Is Visa needed for Dalian, Shanghai and Beijing?

A small group of us are going on a cruise that stops at Hong Kong for 2 days and then stops at Shanghai for a day, Dalian for a day and also Xingang for a day. As we are cruising from port to port is it classed as single entry or Do we need to get a multiple entry visa to cover this trip. If we don't get off the ship do we still need to get a visa? Appreciate your help. I have just read that as an Australian citizen we do not need a visa for Hong Kong if visiting for less than 90 days. What if, we are on a cruise and sail into Shanghai, full day & evening, Dalian, & Beijing both day visits. Are visas necessary? As we live in the country we have to mail our passports etc and now there seems to be an extra charge for visas handled by mail. Is there any way around that? Thanks for your help, Cathy