Visa Entry or 24-Hour Free Transit to Shanghai?

My husband and I are Senior Canadian Citizens. We will take a cruise to Japan, Shanghai, Taiwan and Hong Kong next month, October 2016, aboard the Celebrity Millenium Ship. Our concern is: Do we need an Entry permit to visit Shanghai less than 24-hour ? In our itinerary, after Nagasaki (Japan), our cruise ship will stop in Shanghai on October 23, 2016, from 6:00AM to 22:00PM. And the next day, we will go to Okinawa (Japon).

Some websites provide a new information from the Chinese government: From January 30, 2016, entry permit is no longer required for a short stay in Shanghai. Instead, a 24hr-Free Transit will be issued to cruise passengers by the Immigration Services at Shanghai Port. Is this information trustworthy? Your reply will be greatly appreciated.

Thank you very much.
Mrs De Oanh Nguyen
48 Littleleaf Crescent
Markham, Ontario
Canada L3S 4G1