Classic Shanghai in a Day
Bund · Yu Garden · Old City · Pudong
The Bund promenade, Yu Garden before the crowds, the Old City's bazaar lanes, a lilong neighbourhood walk, then up Shanghai Tower for the skyline at dusk.
Shanghai day tours · private · door to door
One day in Shanghai, done properly
Every tour is private, starts at your hotel, cruise terminal or airport gate, and runs with an English-speaking guide who lives here. Every tour is quoted individually for your group size and date. Entrance fees and bottled water are included; lunch is pay-as-you-go so you eat what you actually want.
The short version
Choose the classic sights (Bund, Yu Garden, lanes and skyline), a water town an hour away, Suzhou or Hangzhou by bullet train, or one of the experiences visitors now ask for most: a tailoring and eyewear "Shanghai Custom" day, cycling the plane-tree streets, a day in a workers' neighbourhood, a robotaxi-and-AI tech day, or the industrial-heritage art circuit. Layover tours from Pudong Airport need six hours between flights; cruise shore days start at Wusongkou terminal.
All Shanghai day tours
Pick a day, we handle the pickup
Where
Length
Style
Zhujiajiao Water Town Half Day
1 h west of Shanghai
Thirty-six Ming and Qing stone bridges, a gondola along the canals, the Kezhi Garden and a tea house over the water. Back in the city in time for lunch.
Suzhou by Bullet Train
25 min each way
The Humble Administrator's Garden, Tiger Hill's leaning pagoda, a silk-reeling workshop and a slow walk down Pingjiang Road. Train tickets included.
Hangzhou West Lake & Tea Fields
45 min each way
A boat across West Lake, Lingyin Temple's cliff carvings, then tea tasting with a farming family in Longjing village. Train tickets included.
PVG Layover Tour
From the arrivals hall
Your guide meets you after immigration, you ride the Maglev into town, see the Bund and Yu Garden, eat xiaolongbao, and are back through security two hours before boarding. Luggage storage arranged.
Shanghai Evening Food Walk
Former French Concession
Eight tastings on foot: xiaolongbao, scallion pancakes, braised pork belly, hairy crab in season and a craft-beer finish. Vegetarian route available.
Art Deco & French Concession Walk
Wukang Road · Shikumen lanes
1930s Shanghai on foot: Wukang Mansion, plane-tree avenues, a shikumen courtyard still lived in, and coffee in a hidden garden. Mostly flat, 5 km.
Wuzhen Day Trip
1.5 h by private car
A carefully preserved water town: indigo-dyeing workshops, a shadow-puppet show and the West Scenic Zone lit by lanterns after dark. Return late.
Night Lights & Huangpu Cruise
Bund · Huangpu River · Lujiazui
A river cruise as the towers light up, a walk along the illuminated Bund and a cocktail on a rooftop that is actually open this month. Hotel drop-off included.
Shanghai Custom: Tailoring, Eyewear & Gold
South Bund Fabric Market · Eyewear City · Yu Garden
Get measured for a hand-made suit or qipao with a tailor we've vetted (ready in 3–10 days or shipped home), have complex prescription lenses cut in one to two hours at Shanghai International Eyewear City, then watch goldsmiths at work in Yu Garden. Guide handles sizing, translation and fair pricing; purchases are extra.
Plane-Tree Streets & Suzhou Creek by Bike
Hengfu district · Fuxing Park · Suzhou Creek
A 12 km loop at conversation pace: plane-tree avenues of the former French Concession, a lived-in shikumen lane with washing on poles, dancers and tai chi in Fuxing Park, a wet market stop, then the regenerated Suzhou Creek waterfront. Quality city bikes, helmets and e-bike option included.
A Day as a Shanghainese: Caoyang New Village
Putuo District · max 8 guests
China's first workers' new village (1951) opens its doors: the community history museum, a Shanghainese-dialect song with the neighbourhood "old mothers" choir, a lacquer-fan workshop, a tai chi lesson from residents and lunch at the community canteen. Hosted with the neighbourhood committee; a share of the fee stays local.
Future Shanghai: Robotaxi, Drones & AI Museum
Pudong · China Art Museum · Maglev
Hail a driverless taxi in Pudong's robotaxi zone, order lunch by drone delivery, tour the China Art Museum's headline exhibition wearing AI glasses that narrate each object in English, test the latest phones and EVs in flagship showrooms, and finish with the 431 km/h Maglev. We pre-register the robotaxi app for you.
Mills to Museums: M50, Tank Shanghai & West Bund
Suzhou Creek · West Bund
How Shanghai turns factories into culture: M50, a 1930s cotton mill now packed with artists' studios; Tank Shanghai, five aviation-fuel tanks reborn as an art centre on the Huangpu; and the West Bund museum mile. Gallery entry and a studio visit included.
Wusongkou Cruise Shore Excursion
Cruise terminal · Zhangyuan · Bund · Yu Garden
We meet your ship at Wusongkou International Cruise Terminal, drive into town for the restored Zhangyuan shikumen quarter, the Bund and Yu Garden, with a supermarket stop for snacks to take back on board. Back 90 minutes before all-aboard, guaranteed. Pre- and post-cruise hotel nights can be added.
Ticket-Stub Day: Your Event, Plus the City
F1 Chinese GP · concerts · blockbuster exhibitions
Holding a ticket for the Chinese Grand Prix, a concert or a major exhibition? In 2026 that stub unlocks discounts at nearly 500 Shanghai restaurants, malls, riverside hotels and Bund cruises. We transfer you to the venue, then build the rest of the day around the perks your ticket carries. Guide and transport only; event ticket not included.
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What's included
The small print, up front
The same rules apply to every day tour, so you never have to ask.
- Private vehicle and driver
Hotel, cruise-terminal or airport pickup and drop-off in a licensed, air-conditioned car or van. Child seats on request at no charge.
- All entrance fees and train tickets
Everything on the itinerary is pre-booked and pre-paid, including timed-entry slots that sell out, so there is no queuing twice.
- Lunch is yours to choose
Your guide recommends two or three places at different price points and sits with you if you want company; you pay what you eat. No commission restaurants, ever.
- Free changes until 48 hours before
Change the date, the start time or the route itself free of charge up to 48 hours out. Inside 48 hours a 30% fee applies; inside 24 hours, 100%.
431 km/hMaglev from PVG, 8 minutes
6 hminimum layover for an airport tour