We are traveling to Shanghai for a cruise to japan

Yes, you are, although these are not visas, but visa free transit. There are no visas at all :)

Your itinerary has to fulfill the following conditions that you will easily check by yourselves within your itinerary:

- Your flight from US to Shanghai is not allowed to have any additional landing within mainland China and in Japan
- Your cruise is not allowed to have its first port of call, immediately after Shanghai, in mainland China
- Your cruise is not allowed to have its last port of call, immediately before Shanghai, in mainland China
- Your flight from Shanghai to US or some other country is not allowed to have any additional landing within mainland China and in Japan

If the above conditions are fulfilled, you are perfectly eligible for 144 hour visa free transit during your first stop and for 24 hour visa free transit during your second stop in Shanghai. The reason why 24 hour TWOV is in the fact that you will probably spend less than 24 hours between your scheduled docking by ship until your scheduled departure by plane. Anyway, if your transit will exceed 24 hours just for a minute, you will be eligible for 144 hour visa free transit. In reality, this is practically the same for your visa free status.