Shanghai Private Tour: Bund, Tower & Tea Ceremony

Nine hours moving between old Shanghai and the skyline, with a guide who knows where to stand.

A full-day private tour of Shanghai with a personal guide, starting from your hotel at 9 a.m. and covering the Bund, Yu Garden, Xintiandi, the Shikumen Open House Museum, Shanghai Tower's observation deck, and a one-hour evening cruise on the Huangpu River. The tour includes lunch, tea ceremony in a traditional teahouse, entrance fees, and public transportation; the guide speaks English, Spanish, French, German and two additional languages.

Step-by-step itinerary

Explore Shanghai's highlights and river cruise

• Meet guide at hotel at 09:00 a.m.
• Travel to the Bund by public transport
• Walk along the Bund and admire buildings
• Pass by Waibaidu Bridge
• Walk Yuyuan Old Street and enjoy tea ceremony
• Visit Yu Garden classical garden
• Have traditional Dim sum lunch
• Stroll local market and cricket market
• Explore Xintiandi and Shikumen Museum
• Visit Shanghai Tower observation deck
• Enjoy sunset and panoramic views
• Take Huangpu River cruise to see light show
• Return to hotel by public transport

The Experience

Your guide meets you at the hotel and the day begins at the Bund, the waterfront that holds Shanghai's architectural history in one stretch. You'll see 26 buildings of different styles—the Peace Hotel, Shanghai Customs House, Shanghai Pudong Development Bank—each one marking a different era. The Waibaidu Bridge, a steel span from the early 1900s, sits at the confluence of the Suzhou Creek and Huangpu River; it's been the backdrop for countless Shanghai films. From there the route moves to Yuyuan Old Street, the city's oldest business district, where you walk the narrow alleys and stop for tea ceremony in a traditional teahouse before entering Yu Garden itself.

Yu Garden, built in 1559 during the Ming Dynasty, is small but complete—pavilions, halls, rockeries, ponds and cloisters arranged across six distinct areas. After lunch (dim sum and xiaolongbao), you'll stroll through a local market, then move through Xintiandi, where Shikumen buildings from the 1920s sit alongside modern architecture, and the Shikumen Open House Museum, a preserved house from that era with seven rooms laid out as a family lived them. The museum shows both the architectural style and the daily life of Shanghai people a century ago.

In the afternoon, you take the express elevator up Shanghai Tower—632 meters tall, the tallest building in the city. The elevator reaches the 118th floor in 55 seconds at 18 meters per second. The observation deck is the world's highest indoor one, and you have time to stop, look out over both sides of the Huangpu River, and drink coffee or tea on the 119th floor. If the weather holds, you'll catch the sunset. The day ends with a one-hour cruise along the Huangpu River at night, watching the light show on the Bund, Oriental Pearl Tower, Shanghai Tower, Shanghai World Financial Center and Jin Mao Tower lit up on both banks, then a transfer back to your hotel by public transportation.

What’s included

• Knowledgeable tour guide in your choice of language.
• hotel pickup and return by public transportation.
• entrance fees to Yu Garden, Shikumen Open House Museum and Shanghai Tower observation deck.
• dim sum and xiaolongbao lunch.
• tea ceremony in a traditional teahouse.
• coffee or tea on Shanghai Tower's 119th floor.
• one-hour evening cruise on the Huangpu River.
• bottled water throughout the day.

Good to know

Easy physical levelWheelchair accessibleStroller friendlyInfant seats availablePets welcome

Operated by MoreFunAsia

Is this one for you?Book this if you want a private guide to customize your pace through both old Shanghai's neighborhoods and modern landmarks, rather than following a set group itinerary.

Top questions

What is the Shikumen Open House Museum and what will I see inside?

The Shikumen Open House Museum is a 1920s house preserved and renovated to show how a Shanghai family lived in that era. Seven exhibition rooms—guest room, study, old people's room, master bedroom, daughter's room, pavilion room and oven room—tell the story of one household and display the unique architectural culture and lifestyle of Shanghai people from that period.

How does the Shanghai Tower observation deck work, and how long does it take to get up there?

The Shanghai Tower's express elevator reaches the 118th floor in 55 seconds, traveling at 18 meters per second. The observation deck on that floor is the world's highest indoor one, and you'll have time to look out over the city and enjoy coffee or tea on the 119th floor.

What's included in the lunch, and when do we eat?

Lunch is traditional dim sum and xiaolongbao (soup dumplings), served at noon after you've explored Yu Garden. The meal is included in the tour price.

Will I use public transportation, or does the tour provide a private vehicle?

The tour uses public transportation (bus, metro, taxi) to move between attractions, so you'll travel the way locals do. Private transportation is available as an optional upgrade at checkout.

What languages does the guide speak?

Your guide speaks English, Spanish, French, German and two additional languages, so you can choose the language that works for you when you book.

How much time do we spend on the Huangpu River cruise?

The evening cruise lasts one hour and travels along the river to show the light show and night scenery on both sides, including views of the Bund, Oriental Pearl Tower, Shanghai Tower and other landmarks.