The Shenzhen Museum sits in the Civic Center complex in Futian District and is one of the few places in the city designed to make you reflect on what Shenzhen actually is. The main building houses two permanent exhibitions: one on the ancient history of Shenzhen and the Pearl River Delta region, and the other — the remarkable one — on the modern history of the Special Economic Zone.
The modern history galleries trace the story of Shenzhen's establishment in 1980 and the four decades of extraordinary growth that followed. The scale of change is honestly difficult to grasp: the displays include models, photographs, and artefacts that document the successive waves of construction, migration, and economic development. If you want to understand why Shenzhen feels the way it feels, this is the place to start.
Entry is free. The museum is open Tuesday to Sunday; closed on Mondays. The Civic Center metro station (Lines 2 and 4) exits directly into the building's vicinity.