China's abandoned buildings draw urban explorers despite risks
Long popular in the West, urban exploration, or "urbex" for short, sees city-dwelling thrill-seekers explore dilapidated, closed-off buildings and areas -- often skirting the law in the process.
And it is growing in popularity in China, where a years-long property sector crisis has left many cities dotted with empty buildings.
Xu, a 29-year-old tech worker from the eastern city of Qingdao, has amassed hundreds of thousands of followers for his photos of rundown schools and vacant cinemas.
"When people see these images, they find them incredibly fresh and fascinating," he told AFP.
"The realisation that so many abandoned buildings exist -- and that they can photograph so beautifully -- naturally captures attention."
AFP joined Xu and his comrades at a deserted hotel in the outskirts of Shanghai for a unique photoshoot.
From the outside, the hotel looked like a prefabricated medieval castle.
Once inside, it was clear the property had been abandoned for years.
Searching through the rooms for good spots for striking photos, Xu and his friends came across remnants of the hotel's past -- a mahjong table, laundry sheets and piles of dinner plates.
Props from past photoshoots were scattered on the floor and on one ballroom wall, "Long Live Chairman Mao" was written in spray paint.
China's recent property market downturn has left many abandoned large-scale projects ready ground for urban explorers.
"I don't think you would find sites like this in Europe," long-time explorer Brin Connal told AFP as he walked around an empty, abandoned building.
"In China, there's a lot of these places which are unfinished."
- 'Really special' -
One such unfinished megaproject in Shanghai, the Pentagon Mall, has become such a hotspot that explorers leave messages for each other on the walls of its top floor.
"I think this is something really special about Chinese urban exploration," said Sean, a Shanghai resident who did not want to give his real name.
"There's a very strong sense of community and it's very, very welcoming."
Situated in Shanghai's Pudong district, the project came close to completion in 2009 but investment fell through.
The giant concrete building now sits mostly in disrepair -- broken tiles litter the ground and a large faded map of the uncompleted mall is barely visible under a thick layer of dust.
Some rooms still have signs of life, with mattresses from squatters, discarded takeout and cigarette boxes and even laundry hanging outside.
"In places like Shanghai, people always find a way to make use of these buildings, even if they're not completely built and completely usable," said Sean's exploration partner Nov, who also asked to go by a pseudonym.
- 'Way too dangerous' -
Chinese social media companies are less enthusiastic.
Looking up abandoned buildings on Instagram-like Xiaohongshu, users are met with a message warning "there are risks in this area, please pay attention to safety and comply with local policies and regulations".
Connal, originally from Britain, told AFP he understood the restrictions.
"Some of them are way too dangerous, and some of these abandoned locations were getting overwhelmed with people," he said.
The hobby also takes place in a legal grey area.
Many urban explorers go by a simple mantra -- taking nothing from the places they visit and leaving nothing behind.
But the act of trespassing can come with fines in China, just as it does in the West.
Xu also acknowledged the risks that come with urban exploration -- from angry security guards to errant circuitry.
"Firstly, you might face the risk of trespassing illegally. Secondly, private properties may have security guards or be completely sealed off," he told AFP.
"These locations often involve hazards like no electricity or lighting, structural damage, and injuries from construction materials like exposed nails."
But model Mao Yi said the hobby offered a respite from the drudgery of big city living.
"Living in these sprawling metropolises of steel and concrete, we've grown familiar with the routines of daily life," she told AFP.
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Yahoo
19 hours ago
- Yahoo
China's abandoned buildings draw urban explorers despite risks
Xu Pengcheng looks over his shoulder and, after confirming the coast is clear, helps his crew of urban adventurers climb through the broken window of an abandoned building. Long popular in the West, urban exploration, or "urbex" for short, sees city-dwelling thrill-seekers explore dilapidated, closed-off buildings and areas -- often skirting the law in the process. And it is growing in popularity in China, where a years-long property sector crisis has left many cities dotted with empty buildings. Xu, a 29-year-old tech worker from the eastern city of Qingdao, has amassed hundreds of thousands of followers for his photos of rundown schools and vacant cinemas. "When people see these images, they find them incredibly fresh and fascinating," he told AFP. "The realisation that so many abandoned buildings exist -- and that they can photograph so beautifully -- naturally captures attention." AFP joined Xu and his comrades at a deserted hotel in the outskirts of Shanghai for a unique photoshoot. From the outside, the hotel looked like a prefabricated medieval castle. Once inside, it was clear the property had been abandoned for years. Searching through the rooms for good spots for striking photos, Xu and his friends came across remnants of the hotel's past -- a mahjong table, laundry sheets and piles of dinner plates. Props from past photoshoots were scattered on the floor and on one ballroom wall, "Long Live Chairman Mao" was written in spray paint. China's recent property market downturn has left many abandoned large-scale projects ready ground for urban explorers. "I don't think you would find sites like this in Europe," long-time explorer Brin Connal told AFP as he walked around an empty, abandoned building. "In China, there's a lot of these places which are unfinished." - 'Really special' - One such unfinished megaproject in Shanghai, the Pentagon Mall, has become such a hotspot that explorers leave messages for each other on the walls of its top floor. "I think this is something really special about Chinese urban exploration," said Sean, a Shanghai resident who did not want to give his real name. "There's a very strong sense of community and it's very, very welcoming." Situated in Shanghai's Pudong district, the project came close to completion in 2009 but investment fell through. The giant concrete building now sits mostly in disrepair -- broken tiles litter the ground and a large faded map of the uncompleted mall is barely visible under a thick layer of dust. Some rooms still have signs of life, with mattresses from squatters, discarded takeout and cigarette boxes and even laundry hanging outside. "In places like Shanghai, people always find a way to make use of these buildings, even if they're not completely built and completely usable," said Sean's exploration partner Nov, who also asked to go by a pseudonym. - 'Way too dangerous' - Chinese social media companies are less enthusiastic. Looking up abandoned buildings on Instagram-like Xiaohongshu, users are met with a message warning "there are risks in this area, please pay attention to safety and comply with local policies and regulations". Connal, originally from Britain, told AFP he understood the restrictions. "Some of them are way too dangerous, and some of these abandoned locations were getting overwhelmed with people," he said. The hobby also takes place in a legal grey area. Many urban explorers go by a simple mantra -- taking nothing from the places they visit and leaving nothing behind. But the act of trespassing can come with fines in China, just as it does in the West. Xu also acknowledged the risks that come with urban exploration -- from angry security guards to errant circuitry. "Firstly, you might face the risk of trespassing illegally. Secondly, private properties may have security guards or be completely sealed off," he told AFP. "These locations often involve hazards like no electricity or lighting, structural damage, and injuries from construction materials like exposed nails." But model Mao Yi said the hobby offered a respite from the drudgery of big city living. "Living in these sprawling metropolises of steel and concrete, we've grown familiar with the routines of daily life," she told AFP. acc/oho/je/dhw/rsc
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BEIJING — From the ancient alleyways around Beijing's Forbidden City and the glitzy shopping streets of Shanghai to the futuristic cyberpunk vibes of Chongqing, China is enjoying an influx of tourists — many of whom are keen to vlog enthusiastically about a country that was not what they expected. Canadians Steve and Ivana enthusiastically told their viewers that walking down a Chinese city street is 'so impressive and different that it's hard to know where to start.' Americans Mike and Ashley wished they had known just how developed Chinese cities were before arriving and lamented that 'the media misrepresents China in a negative light.' And Craig and Chantal from South Africa described being wowed by China's 'sleek, efficient, clean, on time' trains. The sharp increase in tourist numbers (and gushing about China) is in no small part because Beijing has dramatically loosened its entry requirements over the past 20 months. 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The rave reviews on TikTok and YouTube — some of the vloggers appear to have had their trips subsidized by Chinese tourism promoters, but many appear to be filled with genuine awe — suggest that Beijing's efforts to improve its image through tourism are beginning to pay off. Last year, tourists made 130 million trips to China and spent $94.2 billion, coming close to 2019 levels, according to official data. The government does not release more regular nationwide data breaking down visitor arrivals from various countries, but city-level statistics suggest demand has continued to grow this year. International tourist arrivals into Shanghai were up nearly 40 percent year-on-year in the first half of 2025, reaching 4 million trips, with the largest numbers of travelers coming from South Korea, Thailand and Japan. 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At the end of last year, the State Department upgraded its travel warning for Americans visiting China, telling them to 'exercise increased caution' due to 'arbitrary enforcement of local laws, including in relation to exit bans.' American interest in traveling to China was also sapped during the coronavirus pandemic, which originated in the central Chinese city of Wuhan. China's reputation among Americans still suffers from geopolitical tensions and pandemic-era visa cancellations, said Sheng Ding, a political scientist at the Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania. 'Public confidence was hurt,' Sheng said. A drop in the number of flights from the United States and the lack of the same 30-day visa-free policy offered to many European citizens is also curtailing American arrivals, said Jenny Zhao, managing director of leisure travel at WildChina. But WildChina is seeing more requests from clients between 30 and 50 years old interested in technology. They ask to visit electric vehicle factories, visit the setting of the hit 'Black Myth: Wukong' video game and watch dancing robots. 'They want to see something new, edgy and different — to witness China's modern side,' Zhao said. China has been trying to become culturally and technologically alluring for years — with limited success. In the lead-up to the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing, the Chinese Communist Party identified 'soft power' — using its cultural appeal — as a national priority and a way to extend its influence without resorting to hard tools of economic and military coercion. Then and now, Beijing considered the concept a powerful tool to counter growing fears of its rising global clout, and it has made extensive efforts to become more appealing outside the country. But many state-directed efforts, such as huge investments in international programming from Chinese state media and founding dozens of Confucius Institutes to teach Chinese language, have come under increasing scrutiny as a tool of political influence. Chinese leader Xi Jinping's call in 2021 for China to present its 'lovable' side to the world was undercut by Chinese 'wolf warrior' diplomats who verbally — and sometimes physically — attacked critics of Beijing. But Trump's return — and his belligerent approach to friends and foes alike — has given China another chance to win friends and influence other nations. The appeal to tourists has come as Chinese brands such as Labubu, a designer plush toy made by retailer Pop Mart, and electric-car maker BYD are gaining international recognition. Some global surveys have found that China's image has overtaken that of the U.S. The Democracy Perception Index, an annual report from a German research firm released in May, found that respondents in 76 out of the 96 countries surveyed feel more positively about China than the U.S. That shift, while mostly thanks to declining perceptions of the U.S., has been helped by a change in China's reputation among travelers. And Chinese tour operators are capitalizing on their country's newfound image. Take Chongqing, a city of 21 million in China's mountainous southwest with a maze of walkways in the sky, subway trains that disappear into buildings and refurbished World War II bomb shelters that now house hotpot restaurants. When Darren Jason Watkins Jr., an American YouTuber better known as IShowSpeed, went to Chongqing in May, his live stream from the city got 9.4 million views. Chen Ming, who left his job as an app designer to start a tour agency in his hometown, believes Chongqing is made for the TikTok age: Its algorithms love the city's cyberpunk vibes. Exposure like this is helping bring a new view of China to younger audiences abroad, he said. 'Many of [these people] are still young, possibly still in college, but as they grow older, in their twenties and thirties, and establish themselves in society, their impression of China will definitely be different from before,' Chen said. Li reported from Seoul.
