the Arhat noodles and double-mushroom noodles run about ¥30 a bowl. Wheelchair users can manage the ground-floor halls, but the Jade Buddha Chamber is up a flight of stairs with no lift.
How to get there
Closest metro: Jiangning Road (江宁路站) on Line 13 — take Exit 1 and walk about 5 minutes west along Anyuan Road to the gate at No. 170. If you're on Line 7, transfer at Changshou Road. By bus, lines 19, 36, and 112 stop near the Jiangning Road/Anyuan Road intersection. By DiDi or taxi from People's Square or the Bund (about 4-5 km), expect ¥20-30 and 10-15 minutes off-peak; show the driver 玉佛寺 or 安远路170号 since not all drivers know the English name. From Hongqiao Airport it's roughly ¥60-70 by DiDi; from Pudong Airport, take Metro Line 2 and transfer to Line 13, or budget ¥150+ by taxi.
Best photo spots
- The saffron-yellow courtyard wall and upturned eaves framing the Daxiong Grand Hall roofline — the color is the temple's signature.
- The incense braziers in the main courtyard with smoke and worshippers in the morning light (shoot before 09:00).
- The Hall of Heavenly Kings interior with the smiling Maitreya and the Four Heavenly Kings lining the walls.
- The Reclining Buddha Hall — the 0.96 m jade Buddha on its redwood bed, shot through the glass. The seated Jade Buddha upstairs is strictly no-photos, so this is your only jade-statue shot.
Tips
- Arrive at 08:00 opening on a weekday to catch morning chanting — it's the one time the monastery feels alive rather than touristed, and crowds don't build until 09:30.
- Don't try to photograph the seated Jade Buddha in the second-floor chamber — it's strictly prohibited and a monk watches. Buy the ¥10 postcard pack at the temple shop; the printed image is better than your phone shot anyway.
- Eat at the vegetarian restaurant — it has a separate side entrance, you don't need to enter the temple, and the Arhat noodles and double-mushroom noodles are genuinely good at around ¥30 a bowl. Locals come specifically for the noodles.
- Skip the Antiques & Curio Store branch unless you want souvenirs — the miniature sandalwood drums and gongs are marked up for tourists, not collectors.
- Ignore incense touts at the gate — outside incense is banned and confiscated. Buy inside for ¥5-10 a bundle, the only incense permitted on the braziers.
Scams to avoid
- Incense touts just outside the gates sell 'blessed' incense at ¥30-50 a bundle, claiming the free temple incense is inferior. The temple's own incense (¥5-10 inside) is the only kind permitted on the braziers — outside bundles get turned away, so the tout's product is useless to you.
- Self-styled 'English guides' loiter near the entrance offering 30-minute tours for ¥100-200. They aren't temple-affiliated and the complex is small enough to self-guide in under two hours; the central-axis layout makes a paid guide redundant.
- Taxi drivers from tourist zones sometimes take the long way — show 玉佛寺 or 安远路170号 (170 Anyuan Rd) in Chinese and track the route on your phone map.
Frequently asked questions
Is there an entrance fee for Jade Buddha Temple?
No — entry is free year-round as of 2026. (The temple charged ¥20 in the past, but that fee has been dropped.) The only cost is an optional incense offering of ¥5-10. During Chinese New Year, late January through February, you must book a free reservation in advance.
What are the opening hours?
Daily 08:00-16:30, with last entry at 16:00. The vegetarian restaurant keeps the same 08:00-16:30 hours. Arrive by 08:00 if you want to hear morning chanting.
How do I get there by metro?
Take Line 13 to Jiangning Road (江宁路站), Exit 1, then walk about 5 minutes west along Anyuan Road to No. 170. If you're on Line 7, transfer at Changshou Road. There is no station actually named 'Jade Buddha Temple' despite what some outdated guides claim — that's an error.
Can I photograph the Jade Buddha?
No — photography is strictly prohibited inside the Jade Buddha Chamber, the second-floor room with the seated Buddha, and a monk usually watches. You can shoot in the courtyards and other halls. Postcards of the jade Buddha are sold at the temple shop for around ¥10.
How big is the seated Jade Buddha?
It stands 1.9 meters tall and weighs roughly 1,000 kg (one tonne), carved from a single block of white Burmese jade and encrusted with jewels. A smaller 0.96-meter reclining jade Buddha from the same 1882 shipment sits in the adjacent Reclining Buddha Hall.
Is it a real working temple or just a tourist site?
It's a genuine active Chan Buddhist monastery with about 70 resident monks — morning chanting, incense offerings, and scripture recitation happen daily. You're observing real worship, not a museum diorama.
When was Jade Buddha Temple built?
The original temple was founded in 1882 in Shanghai's Jiangwan suburb by the monk Huigen, who carried the jade statues back from Burma. That building was destroyed, and the current Song-dynasty-style complex was built between 1918 and 1928 under abbot Ke Chen, funded by Qing official Sheng Xuanhuai.
What should I eat at the temple?
The vegetarian restaurant, entered through a separate side gate, serves 80+ dishes modeled on Buddhist temple cuisine. The specialties are noodles — Arhat noodles (罗汉面) and double-mushroom noodles — around ¥30 a bowl. The mock-meat dishes, vegetarian duck and chicken, are also popular.
Is Jade Buddha Temple wheelchair accessible?
Partially. The ground-floor courtyards and the Daxiong Grand Hall are reachable, but the seated Jade Buddha is on the second floor of the Jade Buddha Chamber with no elevator — wheelchair users can't reach it. Paths are mostly flat with a few steps between courtyards.
Is Jade Buddha Temple a UNESCO World Heritage Site?
No. It is not on the UNESCO list. Its significance is cultural and religious — it's the best-preserved Shanghai Buddhist monastery, having survived the Cultural Revolution intact — rather than a UNESCO designation.
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