It is a public open area with a public park connects between Nanjing East and Nanjing West. The square is also considered as reference point for both tourists and locals.

The square initially was developed british to be a horse race course. During the 1930s, the course was the number one horse race ground in the far eastern. People from all over the world were coming to watch and participate in horse race competitions. As a result, the area around started to boom very quickly and different buildings were developed to offer all services for the visitors. At that time, the most famous building were Park Hotel, the tallest building in 1930s, and the Grand Theatre where movies and Jazz concerts took place.

Nowadays, some of the old buildings are still operated and new addition buildings have been developed. The most important attraction on the People’s Square are Park Hotel, Shanghai Museum, The underground mall/bazaar and the People’s Park. Access to the underground metro are scattered among the square and can be found easily. Additionally, the square might be the best spot to ride the sightseeing hop-on hop-off buses.