Where to Go in Shenzhen When It Rains? Free Indoor Venues Are the Most Practical Choice
Shenzhen occasionally gets rain in autumn and winter, which can throw off outdoor plans. In fact, Shenzhen has a large number of free-entry, no-booking-required museums, art galleries and cultural venues, most of them along metro lines with no admission fee, so on a rainy day you can easily fill a whole day. All 8 venues below are free (some special exhibitions charge separately), with opening hours and metro exits listed. They are reachable from the Luohu, Futian and Shenzhen Bay checkpoints.
① Shenzhen Bay Culture Plaza | Design Museum + Materials Library (Nanshan)
Address: Keyuan South Road, Nanshan District, Shenzhen (Shenzhen Bay Culture Plaza). This is one of the largest design museums in the world. Two spaces inside — the "Craft Brand Hall" and the "Design Materials Library" — are open free of charge. The Materials Library holds hundreds of samples of wood, stone, fabric and metal, a secret garden for design fans. Opening hours: Tuesday to Sunday 10:00 to 18:00 (last entry 17:00), closed Mondays.
Transport: Metro Line 13, Talent Park Station, Exit B1, then walk.
② Longhua Piano Museum | Nearly 3,000 Antique Pianos (Longhua)
Address: No. 65 Minfu North Road, Minzhi, Longhua District, Shenzhen. The exhibition hall covers about 5,300 square metres and displays 258 antique pianos. The oldest was made in 1776, and the collection holds nearly 3,000 items, all donated by collector Xu Jingyan, which is why it is also called "one man's museum". Free, no booking required. Opening hours: Tuesday to Friday 08:30 to 17:30, Saturday and Sunday 08:30 to 19:30, closed Mondays.
Transport: Metro Line 5, Minzhi Station, Exit D, walk to Shenbaomao Building.
③ Shenzhen Art Museum (New Building) | A Pure White Woven Box (Longhua)
Address: Building 1, No. 30 Tenglong Road, Minzhi Subdistrict, Longhua District, Shenzhen. The new building has a floor area of about 66,000 square metres and 18 exhibition halls in total, with a 13-metre-high ground floor. Free, no booking required. Opening hours: Tuesday to Sunday 10:00 to 18:00 (last entry 17:30), closed Mondays.
Transport: Metro Line 4 or Line 6, Hongshan Station, Exit A1, about a 300-metre walk.
④ Shenzhen Museum (History and Folk Culture Museum) | Understanding Shenzhen's Urban Story (Futian)
Address: Shenzhen Museum (History and Folk Culture Museum), Jintian Road, Futian District, Shenzhen. Inside are the Beilin world wildlife specimen exhibition and three main halls covering ancient Shenzhen, modern Shenzhen and Shenzhen folk culture, recreating the streets of the Qing-dynasty Guanlan Old Market. On the third floor, the reform and opening-up history hall has nostalgic items such as brick phones and old enamel mugs that really strike a chord. Free, no booking required. Opening hours: Tuesday to Sunday 10:00 to 18:00 (last entry 17:30), closed Mondays.
Transport: Metro Line 2 or Line 4, Civic Center Station, Exit B.
⑤ Shenzhen Museum (Ancient Art Museum) | The Capsule-Elevator Museum (Futian)
Address: No. 6 Tongxin Road, Futian District, Shenzhen. This building was once praised as the most modern museum in the country, and the three black-and-white capsule elevators in the lobby are artworks in themselves. Inside are 13 exhibition halls across 4 floors, with permanent exhibitions including ancient ceramics and bronzes. Free, no booking required. Opening hours: Tuesday to Sunday 10:00 to 18:00, closed Mondays.
Transport: Metro Line 1 or Line 6, Science Museum Station, Exit A.
⑥ Nanshan Museum | One of Shenzhen's Most Popular Museums (Nanshan)
Address: No. 2093 Nanshan Avenue, Nanshan District, Shenzhen. Nanshan Museum is one of the most popular museums in Shenzhen, and the vast majority of its exhibitions are free. Opening hours: Tuesday to Sunday 10:00 to 18:00 (last entry 17:30), closed Mondays.
Transport: Metro Line 1 or Line 12, Taoyuan Station, Exit B.
⑦ Guangming Culture and Art Center | Four Venues in One Trip (Guangming)
Address: Intersection of Chuangtou Road and Guanguang Road, Guangming District, Shenzhen. Made up of five functional zones — an art museum, a performance centre, a library and an urban planning exhibition hall — it covers 130,000 square metres and is the largest arts complex in northern Shenzhen. On a rainy day you can read, view exhibitions or simply unwind. The library and art museum are open Tuesday to Sunday 10:00 to 18:00, closed Mondays, free of charge.
Transport: Metro Line 6, Fenghuangcheng Station, Exit B, about a 450-metre walk.
⑧ Shenzhen Museum of Contemporary Art and Urban Planning | Next to Civic Center (Futian)
Address: No. 184 Fuzhong Road, Futian District, Shenzhen (next to Civic Center). The museum displays Shenzhen's urban planning and contemporary art. It is spacious and rain-proof, and a good place to bring children to learn about the city's development. Free, no booking required (some special exhibitions charge separately). Opening hours: Tuesday to Sunday 10:00 to 18:00, closed Mondays.
Transport: Metro Line 3 or Line 4, Children's Palace Station, or Line 2, Civic Center Station, then walk.
How to Get There from the Three Checkpoints
- Luohu Checkpoint: Take Line 1 from Luohu Station to Convention and Exhibition Center Station, then change to Line 4 for the Civic Center and Children's Palace area (Shenzhen Museum, Museum of Contemporary Art).
- Futian Checkpoint: Take Line 4 from Lok Ma Chau Station direct to Civic Center Station (Shenzhen Museum) and Hongshan Station (Shenzhen Art Museum new building).
- Shenzhen Bay Checkpoint: Take Line 13 from Shenzhen Bay Checkpoint Station direct to Talent Park Station (Shenzhen Bay Culture Plaza); for Nanshan Museum, change to Line 1 to Taoyuan Station.
Practical Tips
- Most venues close on Mondays, so if you want to see exhibitions on a rainy day, plan for Tuesday to Sunday.
- Most entrances have security checks, so be mindful if you are carrying water or large luggage.
- Some popular venues require booking via their official WeChat account or mini-programme, so check before you set off.
- Shenzhen's metro stations and malls have plenty of covered walkways, so changing trains through a mall is more comfortable than walking above ground in the rain.
FAQ
Do these venues charge admission?
The permanent exhibitions at all 8 venues above are free to enter. Some special exhibitions charge a separate ticket, which you can check on the official website or WeChat account before entering.
Do I need to book in advance?
Shenzhen Bay Culture Plaza, Longhua Piano Museum, the new Shenzhen Art Museum building and Shenzhen Museum mostly require no booking; but some popular venues ask for real-name booking, so it is best to confirm before you go.
Can I visit on a Monday?
Most museums and art galleries close on Mondays, with only a few venues partially open, so it is best to avoid Mondays for rainy-day outings.
Is it suitable for children?
Yes. Longhua Piano Museum, Shenzhen Museum and Guangming Culture and Art Center all have exhibition areas suitable for children, so there is plenty to do indoors on a rainy day.
⑨ Bonus: Libraries and Specialist Museums (Also Free)
Besides the 8 above, Shenzhen has several more free indoor venues that are just as good on a rainy day, and are relatively less crowded:
- Shenzhen Library North Branch (Hongshan area, Longhua District, connected to the new Shenzhen Art Museum building): one of Shenzhen's largest libraries, with plenty of reading space and a children's reading area, free entry; around Hongshan Station on Metro Line 4/6, ideal if you want somewhere quiet to read and shelter from the rain.
- Shenzhen Jewellery Museum (3rd–4th floors, Jinzhan Jewellery Plaza, Shuibei 1st Road, Luohu District): the first public museum in the country dedicated to jewellery, displaying jewellery through the ages, rough gemstones and contemporary designs. Afterwards you can browse the Shuibei jewellery market nearby; Tuesday to Sunday 10:00–17:00, closed Mondays; Metro Line 3/7, Tianbei Station.
- Red Cube (next to Longcheng Square, Longgang District): a Longgang cultural landmark combining a science and technology museum, a youth palace and an urban planning hall, with five themed exhibition zones that are highly interactive and especially good for children; Tuesday to Thursday 09:30–18:00, Friday to Sunday until 21:30, closed Mondays; Metro Line 3, Longcheng Square Station, Exit D.
- Shenzhen Reform and Opening-up Exhibition Hall (Zone A, Civic Center, Fuzhong 3rd Road, Futian District): uses a large number of physical objects and footage to tell the story of Shenzhen's reform and opening-up, free but booking required; Metro Line 2/4, Civic Center Station, and on a rainy day it is a short walk from the Convention and Exhibition Center and COCO Park area.
A reminder: most of these venues close on Mondays and require real-name booking through official channels in advance. For families, weekday mornings are best, when crowds are smallest. From the Luohu direction you can visit the Jewellery Museum (Tianbei Station); from the Futian direction, choose the Civic Center area; and from the Nanshan/Shenzhen Bay direction, Shenzhen Bay Culture Plaza and Nanshan Museum make the smoothest route.
Sources: ShenzhenLOOK WeChat account and official announcements from each venue; opening hours change from time to time, so refer to the latest official information.
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