Information for International Visitors to SIMIS

Welcome to SIMIS (Shanghai Institute for Mathematics and Interdisciplinary Sciences)!

This guide offers practical tips for international visitors regarding local connectivity, payments, navigation, and transportation. For academic/scheduling queries, please contact your SIMIS host directly.

Venue & Getting Here

Institute: SIMIS (www.simis.cn)

Address (EN): Block A, International Innovation Plaza, No. 657 Songhu Road, Yangpu District, Shanghai

地址 (中文): 上海市杨浦区淞沪路657号创智国际广场A座

Metro: Line 10 → Sanmen Road (三门路), ~200 m walk

Map pin: https://omaps.app/42bSUlYp_y

Detailed transport: https://swoa2025.simis.cn/transportation

On-site at SIMIS

Visitor office & building entry: Your host will guide you upon arrival.

Wi-Fi: Guest credentials provided at SIMIS.

Accommodation

Recommended: Atour Hotel Shanghai Wujiaochang Wanda Plaza (上海五角场万达广场亚朵酒店), near SIMIS. To get SIMIS corporate rate, email your SIMIS host your dates & passport name—we’ll handle booking.

Hotel info & photos: https://www.trip.com/w/4yrFpdvQKR2

Other hotels: Trip.com recommended.

Visa Information

China recently expanded visa-free entry policies (see attached PDF).

Official source: https://www.visaforchina.cn

SIMIS visa letters: Contact Michael Fang (fangtianyue@simis.cn), CC your SIMIS host. Follow up directly if needed.

Connectivity (SIM cards)

A local Chinese SIM card (+86 number) is strongly recommended for SMS verification (ride-hailing, delivery, metro apps).

Where at PVG: China Telecom, T1 near Gate 11 (07:00–22:00). Passport required; English spoken.

International roaming: Works for basic data, not for local app SMS verifications.

Payments (Alipay/WeChat Pay—cashless daily life)

Set up in advance: Detailed guide at https://swoa2025.simis.cn/tips

ID verification: May require passport selfie in-app upon arrival in China.

Daily use: Apps’ QR codes accepted everywhere (restaurants, metro, convenience stores).

Navigation that actually works

Apple Maps: Reliable in China, but not from outside China.

Organic Maps: Excellent offline backup (works from outside China). Download Shanghai maps beforehand. Works from abroad as well.

Metro: 大都会 (DADUHUI) app or Alipay mini-program QR entry.

Ride-hailing (Didi)

Didi app: English available, accepts international numbers, built-in translation. Integrated with Alipay mini-app.

In-app Translation (WeChat & Alipay—highly recommended)

The built-in translation is extremely useful, as almost all daily tasks (restaurant menus, metro tickets, directions, etc.) rely on these mega-apps.

WeChat: Enable via Me → Settings → General → Translation.

Alipay: International version includes integrated translation tools.

Power, Time & Weather Essentials

Electricity: 220 V. Sockets accept US/EU two-pin plugs; slim adapter recommended for grounded plugs.

Time zone: UTC+8 (no daylight saving).

Weather: average is 8–18°C, but could be extreme for -1-33°C according the history data of recent 3 years.

Emergencies: Police 110 • Fire 119 • Ambulance 120

A personal note from Thomas:

This guide aims to help international visitors in general. For suggestions about additional useful information, please email me at thomas@simis.cn. For workshop-specific details (e.g., exact room number, schedule), refer to the workshop website or the body of the invitation email.