What does a phone-free hangout in Shanghai look like?

A surprising number of phone-free events have sprung up across Shanghai as of late. Intrigued by this analogue revival, we decided to ride the wave and check one out on a Tuesday night.

As literal a name as it gets, No Phones Club limits each session to 50 participants and reminds us that, in 2026, being unreachable might just be the ultimate luxury.

The community is the brainchild of a Shanghai mover and shaker we interviewed mere months ago: Jenny Sheils, lead singer of indie-pop band Jen’s Curfew. True to her musical roots, each gathering is anchored by a carefully curated soundtrack: the very first gathering on June 16th was a love letter to Icelandic singer-songwriter Laufey, while the second on July 14th opted for laid-back lo-fi.

The sold-out events speak for a global and cross-generational urge: to move from doomscrolling to doing. 

📵 WHAT TO EXPECT 📵

STEP I: Check into the event, place your phone in the provided envelope, and secure it with a rubberband.

STEP III: Choose your own adventure: card or board games, crafts, conversations — or all of the aforementioned.

📵 WHAT WE DIDN’T EXPECT 📵

Held at Kainos, a vibey café by day, No Phones Club hangouts are entirely dry. So, if you usually rely on a stiff drink as a social lubricant, prepare to show up fully as yourself.

📷 : The editor and her friend Peter

As you can tell from this article alone, going phone-free doesn’t mean fewer photo ops. 

In fact, the No Phones Club should have a secondary handle: the unofficial Vintage Camera Club. 📷

Retro cameras reinforced the evening’s nostalgic atmosphere and served as fun conversation starters.

While there was zero scrolling, not everyone was socialising — but even the silent ones seemed completely zenned out in their creative pursuits, from sketching to scrapbooking.

A communal table overflowed with art supplies, board games, colouring pages, stickers and other odds and ends, giving even the shyest attendees a low-pressure way to participate. Sheils credits members of the community for generously bringing their own materials, helping transform the gathering into a true third space.

If you’ve ever looked around a roomful of people and felt uneasy about the sea of phones forming barriers between faces, this event might just restore your faith in modern hangouts. 

Go along and rediscover how much can happen when you finally look up. 🙂‍↕️

It’s no coincidence that coffee raves, run clubs and phone-free events are booming in tandem. Together, they’re championing a return to real-world connection.

A different phone-free event is happening this weekend: inspired by the Nepali tradition of mindfulness, Nepali Kitchen Offline invites you to read, paint, knit, engage in language exchange — or simply do nothing. There is only one rule: phones stay off.

Photos courtesy of No Phones Club. This article may be referenced but is not to be replicated without consent from Time Out Shanghai.