Hi Everyone,

You've probably answered variations of these questions a billion times before but I didn't have any luck finding the answers so excuse any repetition. I am supposed to be relocating in Jan or Feb to Shanghai and I could use some input on housing and health care.

1) My office is on Nanjing Rd. (near Plaza 66) and I've been told that the French Concession area or Jin An were two places to consider living. Any comments on nice, modern apartment buildings in either of these areas? Any info. on what I can expect to pay for a nice, 2 bedroom furnished apt.?

French concession seems more interesting but I also would like to be able to walk to work and don't know if that is close enough? I stay at the Portman now - very convenient but I'm not sure that that area would be the most interesting for a longer stay. Opinions on these areas would be most welcome.

2) What are the ex-pat hospitals and/or medical facilities like in Shanghai? How do other companies handle unforeseen illness, emergencies, broken bones, etc? Is the standard of care as good as in Singapore or Hong Kong?

Thanks to everyone. All info. is helpful. Hope to meet some of you sometime soon!!

Hi Kitty Cat,
Both of those neighborhoods are pretty interesting. They are also both crowded and expensive, but if you want to walk to work then these are your choices.
Personally I wouldn't base my decision on the district but rather the apartments themselves in their immediate neighborhood. When viewing apartments try to only do one or two a day and use the extra time to walk around the neighborhood and decide if you'd like to live there.

As far as medical care goes in Shanghai, yes the standard is a little bit lower than you could expect in Hongkong or Singapore. What especially lacks is the availability of english speaking staff (if you don't speak chinese this might be a problem).
On the other hand, there is no real need to fly out of Shanghai for emergency treatment. For all basic medical care (broken bones, stiches, clearly diagnosable illnesses, etc..) you will be well taken care of here in Shanghai.
B

Hello kittycat,

same here, office close on Nanjing Lu, close to Plaza 66 and I am living in the Jingan district, 10 minutes by cab and 20 if I walk, which I am not doing right now as it is too cold.
French concession, depends on where u stay, you can be far away, as for walking distance, but you can also be quite close. I like the area I am living though.

For medical insurance, I am insured by Bupa, they are an insurance partner of World Link for example, so I go there for all my medical issues. No worries about this, go to the World Link Shanghai website and check out the insurance partners and try to contact them. Care is just as good as in Singapore/HK in this specific case.

Hope you have a safe trip and good luck!