Shanghai Winter Fun! Baoyan Paradise Flagship Store Parent-Child Winter Water Play Guide

In Shanghai’s winter, there are few outdoor activities suitable for children. After a hard week of studying, weekends are for finding a paradise to let off steam!

Imagine a place where kids can get up close with cute animals, enjoy a slide paradise, and splash in the water—sounds amazing, right? Well, it really is!

Shanghai actually has such a magical paradise, offering one-stop family fun: it’s the Baoyan Paradise Flagship Store.

This massive indoor park covers about 20,000 square meters and features Shanghai’s only year-round indoor water park (a five-star attraction), the city’s first large outdoor grass sliding course, plus a cute pet paradise, slide paradise, adventure castle, block world, and even a rooftop garden where you can ride ponies—so many things to do!

My planned route:

Cute Pet Paradise feeding – Rooftop playground horse riding and grass sliding – Indoor heated pool with wave surfing and swimming (five-star attraction) – Slide Paradise (90° vertical slide, a challenge for the brave) – Adventure Castle – Block World, and more.

December is the Christmas season, and Baoyan Paradise also offers a lucky draw for visitors, full of surprises and endless fun.

Quick tips before you visit:

1. The park has family changing rooms. Remember to bring swimwear, and bring your own towel for drying off. Slippers are provided in all sizes.

2. The heated water park is kept at about 37°C. The temperature difference can cause glasses to fog up, and the same goes for cameras—bring a cloth to wipe them.

3. Long sleeves and long pants are needed for the slides to prevent scrapes, which is naturally fine in winter. You’ll also need non-slip socks for certain activities; they are sold on-site.

4. Outdoor activities like grass sliding have fixed times and are free. I suggest checking the schedule first to avoid missing out.

5. There’s horse riding outdoors now—I’d recommend trying that first.

6. Wear your exclusive wristband to re-enter the park multiple times; the wristband is for personal use only.

I’ve been to Baoyan Paradise before, but this time I came specifically for the year-round heated water park, the cute pet paradise, grass sliding, and horse riding. The water park and pet paradise close relatively early, and the rooftop outdoor area is best during daylight, so we tackled those first. With Christmas around the corner, the festive atmosphere is strong, and the park is beautifully decorated.

Now, let’s dive in!

First stop: Cute Pet Paradise—here we come!

The Cute Pet Paradise is on the first floor and requires a separate ticket. Upon entering, there’s hand sanitizing and temperature check—very thorough.

Since you’ll be up close with small animals, staff provide children with special gloves based on their age. You can buy fish food, carrots, and other treats to feed them—the animals are super lively.

We bought a bag of carrots to feed the rabbits, hamsters, and ground squirrels—such adorable little ones.

Right at the entrance, you’ll see alpacas! They’re well-behaved and won’t spit. In winter, their fluffy coats look so warm you’ll want to touch them.

The rabbits rush over to grab a bite as soon as they spot food.

There are also reptiles like lizards and turtles—it’s practically a mini zoo, plus lots of ornamental fish and a goldfish pond.

For feeding birds, there’s special bird food. You’ll find budgies and cockatiels, all quite tame, with their eyes darting around.

The meerkats huddling together for warmth are beyond cute!!! A bunch of them snuggled up, then one woke up, turned to look at me, and my girl nearly let out a prairie dog squeal.

Right next door are the prairie dogs. There’s a little setup where you can crawl right next to them to feed them, and watching them hop about—oh dear, I felt a bit mischievous.

There are also raccoons, cats, and hedgehogs—a great variety of cute critters.

A crowd gathered to feed the guinea pigs; sure enough, the tiniest ones are the most popular.

Plan to spend about 1-2 hours here to fully interact with all the animals.

Second stop: Rooftop Playground.

Next, head to the rooftop playground. Since these activities are scheduled and best enjoyed during daylight, it’s a good idea to come early.

For grass sliding, the afternoon session officially runs from 16:45 to 17:30. On a nice day, kids run around there, and it looks like a giant slide.

When it officially opens, staff will bring out the equipment. Only children can take part, and if they want another go, they’ll need to line up again. It’s free, so be brave and go for it!

Horse riding is also highly recommended. Older kids can ride taller horses, while there are smaller ponies for younger children. All are gentle. Dress up in the riding gear and let the trainer lead you around—it’s quite a sight. This activity requires an extra fee.

Other attractions have more flexible hours; the dinosaur models even roar, and there’s a little train to look forward to.

If you’re lucky, you might even meet a clown on stilts handing out balloons.

Third stop: Year-round Heated Water Park.

After finishing the rooftop garden adventure, head straight to the year-round heated water park for some splashing fun!!!

It occupies the 3rd and 4th floors.

This was the highlight of our visit. You can come any time of the year, especially in winter when all outdoor water parks are closed. Here, you don’t have to worry about kids catching a cold after playing—the water is kept at a cozy 37°C.

There are family changing rooms for added convenience. Swimsuits are sold on-site, slippers are provided, and there are showers and restrooms—just bring your own towel. Lockers cost 10 yuan.

The water slides are for both adults and children. My girl and I went on them again and again—the best value for money, especially since outdoor ones are all closed now.

There’s also a warm whirlpool spa, a kids’ splash pool, and a swimming pool.

My girl didn’t want to leave the water park once she got in. Normally, she’s hesitant about standard swimming pools since she’s only a beginner at breaststroke and not very confident. But here, the pools are shallow, the water is clean, and parents can keep an eye on them—so it’s really safe.

Slide Paradise – Dynamic VR Zone.

After the water park, head to the 1st floor for more slides. If you didn’t get enough of the water slides, you’ll find all kinds of different slides here.

Slide Paradise is another signature attraction at Baoyan, with the highlight being the 90° vertical slide.

In summer you’d remind kids to wear long sleeves and pants, but in winter, no reminder needed—the thick clothing already helps prevent scrapes.

The 90° vertical slide is a real courage test; you need to wear a special protective suit to go down. We adults chickened out instantly, but the kids were fearless—truly the boldness of youth.

Staff are on hand to instruct you on the safe way to slide. The 45-degree slide had more takers. A little boy even came up to my daughter and said, ‘Miss, let me show you how it’s done.’ We watched, speechless, as he zoomed down with perfect form.

There are also rainbow slides and many others—plenty of choices.

Besides slides, there are also exploration zones. If you’re not into daring slides, you can try something else.

There’s a 5D cinema and a VR cinema—just check the showtimes.

Fourth stop: Adventure Castle + Block World + Family Restaurant + Game Arcade.

While the kids play, moms can even get a manicure.

There’s also a nursery and a baking room—everything you need.

If you want more fun, there are amusement games as well, though these cost extra.

Adventure Castle has slides, a ball pit, and climbing walls. My kid loves burying herself in the ball pit and having me find her—who says you can’t be a 3-year-old again?

There’s also a trampoline and Block World—no shortage of fun.

Every visit to Baoyan is a one-stop solution for eating, drinking, and having a blast. Finally, there’s a place to enjoy water fun even in winter.

After all that, you’re bound to be hungry. Luckily, there’s a restaurant here.

I have to rave about the family restaurant.

It’s on the 2nd floor, and the food gets better every time.

This time we ordered spaghetti bolognese, salt-and-pepper chicken, and chicken wings. The wings were a hit! They were huge, tender, and well-prepared, priced about the same as outside.

After a day of fun, it’s time to go home—but we’ll be back.

1. Free parking for the first 4 hours when you check in; after that, it’s 6 yuan per hour.

2. Address: No. 11, Lane 3825, Dushi Road, Minhang District, Shanghai