Shanghai Airport Layover Tour: Old City, Yu Garden & Bund

Turn a layover into a city tour: from Ming Dynasty gardens to Shanghai's skyline

A private Shanghai airport layover tour with local guide and door-to-door transfer, visiting the Bund, Shanghai Old City, the 500-year-old Yu Garden, and Pudong's modern towers. Entry to Yu Garden is included. You choose lunch or dinner based on your arrival schedule, and can swap any stop for the French Concession, Jade Buddha Temple, or other Shanghai landmarks your guide knows.

Step-by-step itinerary

Stops and time spent at each

1. The Bund30m
2. Shanghai Old City50m
3. Yu Garden50m · entry included
4. Pudong1h

Shanghai layover city highlights tour

• Meet driver at airport arrival
• Relaxing ride to city center
• Discuss tour with local guide
• Stroll along The Bund riverfront
• Explore Old Town Bazaar and market
• Visit 500-year-old Yu Garden
• Walk skybridge in Pudong New Island
• Choose optional attractions or observation deck
• Drop off at airport or city hotel

The experience

Your driver meets you at the airport arrival hall with a name sign and drives you into the city center in an air-conditioned car. Once you meet your guide, you discuss the day ahead. The itinerary below is popular, but you're free to change it. The tour is built around your flight time and interests, so if you arrive early enough for lunch or want dinner instead, you pick that at checkout.

The Bund comes first: a waterfront walk where you take in the city's old and new skylines at once. The Peace Hotel and colonial-era buildings facing the Oriental Pearl TV Tower, Shanghai Tower, and Jinmao Tower across the river. From there you head to Shanghai Old City, where Ming and Qing Dynasty architecture still stands in the bazaar and around the lucky ring bridge in the middle lake. Then comes Yu Garden, a 500-year-old private garden with rockeries, ponds, pavilions and ancient trees. Your guide explains its history and design as you walk through. Entry is included.

The final stretch takes you to Pudong, the financial district that was swamp fifty years ago. You walk the skybridge through the forest of skyscrapers and can choose to visit an observation deck on a clear day. If time and interest allow, you can swap any stop for the French Concession, Jade Buddha Temple, People's Square, Nanjing Road, or a museum: Shanghai Museum, Jewish Museum, or the Urban Planning Museum. At the end, your driver takes you back to the airport for your connecting flight, or to your hotel if you're staying overnight.

What’s included

• Experienced driver with air-conditioned car.
• local guide in English, German or Chinese.
• airport pickup and door-to-door transfer.
• entrance fee to Yu Garden.
• tasty local lunch or dinner if you choose that option at checkout.

Options for this experience

3 options

Layover tour, private onlyGuide in English, German or Chinese · 19 departure times: the first at 07:00, the last at 16:00Private tour only: a great guide, a driver with a car, and admission to Yu Garden are included. Pickup is included.

Lunch-inclusive private tourGuide in English, German or Chinese · 11 departure times: the first at 07:00, the last at 12:00Lunch-inclusive layover tour: a great guide, a driver with a car, admission to Yu Garden, and a tasty lunch are all covered. Pickup is included.

Dinner-inclusive private tourGuide in English, German or Chinese · 12 departure times: the first at 12:30, the last at 18:00Dinner-inclusive layover tour: a great guide, a driver with a car, admission to Yu Garden, and a tasty dinner are all covered. Pickup is included.

You pick the guide language when booking.

You'll see the exact price of each option when you check availability.See dates and prices

Before you book

Days and timesEvery day23 departure times: the first at 07:00, the last at 18:00

AgesAdult (7 to 80 years) · Child (3 to 6 years) · Infant (under 3): free

GroupPrivate

Live guideEnglish, German and Chinese

Meeting point and pickupHotel pickup included.You can choose from 3 pickup points.

Cancellation and refundsFree cancellation up to 24 h before the start. After that, no refund.

Prices and times updated 4 days ago

Good to know

Low physical effortStroller-friendlyPublic transport nearbyInfants must sit on laps

Operated by Sunny Private Tours

Is this one for you?Book with lunch or dinner if your flight arrives early enough to sit down and eat. Book the tour alone if you're tight on time or prefer to eat elsewhere. The 6 to 8 hour window fits most layovers, and your guide adjusts the pace and stops to match your schedule.

Traveler reviews

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Top questions

What languages is the tour guided in?

Live guide in English, German and Chinese.

Can children come?

Yes. Ticket types: Child (3 to 6 years); Infant (under 3): free.

What is Yu Garden and why is it on this tour?

Yu Garden is a 500-year-old classic Chinese garden, once owned by a Ming Dynasty official, and one of the best-preserved gardens in the region. Its rockeries, ponds, pavilions and ancient trees make it a centerpiece of Shanghai's cultural heritage, and entry is included in this tour.

Can I change the stops if I want to see something else?

Yes. The itinerary shown is popular, but you discuss it with your guide when you meet. You can swap stops for the French Concession, Jade Buddha Temple, People's Square, Nanjing Road, or museums like the Shanghai Museum or Jewish Museum based on your interests.

How does the lunch or dinner work with my flight time?

You choose at checkout whether you want the tour alone, with lunch, or with dinner, based on when you arrive. If your flight lands early, your driver picks you up at 7 a.m. at the airport arrival hall, giving you time for a meal during the tour if you've booked one.

Do I need to arrange my own transport from the airport?

No. Your driver meets you at the airport arrival area with a name sign and provides door-to-door transfer in an air-conditioned car throughout the tour, then drops you at the airport or your hotel at the end.