SHANGHAI - Xu Pengcheng looks over his shoulder and, after confirming the coast is clear, helps his crew of urban adventurers climb through the broken window of an abandoned building.

Long popular in the West, urban exploration, or “urbex” for short, sees city-dwelling thrill-seekers explore dilapidated, closed-off buildings and areas – often skirting the law in the process.

And it is growing in popularity in China, where a years-long property sector crisis has left many cities dotted with empty buildings.

Mr Xu, a 29-year-old tech worker from the eastern city of Qingdao, has amassed hundreds of thousands of followers for his photos of rundown schools and vacant cinemas.

“When people see these images, they find them incredibly fresh and fascinating,” he told AFP.

“The realisation that so many abandoned buildings exist – and that they can photograph so beautifully – naturally captures attention.”

AFP joined Mr Xu and his comrades at a deserted hotel in the outskirts of Shanghai for a unique photoshoot.

From the outside, the hotel looked like a prefabricated medieval castle.