Suzhou Private Day Trip from Shanghai with Bullet Train Option
5
Suzhou Private Day Trip from Shanghai with Bullet Train Option
By Sunny Tours Shanghai
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About
Suzhou is home to UNESCO World Heritage–listed gardens and a picturesque network of canals. Make the most of your time there with a private guide on this fully customizable tour, by your choice of private car, private car and bullet train, or Uber and bullet train. Discover the one-of-a-kind charms of China’s “Venice of the East:” Upgrade to include lunch, a boat trip, and tickets for a garden.
Lowest price guaranteeReserve now & pay laterFree cancellation
Ages 0-88
Duration: 8–9 hours
Start time: Check availability
Mobile ticket
Live guide: English
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Highlights
- A customizable sightseeing excursion to Suzhou, "Venice of the East"
- Upgrade to travel from Shanghai on a high-speed bullet train
- Upgrade for a restaurant lunch, a boat ride on the canal, and garden entry
- No need to navigate Shanghai—includes round-trip hotel transfers
- Professional guide
- Hotel pickup and drop-off in downtown Shanghai area
- Transportation: based on your chosen tour option (see details upon booking)
- Local tasty lunch( If "All inclusive tour " is booked)
- Entrance fee to one garden( If " All Inclusive Tour" is Booked)
- Boat Ride in the canal ( If " All Inclusive Tour" is Booked)
What's not included- Entrance fees to the garden and boat ride (If"All incluisve" option is not selected)
- Lunch, food and drinks (if " All Inclusive "option is not booked)
- Outskit hotel pick up and drop off(Can be arranged at surcharge)
- Entry/Admission - Humble Administrator's Garden
- Entry/Admission - Tiger Hill
- Canal-lined Suzhou earns its nickname as China's “Venice of the East.” On this guided excursion departing from Shanghai, you can discover the narrow lanes and classical gardens in the charming, old-world city, once a famous destination for Chinese artists and poets in search of inspiration. Your adventure begins with a comfortable hotel pickup in Shanghai. You'll travel to Suzhou with your own great guide using the transportation option you booked: either a private car all the way, a private car plus speedy bullet train, or a Chinese Uber plus bullet train. Once in Suzhou, you’ll enjoy a tailor-made tour, packed with customizable stops suited to your interests. Upgrade to include a visit to one of the UNESCO World Heritage–listed gardens, which recreate Chinese landscapes in miniature and date as early as the 11th century, plus a restaurant lunch and a boat trip down the historic canals. With flexible itineraries, you’ll also have the option of visiting a 13th-century Buddhist temple, a silk museum, and more, before returning to your hotel by the transportation option you chose.
- Start:Multiple pickup locations offered.Pickup details
- Private pick up and drop off is provided anywhere in dowtown Shanghai. Please advise pick up details at time of booking.
Hotel pickup offeredDuring checkout you will be able to select from the list of included hotels.End:This activity ends back at the meeting point. - Not wheelchair accessible
- Pushchair accessible
- Service animals allowed
- Near public transportation
- Infants must sit on laps
If you have questions about accessibility, we’d be happy to help. Just call the number below and reference the product code: 36522P9- Children must be accompanied by an adult
- Passport name, number, expiry and country is required at time of booking for all participants (for fast train ticket reservation)
- A current valid passport is required on the day of travel
- Operates in all weather conditions, please dress appropriately
- Please advise any specific dietary requirements at time of booking
- Most travellers can participate
- This is a private tour/activity. Only your group will participate
- For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours in advance of the start date of the experience.
- If you have questions about this tour or need help making your booking, we’d be happy to help. Just call the number below and reference the product code: 36522P9
From
£96.87
per adult (price varies by group size)
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Itinerary
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About the operator
Don’t take it from us – here’s what people have to say about this operator:
- Santiering0 contributionsA wonderfull day in Shanghai with AnneAnne was the best guide we eberhard on our trip this year Seh told us so many interesstings things about the culture and former living in china a well as about the different religions in China. Our frost stay was the old town a there we can take part of tasting! Then we visit the Yu-Garden - amasing big und so wonderfull. Anne told us about the construction of this garden and the different rooms und trees und flowers and the messing of the water in the garden and the rooks,….. Anne is a very good guide and we can recommsnd her!Written 7 February 2025
- 824feiw0 contributionsFull day Shanghai TourWe had a wonderful time with Sara in Shanghai this week. She is a great tour guide and spoke fluently German. We can highly recommend her as a guide for Shanghai! Our overall rating for her is excellent - 5 stars.Written 6 February 2025
- marivif20250 contributionsMaravillosaIt is a very good option to get to know the city when you have to make a long stopover. It gives you enough time to get a good idea of the city. The service is wonderful and punctual. Our guide was Anie and she was wonderful, she was our companion all day and made everything very easy for us. We took a very nice memory thanks to her of a city in such a short time.Written 2 February 2025
- G2028HXignacios0 contributionsPerfectPerfect layover tour. The guide was great and the car was comfortable. The guide took care of all our needs and requirements and showed us the main places in the city.Written 1 February 2025
- whars20160 contributionsHappy trip and good guide.Good trip and good guide. Shirley is very freindly and helpful guide and the car is very comfortable ,new and very clean. The driver is good service. I like this tour very much. Good place and my daughter like to see many animals in the zoo.Written 31 January 2025
- felixbB8974YN0 contributionsgoodIt was totally flexible, which made it super easy to explore the city at my own pace. The guide was really knowledgeable and tailored the experience to what I wanted to see. From the iconic Bund views to the hidden gems in the city, it was all so well-organized and funWritten 26 January 2025
- 676jehada0 contributionsGreat serviceThe guide Annie was very flexible and willing to go out of routine to help us. Great service , highly recommended. Hope to see you again.Written 25 January 2025
- 676jehada0 contributionsNice tourAnnie is very patient and helpful, arrange different activities and help us to fulfill our expectation of this Shanghai experiencesWritten 23 January 2025
- 412jait0 contributionsExploring ZhujiajiaoOur guide was punctual and very knowledgeable. She was also very flexible with us, as we wanted to make many unscheduled stops to check out the food and souvenirs. ThanksWritten 22 January 2025
- Boris M0 contributionsimpeccable service. Very kind driver, highly recommended tour!impeccable service. Beautiful car with all the comforts. Very kind, friendly and very helpful driver. Absolutely recommended tour!Written 20 January 2025
- Jacqueline W0 contributionsThank you for a great visit!Thank you Jun for such a wonderful tour of Zhujiajiao water town. We had a great time. Jun was friendly and knowledgeable. She answered all our questions and was always helpful. The drive there and back was done in a very comfortable van. Thank you to the tour operator, Sunny for organizing.Written 19 January 2025
- Pei Yee L0 contributionsGreat serviceGreat experience! Company was very efficient in arrangement for a transfer at a last minute notice. The driver was early and even helped us with the luggage. The car looked new and was very clean. The ride was smooth and comfortable. Thank you!Written 18 January 2025
- 46milosp0 contributionsShanghai night cruiseAmazing cruise with great views. Kelvin, the guide was helpful and informative. I would recommend him to other travellers.Written 14 January 2025
- dunda40 contributionsAmazing shopping experienceThis shopping experience was the best part of my trip to Shanghai. Not knowing the city well enough to go off on my own I booked this shopping day with Sunny and it was so worth it. I highly recommend this shopping experience! Thank you Sunny and I hope to see you on my next trip to Shanghai ❤️😘Written 14 January 2025
- rebeccaeL3013UR0 contributionsFantastic - we saw so much and so made it so easy!We had a private tour with Melinda for 4 of us. it was fantastic! we saw so much and Melinda was so efficient in getting us to see all the best places. Very worthwhile!Written 13 January 2025
These reviews are the subjective opinions of Tripadvisor members and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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5.0
215 reviews
Excellent
212
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Lily C
Singapore, Singapore2 contributions
Dec 2023 • Family
It was our first trip to Suzhou and didn’t know what to expect. Thankfully, our guide Rita suggested a good itinerary for us to follow based on her experience. She is an excellent guide! Rita arrived at our hotel punctually and made sure everyone was comfortable at all times. She is very knowledgeable, sharing with us throughout the trip, the history and culture of Suzhou and its link to the rest of China. We certainly learnt alot from her! She took care of our needs well, and even recommended an inexpensive yet delicious local lunch which our whole family enjoyed. Having been a guide for 16 years, she is fluent in both English and Chinese. She didn’t rush us throughout the trip and was very patient with us. We are blessed to have her as our guide. We will strongly recommend her to anyone who needs a good guide in Suzhou!
Written 21 December 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
glennongzh
Singapore, Singapore2 contributions
Dec 2023 • Couples
Tour guide Annie (and Sunny) were helpful prior to the start of the tour in arranging for booking of the train tickets. Pick up from the hotel was easy. Annie was helpful in providing a lot of insightful explanations in English and Mandarin whilst visiting the various attractions which allowed for a better understanding. Overall the guided tour is recommended as it is also flexible.
Written 21 December 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Claudia K
19 contributions
Nov 2023 • Family
It was a wonderful day trip to beautiful Suzhou where the city was amazingly spectacular, especially the canals at 平江路 & 山塘街, do make sure you visit these places.
On top of that, we had an incredible guide, Annie, who is very proactive, spontaneous & entertaining throughout our trip. You can trust her to find good angles to get your pictures and she'll snap beautiful shots for you that will make it a lasting memory in your album. She is also ensures our safety and ensure that whatever we want is squeezed into the itinerary!!
Have a everlasting memory in Suzhou and give it an exceptional touch if you book it along with tour guide Annie! :-)
On top of that, we had an incredible guide, Annie, who is very proactive, spontaneous & entertaining throughout our trip. You can trust her to find good angles to get your pictures and she'll snap beautiful shots for you that will make it a lasting memory in your album. She is also ensures our safety and ensure that whatever we want is squeezed into the itinerary!!
Have a everlasting memory in Suzhou and give it an exceptional touch if you book it along with tour guide Annie! :-)
Written 27 November 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Rodman C
Australia4 contributions
Jan 2025 • Family
We had a great time to Suzhou via Sunny tour from Shanghai. The tour guide was on time and did an amazing job taking us to Suzhou via the bullet train which only takes 30mins. We have learnt a lot about the history of the Suzhou water village, Tiger Hill, fantastic lunch and a nice boat ride along the river. Highly recommended if you want to do a day trip!
Written 20 January 2025
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Wan
San Francisco, CA34 contributions
Sept 2024 • Family
My husband and I and our 5 year old went on a private Suzhou tour with Sunny, and subsequently booked an airport transfer with them as well. We had excellent experiences with both. My husband only speaks English and Sunny was able to communicate with us both effortlessly switching back and forth between Mandarin and English.
Sunny reached out before the tour to confirm our travel arrangements--all of our transfers happened smoothly (coordinated by Sunny). It was hot and then suddenly pouring rain and then hot and sunny again on the day of the tour and having transportation on demand between all the sites was much appreciated.
We thought that the garden (Master of Nets) that we went to was absolutely stunning, as were the walking streets and canal boat ride that she took us to.
All in all we highly recommend Sunny and her team and we are very thankful for how well she took care of our family on our tour.
Sunny reached out before the tour to confirm our travel arrangements--all of our transfers happened smoothly (coordinated by Sunny). It was hot and then suddenly pouring rain and then hot and sunny again on the day of the tour and having transportation on demand between all the sites was much appreciated.
We thought that the garden (Master of Nets) that we went to was absolutely stunning, as were the walking streets and canal boat ride that she took us to.
All in all we highly recommend Sunny and her team and we are very thankful for how well she took care of our family on our tour.
Written 24 September 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Keinicke01
Sant Adria de Besos, Spain42 contributions
We had a very enjoyable and interesting tour to Suzhou with a privacy guide Rita. Very skilled guide. We could feel the passion and the knowledge and learned a lot through the day about history and daily life. Rita is easy going and we enjoyed spending the day with her. We went on a boat trip, shopped, walked and saw an old family home and had a nice Chinese lunch were we tasted some of the local dishes. Rita was also sweet to introduce us to local food and candy and other traditional foodstuff. Very insightful and inspiring. We can warmly recommend the tour and on top we got help booking train tickets for the next day and acces to WeChat. Not always easy being from Europe not understanding Chinese. 😅
Written 26 July 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Benjamin C
13 contributions
I had a fantastic day exploring the city with Annie. We visited many fascinating sights including the Master of Net's garden along with several temples, a boat tour and finished off with a walk through the older parts of the city. Annie was excellent at providing detailed information including history and context. The tour went incredibly smoothly and I would thoroughly recommend it!
Written 3 September 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
William M
2 contributions
Dec 2023 • Couples
What a great experience for my wife and me to visit Suzhou again with Chris Wang (Wang Ming Na) as our guide. Chris's English is perfect and her ability to explain the sites was exciting and interesting. We visited the Humble Administrators Garden, the water canals, and climbed a multi-story pagoda. Listening to her comments made the experience very worthwhile and I would encourage my fellow travelers to make the trip as it was well worth the investment of time and money.
Written 12 December 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Shu H
18 contributions
Sept 2024 • Family
Annie was our tour guide. She is very nice and professional. Good food and beautiful views. She help us take a lot of beautiful pictures. She is very knowledgeable when it comes to the history of the sites and knows many interesting facts. She is also very accommodating of what we wanted to do and tried to fit it into the schedule. She has very good English and Chinese too.
Written 5 September 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hashmine K
1 contribution
Nov 2023 • Business
The trip was great - our guide, Annie was amazing. She explained to us in details about the sites we visited and shared with us about the history behind the sites. She made us laugh and has a great sense of humour (made the trip a lot more fun - was truly entertained throughout the trip). We enjoyed ourselves and learnt a lot!
Written 11 November 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hi, if we select the bullet train + car or the car option without tickets and lunch, can the tickets still be gotten on that day? Reason being we may only want a garden and not the pagoda. Thanks
Written 27 July 2024
You will need to ask the travel agency that question. We bought the all inclusive and didn’t have to worry about transport, tickets or lunch. It was stress less and we were able to enjoy the day.
Written 28 July 2024
buenas noches sobre este producto no tengo consulta mi consulta es si tienen un tur de 8 días que incluya beiying ,xian changay llegando a beiyingel dia 5 de mayo del 2020
Written 19 October 2019
Curiosity35436191837
Taipei, Taiwan
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Written 23 June 2024
Hi,
We are interested in the above tour and have some questions.
1. Do we have to go to the train station in Shanghai on our own or is there a pick up from our apartment?
2. Will the guide be travelling with us on the train? And if yes, she will be passing the tickets to us at the station?
3. Is the travel in Suzhou by car or taxi? As I see there is an option where it is mentioned by taxi.
4. How long is the boat ride on the canal?
Thanks.
ChooKY
Written 1 October 2019
Dear ChooKY
I. We were picked up by our guide at our hotel. Not sure about apartments though.
2. Our guide travelled with us on the train (train was excellent - 280kph !)
3. We took the taxi option - in fact our guide mainly used UBER. The car option was more expensive.
4. About 30 mins I think.
Our guide (Anna) was very flexible and fitted the tour around our preferences. Hope this helpful. Kind Regards CT53
Written 1 October 2019
Hello. We will arrive from Guilin at Shanghai Pudong airport on Monday 21st October at 14.00 ( hopefully no delays) We would love to visit Suzhou and any other small water town close by. We definitely would like to take a boat trip around the town. We fly home on Wednesday the 24th late in the evening. Would you recommend staying the night in Suzhou? Can you arrange a tour of Shanghai for half day on the 24th until about 16.00? We are unsure how best to distribute our time, Thank you
Written 13 August 2019
I have no opinion on staying in Suzhou, but on our day trip there was enough time to take a river cruise—about an hour—through the city. We enjoyed it very much.
Written 13 August 2019
Do you provide visa cover. I will be arriving by ship at one of the main ports. I understand that if we travel with a registered tour company I do nor need to apply for 144 hour visa exclusion
Written 4 August 2019
not true, you need a multiple entry visa, O suggest a ten year as same price
Written 5 August 2019
Hi, I would like to book an all inclusive tour for my family this week. Would we be able to return by 5pm? Thank you.
Written 8 July 2019
I suggest you email Sunny at Sunny Tours, she is very professional and can answer your questions.
Written 8 July 2019
There are two of us. What is the difference between the $460 all inclusive tour and the $500 all inclusive tour?
What time would we arrive back at the Fairfield. Y Marriott hotel?
Written 27 April 2019
Dear Guests, we have now added the option for the bullet train experience, the ONLY difference between the " All inclusive tour" $460 and All inclusive tour by fast train " $ 500.00 ,is the local transportation , all incusive tour $ 500 , you will get a private car and driver in Suzhou to travel between different tour sites, $ 460 includes the local taxi/uber transport instead of private car.
Written 7 May 2019
Can hotel pick up be arranged for our private tour of 11 persons? Our hotel is not within the city area.
Written 13 July 2018
We had no problem getting a hotel pickup for my sister and myself on our day trip to Suzhou from Shanghai. We emailed with the tour group and the selected guide for the day for the specific needs we had, which primarily were to visit Soochow University (that is the spelling used), which our great grandfather founded. Our guide's name was Fei Fei and was excellent. After we found the specific buildings at the University we wanted to visit, in the older original part of the campus, she took us for a wonderful lunch and then a tour of the canals, before driving back to Shanghai to our hotel. A great day all around!
Written 13 July 2018
I would like to visit Suzhou, Zhujiajiao, Zhouzhuang water villages. I have 2 days for that (18 and 20 of may). Do you offer any package for booking 2 tours?
Written 17 May 2018
Hi Flavia,
Couldn’t recommend Sunny’s Tours highly enough. Rita was our guide, can’t speak for the other guides, but you’ll see more, understand more and absolutely no hassles - Go Sunny, Go Rita, have great day
Written 30 May 2018
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