Shanghai Tours
Discover Shanghai, a booming megalopolis blending the East and West, and ancient times with modernity. The 144-hour visa-free transit policy makes Shanghai a more convenient destination for transiting and short-stay passengers.
We design tours from Shanghai to the Yellow Mountains, Suzhou, Hangzhou, and nearby water towns, all of which can be completed within 6 days. Each tour can be tailored to match your dates and interests. We are all about "Discovery Your Way!"
Best Private Shanghai Tours
These are the most popular Shanghai itineraries for visiting the classic attractions. Similar itineraries never mean that you'll have the same experiences — unlike other travel agencies that just show you around, we create unique Shanghai experiences that allow you to interact with the local people and culture.

- See old and new Shanghai
- Rowing in a water town.

- Enjoy Suzhou's UNESCO gardens
- Experience moxibustion in Tongli Water Town

- Explore the Bund in-depth
- Get close to the world's leading drone.
Tours from Shanghai
Shanghai is a major gateway city to most tourist cities in China. Convenient transportation including flights and bullet trains means it is very easy to access other cities. See our five most popular tours from Shanghai below.

- Secret Ingredient of Porcelain
- Porcelain Making Experience

- Be a local and pick tea leaves for one day.
- Enjoy a cultural experience in Nanxun Water Town.

- Explore a Suzhou garden at night
- Experience a tea farmer's life in Hangzhou

- Enjoy sunset and sunrise on the mountains.
- Relax and feel refreshed at Huangshan Hot Spring.

- Skiing Slopes at Your Doorsteps
- Soak and relax in the Hot Spring

- Walk on the less crowded Great Wall section.
- Explore the emperors' lives in the Forbidden City.

- Hollywood of China
- Walk onto a Movie Set and Watch Filming in Action

- Rafting in a Valley and Feel the Cool Water
- Cliff Swing

- Sand Sledding and Dune Bashing
- Wine Tasting
Shanghai Layover Tours and Excursions
Shanghai is a main transit city for global flights and it has several international cruise ports. Utilize your layover time with a city excursion. Here are two popular tours.

- All of Shanghai's must-see attractions
- Taste steamed soup buns in a century-old restaurant

- Specially designed for a cruise excursion
- Relaxe in the Zhujiajiao Watertown

- Discover how the old meets the new.
- Create happy family memories at Shanghai Disneyland.
What Our Customers Said
Chinese lantern festival and Sophie Lee. Actually March 2018 not Feb 2022
When we were there, one of the highlights was the Chinese Lantern Festival in Old Shanghai, which is both colourful and has an excellent festival atmosphere. She bought us a Chinese desert item that was small sweet sticky balls that were very good. moreJan 2023, Dave H
![]() |
Our family trip to China ended with a couple of days in historical Shanghai. We loved seeing and visiting the historic centers, traveling up the Shanghai Tower, eating delicious dumplings, and visiting the best Chinatown we have ever experienced. Our guide, Quing Quing, and driver Ken were fantastic, informative, professional and fun. Quing Quing even took us to experience the marriage market where Chinese parents try to help their children find potential mates after we expressed that it would be an interesting thing to see. Quing Quing, her American name is Clair, is an excellent and vivacious tour guide. Ask for her when you book with China Highlights you will be in good hands. --Inspire819460 moreDec 2019, Inspire819460
![]() |
With other two friends I have visited Shanghai in October 2018 and our tour guide was Mary, who has been wonderful with us. She had the smart idea to adapt the schedule of our planned tours in order to visit the city centre with few crowds, even if we were visiting Shanghai right during the Chinese national holidays. Besides the city centre with the panoramic towers, we visited the old French district, the Bund, the old city with the market and Tonglizhen, a water village just outside of Shanghai. Mary gave us also very nice suggestions about restaurants and hotels with panoramic terrace to visit in the evenings during our free time. In the end Mary was so kind to give us some Chinese salty pastries as lunch for our long train journey back to Beijing. Totally recommended!!! ---Vittorio C, Germany moreNov 2019,
![]() |
We have been in China 2 weeks and our last day was spent in Shanghai! Our guide Candy Shao was the best...Candy was so helpful in planning the highlights of the city and what we absolutely needed to see and do on our last day. Her English was great and she was young and fun...seemed more like we were hanging out with a friend. Candy also took some great photos of us to capture our experience! I would definitely recommend Candy and China Highlights to all my friends! --Vody, USA moreNov 2019,
![]() |
First of all, Daniel is a very friendly, entertaining & knowledgeable tour guide.Not only had he brought us to places in the schedule, but also helped in bookings when we went around the city on ourselves. He is online 24/7 and provided immediate responses for all the questions and inquiries. In addition, he ensured our safety not only during the trip with him, but also texted us to make sure we were back to hotel safely after our own schedule. Overall, he is more than excellent for us, as not only he had fulfilled his duty to guide us as scheduled, but more of providing us hospitality, help and knowledge beyond our exceptions and beyond what we have booked with the tour. Therefore, I would 100% recommend Daniel if any of you are planning for a trip to Shanghai. ---Catherinenodnod moreOct 2019,
![]() |
Sophie was an amazing tour guide! She is very knowledgeable about the city, and more importantly, knows all the best places to get food! I was traveling with my wife, her dad, and her grandmother. Sophie did an amazing job at making sure all four of us traveled safely and created an amazing Shanghai experience for us! If you're considering booking through China Highlights I would strongly suggest you request Sophie if possible! She felt like a part of the family at the end of the trip! ---GokiburiTTV, USA moreOct 2019,
![]() |
Our guide Karen Wen made our trip to Shanghai, the garden city of Suzhou and the Water Village of Tongli very memorable and wonderful. Karen is very passionate with her job as a local guide. She has a lot of knowledge of every place that we visited which made us relate to and understand what we’re visiting. She took us to restaurants that served the best xialongbao and to an old restaurant in Suzho where we ate the best garlic shrimp and steamed fish. She also changed our itinerary when she saw how tired we were coming from Zhangjiajie. Our driver is excellent . I highly recommend you book your trip to China Highlights. It’s local guides are all excellent. ---oesca,USA moreOct 2019,
![]() |
Shanghai is like Manhattan on 'steroids". Not just in terms of population, but more so in the expansive geography. That's not too much of an issue if you stay near the Bund on the Pu river (BTW highly recommend Les Suites Bund Orient hotel in the perfect location with million-dollar views from the large rooms of the skyline, luxurious, great customer service, and food. Good value too). A great tour guide brings all these buildings, the river, and most importantly the history to life. Sophie gave us an in-depth tour of the Bund, then took us across the river early in the morning to the top of the Shanghai Tower before it got crowded. The river cruise in the evening was spectacular and such an easy way to see the ever-changing illuminated skyline from so many varied perspectives. The cruises (actually almost everywhere except western-style hotels don't get that they can make a lot of money selling alcohol--maybe need more time for this western habit to evolve?). so capped off the night at the "Long Bar" in the Waldorf Astoria with a nightcap (wanted to go to the rooftop bar at the Fairmont overlooking the river but it was closed for a private event. Oh well next time). We had a second day so headed out to Suzhou and Tongli old water towns. Logistically ask the tour agency to take you there by high-speed train then use a private car/bus to get around (this wasn't Sophie's fault). Traffic can be a bear. --takeaction, USA moreOct 2019,
![]() |