The Oriental Pearl Tower, known as the tallest TV tower in Asia and the third in the world, is located in Shanghai's Pudong district. It was completed in 1995 and is 468m high. The designers magically set the eleven beautiful spheres of various sizes up from the green grassland to the blue sky with two giant spheres shining like two rubies. The whole design is rich in poetic and pictorial splendor, which gives the tourists the impression that pearls of various sizes are dropping onto the emerald plate.

There are 6 elevators within the tower-five installed in the three columns, one between the height of 250 meters and 341 meters. One of the five elevators is double-decked. Two medium-sized elevators, accommodating 30 persons each and running at a speed of 7 meters per second, cover the distance from the bottom of the tower to the highest sphere within 40 seconds.

The tower can be reached by ferry from the Bund. The observatory offers a great view of Shanghai, though the food is extremely overpriced. The Shanghai History Museum is located near the base of the tower. The Ocean Aquarium is also located nearby with a 120-meter long sightseeing tunnel.