Hi I'm flying from Manchester changing flights in Hong kong to Shanghai then leaving on a cruise to

You don't need any kind of visa because your itinerary will be obviously eligible for visa free transit. To be certain about your eligibility, here is a couple of conditions, your itinerary has to fulfill:

- Your flight from Hong Kong to Shanghai is not allowed to have any additional landing within mainland China and in the country where your cruise will have its first port of call, immediately after Shanghai.
- Your cruise is not allowed to have its first port of call, immediately after Shanghai, in mainland Chinese port and in Hong Kong. It can have its port of call in Hong Kong, but not immediately after Shanghai. There has to be a port of call in some other country between Shanghai and Hong Kong.

So, if your itinerary fulfills the above mentioned conditions, you will be definitely eligible for 24 or 144 hour visa free transit. You will easily know whether you are eligible for 24 or 144 hour visa free transit by counting the number of hours within your entire transit time. The counting starts with your scheduled arrival by plane, until your scheduled departure by cruise. So, if your entire transit time is less than 24 hours, you will be eligible for 24 hour visa free transit and if your entire transit time is longer than 24 hours for just a minute, you will be eligible for 144 hour visa free transit.

You will print out your flight and cruise tickets and also an accommodation booking confirmation for your overnight in Shanghai if you plan to have one.