Three days in Shanghai and no Bund, no observation deck?

Correct, and on purpose. You have spent a week looking at that skyline through office glass and from the car. This plan spends its three days on the parts of the city your week did not show you: a park, a walking neighborhood, a commuter ferry and one hour of rail to Hangzhou.

Hangzhou and back in one day, really? What if the train home is late?

Really: about an hour of running time each way, with your guide in the seat beside you and a car at both ends. We lock your outbound service and your latest return service before we take your order, so the day has margin built into it rather than added on the platform. Day two has no evening commitment on the other end, so a late train costs you nothing but a later dinner.

My hotel isn't part of this. Is that a problem?

No, it is the design. You already have a room at your fair rate, and it is usually better value than anything we would rebook you into for two nights. So the plan never moves you: same bed for three nights, no packing. If you would rather hand the two nights to us, say so and we quote them separately, with the hotel named in writing.

Will my evenings really stay free?

Yes. Every scheduled day ends before dinner, including the Hangzhou day, and your guide books dinner only if you want it. Nothing on this route runs at night.

Do these three extra days fit my visa?

Usually yes, and we check before you pay. The UK, most of Europe and Canada enter visa-free for days; so do Australia and New Zealand. We confirm that your entry date, your fair days and these three days all fit inside that window. The current policy runs to December 31, 2026. If you hold a Chinese visa, business or tourist, these days simply count within your permitted stay. If you entered visa-free under the 10-day transit policy, your whole stay must fit that window and your onward flight must leave for a third country or region: we verify both from your tickets before we take the order, and if it does not fit we say so instead of selling.

Shanghai, After the Expo

Overview

For a week the country comes to you: badge, booth, meeting room, a market explained in slide decks. It is a short drive from all of that to a corner of a public park where parents match-make for their grown children, and an hour by rail to a pharmacy that opened in 1874 and now runs its consultations with software in the loop. This plan starts the day after your closing session, keeps you in the same room all three nights, and ends at the airport. Nothing is scheduled after dinner. You'll go home able to say what the market you spent a week pitching to does on an ordinary weekday.

— LyrikTrip travel designers

Every LyrikTrip journey begins with a conversation. Tell us your preferred dates and your flight home, and we build these three days around both. First reply within four hours; a clear price for your dates within one business day. Day two runs on a fixed pair of trains, so we lock your outbound and your latest return service before anything is charged.

Why you'll love this trip

Two cities, no hotel change. Wukang Road, a Huangpu commuter ferry, a Hangzhou technology centre and an 1874 pharmacy, with an English-speaking guide throughout.
3 days from a park matchmaking corner to an AI-assisted tongue reading. See the everyday China.

Spend the afternoon after your last session on two hours in a Shanghai art space instead of an airport lounge: one building, no agenda, nobody expecting anything of you.
Ride an hour of high-speed rail to Hangzhou and be back in your own room the same evening, having watched the same trick land twice in one day: an old street and an old shopfront, both running new contents.
Stay in the same bed for all three nights: no packing, no hotel change, and every scheduled day ends before your inbox does.
Cross the Huangpu on the ferry the city takes to work, standing on deck with commuters and their scooters, not on a sightseeing boat.

Things to do

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Itinerary

Arrivals

Shanghai · Day 1 - Day 3

Day 1 · The badge comes off

Your badge comes off before anything else does. This afternoon is left short on purpose.

Pickup, wherever the fair leaves you Your driver meets you at the venue or your hotel the day after the closing session; there is no arrival day on this plan, because you have been here for a week.

Shanghai art space Two hours in one building, contemporary work on the walls, and the first stretch of the week with nothing scheduled against it. Somewhere in the second room, you'll notice you've stopped rehearsing tomorrow's follow-ups.

People's Park marriage market An hour in the corner of the park where parents come to match-make for their grown children, negotiating in the open on a weekday afternoon. Stand at the edge of a row for a minute and watch two strangers compare notes about their children: that is the picture you keep from this city.

Evening Yours, as designed: your guide recommends and books dinner around your taste, on your account, or the laptop opens back at the hotel. Nothing else is scheduled.

Day 2 · Two old addresses

One hour of rail each way, and your own room again tonight. Two old addresses, both running new contents.

Shanghai to Hangzhou by high-speed rail A morning departure, about an hour of running time, your guide in the seat beside you and a car waiting at the Hangzhou end. Watch the delta go past the window: warehouses, canals, apartment towers, then farmland, then all of it again.

Wensan Future Technology Centre Two hours on the street that used to sell components. The name on the address stayed and the contents changed; what is on display is the domestic technology story as it is told at home, not as it is pitched abroad.

Lunch In Hangzhou, booked by your guide, on your account.

Huqingyutang AI-assisted consultation Ninety minutes in an 1874 pharmacy, where you sit for a Chinese-medicine consultation that now runs with software in the loop. Look up from the screen at the shop's own cabinetry and drawers, then back down at the reading. Somewhere between the two, you'll stop filing this country under one date.

Evening return Back to Shanghai by high-speed rail and to the same room you left this morning. The latest return service is locked before your order is taken, so the evening is not a race.

Day 3 · Street level, then water

A morning under plane trees, thirty minutes on the river, then the airport. Shanghai gets the last word at street level.

Former French Concession & Wukang Road Two hours walking low streets under plane trees, past historic residences and small independent shops, with the towers you have been working beside all week nowhere in the frame. Your guide keeps to the lanes where the neighbourhood still sets the pace.

Huangpu River ferry Thirty minutes on the commuter crossing, deck level, scooters rolled on around you and the skyline turning as the boat turns. This is the last thing the plan asks of you, and it costs the city's residents their morning fare. Halfway across, you'll catch yourself standing like someone who lives here rather than someone being shown around.

Lunch Near the water or back in town, booked by your guide, on your account.

Departures

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Hotels

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Included / Excluded

What's Included

Private vehicleAir-conditioned private vehicle for all listed touring on all three days: pickup at your venue or hotel on day one, station transfers in both cities and the local car in Hangzhou on day two, airport drop-off on day three
Inter-city railBoth high-speed rail legs on day two, Shanghai to Hangzhou in the morning and back the same evening; your quote states the class booked for your order
GuideLicensed English-speaking guide on all three days, including the Hangzhou day
Day one, ShanghaiShanghai art space, about 120 minutes, named in your written confirmation; People's Park marriage market, about 60 minutes
Day two, HangzhouWensan Future Technology Centre, about 120 minutes; Huqingyutang AI-assisted consultation, about 90 minutes
Day three, ShanghaiFormer French Concession and Wukang Road walk, about 120 minutes; Huangpu River ferry crossing, about 30 minutes
InsuranceTravel accident insurance

Not Included

FlightsYour flight home, and everything before day one: your fair-period hotel, transfers and arrangements remain your own
HotelThe two nights of the plan window, see Hotels above; booking them through us is an add-on, quoted separately
MealsNo meal is arranged on any of the three days. Breakfast is provided by your hotel, and your hotel is not included in this price; lunches and dinners are recommended and booked by your guide, at your own expense.
Optional add-onsQuoted separately when you choose them; nothing optional is added by default
PersonalVisas, gratuities and personal spending

Special Notes

A few things on this route follow your fair calendar rather than ours. Here they are, told straight.

Start day — Day one is the day after your closing session, and there is no arrival day. If your sessions run a day longer than planned, day one moves with them.
People's Park — we confirm this gathering is on for your dates before you pay. If it is not, one of two swaps runs and your quote says which: days one and three change places, or Yu Garden takes that slot, at no change in price.
Day-two trains — This corridor is busy during the fair. Your outbound service and your latest return service are both locked before your order is taken, and both are written into your confirmation.
The art space — the space for your departure is named in your written confirmation before you pay.
Departures — This route is built around the November fair, so departures follow that window. Tell us your fair dates first and we build the three days off the back of them.
Confirmation and changes — Your quote states in writing the confirmation deadline for your order and the change and refund conditions for your dates. No order is taken without them in writing.

Is Three Days Your Length?

Only two days?

Each day stands on its own, so we cut days, not contents: tell us your flight home and we build backward from it.

Good to Know

Group: Private, just your party. From 1 guest. No fixed maximum party size.
Start: Day one starts at your venue or hotel the day after your closing session; there is no arrival day.
Ports: Starts and ends in Shanghai; airport drop-off included on the last day
Hotels: Not included in this price: you stay on in your fair-rate room. We can quote the two nights separately if you want them.
Rail: Day two only: two legs, about an hour of running time each way, both in the price
Visas: Most guests on this line are already in China. Before any payment we check your entry date, your fair days and these three days against your permitted window
Language: English-speaking licensed guide throughout
Payment: A 10% deposit (minimum $399) secures your dates; the balance is due 14 days before departure
Flexibility: Days stand alone and the start day follows your fair; the confirmation deadline and the change and refund terms for your dates are listed in writing with your quote
Evenings: Nothing is scheduled after dinner on any of the three days

Your Private Concierge

Jason Hu

Private China Route Concierge

“A bilingual planning desk for tailor-made China journeys.”

Our China team tailors the pacing, hotels and local hosts to suit each route style.

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Years

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Trips Designed

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On-Trip Care

Step 01

Tell us what excites you

Not your dates and budget — your curiosity. Where have you always wanted to go? What do you want to feel? We start there.

24h

First concept delivered

Step 02

We design it around you

Your specialist builds the itinerary from scratch — routes, hosts, hotels, and experiences you won't find anywhere else.

100%

Bespoke, never off-the-shelf

Step 03

Lock it in with 10%

When the plan feels right, a 10% deposit holds your entire trip. Balance due 30 days before departure.

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Deposit to secure everything

Step 04

Travel. We handle the rest.

Your Trip Pack arrives before you fly. On the road, your concierge is one message away — for the expected and everything you didn't plan for.

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Support throughout your journey

Free cancellation up to 30 days

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Shanghai, After the Expo

Overview

Why you'll love this trip