This is a pretty useless map of the area but it DOES show it is central and close to The Bund.
A new type of mini inn will appear in the downtown area of Shanghai, targeting backpackers and the young white collar class in Shanghai.
The mini inn is located on Yan’an Road, Huangpu District, and should open around the end of this month. The guest rooms of the inn are only about seven square meters so they are intended for friendly backpackers who know each other well. At that size, if you even want to change your mind you have to back into the corridor.
They are furnished with a bunk bed, a dressing mirror, an air conditioner, a TV set and simple lighting equipment. There are no cupboards so keep your stuff packed in your rucksack.
SiloBreaker reports that an estimated 400,000-700,000 tourists will come to Shanghai during the 2010 World Expo, of which 20%-30% will be backpackers. Hence the mini inn in this downtown area.
Experience with World Expos since Montreal in 1967 show that they are a magnet for backpackers. Which is why this inn, right in the downtown area will be a major sucess.
And it may be a start of a new chain on such establishments across Japan.
There is clearly a demand for this as reading any backpacker blog shows. Australia has already shown that catering for backpackers can be profitable in the short term and, in the long term, builds up a huge reservoir of potential returning visitors — although with much more upmarket accommodation. Note. however, that Shanghai already has some low priced accommodation which prices quoted under $20 a night.