---
title: "China, Present Tense"
description: "9 days from an old garden to a floor of circuit boards watching China work"
type: "tour"
route_id: "modern-china-9-days"
total_days: 9
price: 2780
highlights: ["Shanghai", "Hangzhou", "Shenzhen"]
url: "https://www.lyriktrip.com/tours/modern-china-9-days"
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# China, Present Tense

9 days from an old garden to a floor of circuit boards watching China work

Contemporary China, three cities. The Bund, a park marriage market, floors of electronics, an old walled town, with English-speaking guides city by city.

- City walking, on flat ground, with a private vehicle between every stop. The longest continuous walk is a market building you go through floor by floor, with lifts.

## Overview

Most China routes give you the empire and end with a skyline photograph. This one runs the other way. Shanghai asks how the country lives now: a garden, a museum, an observation deck, and an afternoon in a public park where parents look for husbands and wives for their grown children. Hangzhou asks how the old things connect to the new ones. Shenzhen asks what forty years actually builds, and answers it in a building where components become prototypes become finished machines, floor by floor. Three cities, three questions, in the order that makes each one answer the last. By the third city you'll notice you have stopped taking pictures of buildings and started asking your guide about people.

— LyrikTrip travel designers

Every LyrikTrip journey begins with a conversation. Tell us your dates, who is coming and which passports you hold. First reply within four hours; a clear price for your dates within one business day. On this route we will also tell you plainly where the Hangzhou stretch and the two Shenzhen venues stand, before you are asked for anything, because half of what makes this itinerary worth doing is that we are not pretending they are settled.

## Summary

- Route ID: modern-china-9-days
- Duration: 9 days / 8 nights
- Starting price: $2,780
- Status: active
- Highlights: Shanghai, Hangzhou, Shenzhen
- Cover image: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/4udPDr4L.webp

## Hero tags

- private
- From 1 guest
- Max: no fixed limit

## Highlight notes

- Contemporary China, three cities. The Bund, a park marriage market, floors of electronics, an old walled town, with English-speaking guides city by city.
- 9 days from a garden in the old city to a floor of circuit boards. See how China works now.

## Selling points

- Stand on the Bund after dark with your guide beside you: a century of trading-port buildings on one bank, the Pudong towers on the other, one city looking straight at itself across the water.
- Read the city from the observation deck of Shanghai Tower instead of photographing it: your guide finds the river, the old waterfront on the far bank and the gray roofs behind it, and the walk you did yesterday turns into a diagram.
- Spend an afternoon at the People's Park marriage market, where parents come on their own to look for matches for their grown children, and your guide tells you what is being asked for and why.
- Walk Huaqiangbei floor by floor with a guide who reads it to you: trays of components below, prototypes above them, finished machines above that, with the sourcing chain explained as you climb.
- Walk Shekou and Nantou Old Town on foot, the ground that was here before the city was: the counter-evidence to the forty-year story you spent the morning inside.
- Unpack twice in nine days: three nights in Shanghai, three in Shenzhen, and the Shanghai Museum slot booked with your details before you land, because its booking system is hard to use from a non-Chinese phone number.

## City highlights

- Shanghai (3 days): Land, and let the city wait
  - Image: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/gI41taAr.webp
- Hangzhou (2 days): Plane trees, then the rails
  - Image: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/4udPDr4L.webp
- Shenzhen (4 days): Hangzhou to Shenzhen
  - Image: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/99d5f2fb8f33.jpg

## Experiences

Contemporary China, three cities. The Bund, a park marriage market, floors of electronics, an old walled town, with English-speaking guides city by city.

- Yu Garden & the Old City (Shanghai): pavilions, ponds, rockeries and covered corridors, laid out in the Ming dynasty as a private family garden: "Yu" means peace, chosen by the official who built it for his aging father. A Chinese garden works like a scroll painting: you walk it one framed scene at a time. The lanes around it keep an earlier Shanghai of small shops and food stalls.
  - Subtitle: pavilions, ponds, rockeries and covered corridors, laid out in the Ming dynasty
  - Tags: Heritage
  - Host: Shanghai, Shanghai Lens — Skyline and riverfront culture
  - Access: The lanes around it keep an earlier Shanghai of small shops and food stalls.
  - Images: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/58b0b1f762b9.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/3640847367f4.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/aa7e4b7f18cb.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/c3f4af921585.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/7bc088a35094.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/b4ff42f10f39.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/8ab6fa3c88e9.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/23b0b99117fe.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/4c38a3352564.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/793d4d9ec24d.jpg
- Shanghai Museum (Shanghai): bronzes, ceramics, painting and calligraphy, arranged so you can walk one material through three thousand years. About two hours. Entry is by timed reservation with limited English in the booking system, so your quote states in writing who books it and by when, and which branch your visit uses. Admission is in the base price.
  - Subtitle: bronzes, ceramics, painting and calligraphy, arranged so you can walk one material through three thousand years.
  - Tags: Museum
  - Host: Shanghai, Shanghai Lens — Skyline and riverfront culture
  - Access: bronzes, ceramics, painting and calligraphy, arranged so you can walk one material through three thousand years. About two hours. Entry is by timed reservation with limited English in the booking system, so your quote states in writing who books it and by when, and which branch your visit uses. Admission is in the base price.
  - Images: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/553f9e5daffa.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/463009b942cf.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/09ed444fa597.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/f449d01924e3.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/1c391e422dd6.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/3062838f53d8.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/5fe4f8f934ce.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/1ff4b8a733b8.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/1c6a0e2a66d2.jpg
- The Bund (Shanghai): The Bund frames Shanghai's historic banks and modern Pudong skyline in one clear view.
  - Subtitle: Shanghai's iconic riverfront skyline
  - Tags: Riverfront
  - Host: Shanghai, Shanghai Lens — Skyline and riverfront culture
  - Access: A signature Shanghai orientation stop for architecture and city contrast.
  - Images: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/59b1d2774a93.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/819f854bed70.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/494cee6c7aae.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/45251ad66040.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/eed1a59d8207.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/334c0bdef4be.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/a2a8d5aca0bf.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/2e92d8293a47.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/eb8770c3dfbd.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/5d861058a1f8.jpg
- Shanghai Tower (Shanghai): Shanghai Tower gives travelers a vertical perspective on the city's scale and skyline.
  - Subtitle: A high-rise view over modern Shanghai
  - Tags: Skyline
  - Host: Shanghai, Shanghai Lens — Skyline and riverfront culture
  - Access: Observation-deck style city view from one of Shanghai's tallest landmarks.
  - Images: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/5dde4280b724.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/3926dbb2d526.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/0ec29e0c5aab.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/a9aeb2725a09.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/370459f57860.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/d4a7737c435e.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/2caf6535e050.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/231735fc8416.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/3ad3642b1302.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/4523e1c1916a.jpg
- Shanghai Art Centers (Shanghai): Shanghai Art Centers introduce the city's creative side through contemporary cultural spaces.
  - Subtitle: A look at Shanghai's art scene
  - Tags: Art
  - Host: Shanghai, Shanghai Lens — Skyline and riverfront culture
  - Access: A flexible art-focused moment within modern Shanghai.
  - Images: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/0f0179a4b047.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/7ade1c1e4666.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/e764da513ffd.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/4343cb096c8c.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/a7c5cb28dd68.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/5e5585f79582.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/a3934c960bb4.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/51d7a53a4ca3.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/1c6a0e2a66d2.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/0090ef50c5b4.jpg
- Shanghai Marriage Market Visit (Shanghai): Shanghai Marriage Market Visit introduces a distinctive public matchmaking culture in the city.
  - Subtitle: A social snapshot of local Shanghai life
  - Tags: Local Life
  - Host: Shanghai, Shanghai Lens — Skyline and riverfront culture
  - Access: A human-interest local life stop with strong cultural curiosity.
  - Images: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/1d204efbff24.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/68153b956894.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/b013eb47cf19.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/9a056c8b9d05.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/704bf7b8cc30.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/829dcbc22752.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/7e67e0ce1f34.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/8c365fbf7b2d.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/53a1921e6aa4.jpg
- Wukang Road: A Loose Walk (Shanghai): plane-tree streets, walled houses from the concession decades, and the independent shops that have taken over their ground floors. You walk it at street speed, and it is the loosest hour of the route — the low, relaxed counterweight to the skyline you looked at the night before: no ticket, no queue, no gate. About two hours on flat pavement. In the base price.
  - Subtitle: plane-tree streets, walled houses from the concession decades, and the independent shops in their ground floors — the loose, low-rise counterweight to the skyline. About two hours, no ticket, no queue, no gate.
  - Tags: City
  - Host: Shanghai, Shanghai Lens — Skyline and riverfront culture
  - Access: plane-tree streets, walled houses from the concession decades, and the independent shops that have taken over their ground floors. You walk it at street speed, and it is the loosest hour of the route: no ticket, no queue, no gate. About two hours.
  - Images: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/a469e3c35b36.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/ff2e7b6f2ffc.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/769ee0838cac.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/664544b5b738.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/be6f02f8c66f.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/b1c8a477961a.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/738425c31d43.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/b5ee2850407d.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/dc30a72b34d4.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/7e7256ca585e.jpg
- Huaqiangbei (Shenzhen): one of the world's best-known electronics districts. You walk floors and streets where components, prototypes and finished devices sell side by side, and the supply chain behind the world's gadgets stops being an abstraction: it has counters, prices and business cards. Your guide keeps the logic straight while you browse.
  - Subtitle: one of the world's best-known electronics districts
  - Tags: Tech
  - Host: Shenzhen, Shenzhen Lens — Drones and future mobility
  - Access: Your guide keeps the logic straight while you browse.
  - Images: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/f3ad2afbd3b2.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/200120e470fb.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/968fce5767a5.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/403ff3a81a73.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/b0f4ce04c70d.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/92c50a687090.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/2c610df7011f.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/dd5d5cbe7e98.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/2a799aaa4b8b.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/4576ade7ac05.jpg
- Shekou or Nantou (Shenzhen): the departure-day choice, sized to your flight: Shekou, where the story of China's economic reform meets a modern waterfront, or Nantou Ancient Town, where historic lanes and contemporary creative studios share the same blocks. Either way, you leave with one more Shenzhen than you arrived with.
  - Subtitle: the departure-day choice, sized to your flight: Shekou, where the story of
  - Tags: City
  - Host: Shenzhen, Shenzhen Lens — Drones and future mobility
  - Access: Either way, you leave with one more Shenzhen than you arrived with.
  - Images: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/0540e86e5dd0.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/24cfb51611ba.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/6a3d6358e6cc.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/d611105bca0e.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/21a863e8cba1.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/8cd57b420cf9.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/ba1b0f9300a8.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/01c07d442af3.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/783f9d0fe378.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/d0b2dd4ecb27.jpg
- Shenzhen Self-Driving Car Experience (Shenzhen): This moment introduces China's autonomous driving development through Shenzhen's urban innovation scene.
  - Subtitle: A future mobility experience in Shenzhen
  - Tags: Self-driving
  - Host: Shenzhen, Shenzhen Lens — Drones and future mobility
  - Access: A hands-on style technology moment focused on future transport.
  - Images: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/e5244acfc1e1.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/6638e114cfcc.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/664627200a07.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/968fce5767a5.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/850e604d29dd.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/9f6aabb3ac1c.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/92c50a687090.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/abd65b64dad5.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/0aa303e167f0.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/0c2c8d0d16f0.jpg
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## Itinerary

### China, Present Tense - 9 days

Journey

#### Shanghai (3 days)

- Subtitle: Land, and let the city wait
- Recommendation: Your driver meets your flight, whatever time it lands. Nothing is asked of you on the first day, and the country you flew to shows up in the car window anyway.
- Transport: High-speed rail
- Transport mode: train

Airport pickup · Shanghai through the window · Evening

- Images: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/gI41taAr.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/13x1KtnS.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/1Q9afrZn.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/1Riqjj0n.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/1VrlDwIi.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/1vYpI6NZ.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/3PEjxTGx.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/4EbDdFHb.webp
##### Day 1: Land, and let the city wait

- (transport) — your driver and vehicle are waiting for the flight number on your confirmation, and the run into the city is yours to sleep through.
- (sight) — elevated roads first, then plane trees and lit shopfronts on a street where people are buying dinner. The first thing this city shows you is not a landmark, it is a Tuesday evening.
- (note) — nothing is scheduled. Your guide is reachable, and dinner near the hotel is recommended and booked for you if you want it, on your account.
- (accommodation) Bellagio by MGM Shanghai on the Bund — Hotel stay in Shanghai.

##### Day 2: The old city, then the water

- (sight) — pavilions, rockery, ponds and a path that refuses to run straight, dropped inside the oldest quarter of the city. Then the lanes outside the garden wall, where the food and the shopfronts are. Stand on the zigzag bridge and look back at the roofline with the tower blocks behind it: that is the whole trip in one frame, on the first morning.
- (sight) — your timed slot is booked ahead by us with the details on your confirmation, so you walk in on schedule. The collection inside is arranged by material rather than by dynasty: bronzes, ceramics, painting and calligraphy, the decorative arts. Pick one gallery and go slowly rather than walking all of them, and ask your guide what the object was actually used for.
- (sight) — the historic waterfront buildings on this bank, the Pudong towers on the other, a hundred years apart and looking straight at each other across the Huangpu River. Your guide stays with you for the whole evening, start to finish. Walk north along the promenade until the crowd thins, then turn around: the two skylines close on you from both sides at once.

##### Day 3: How the country actually lives

- (sight) — up the tower first, and then the reading. Your guide finds the river, the old waterfront on the far bank and the block of gray roofs behind it, which is where you walked yesterday morning. Ten minutes of photographs is all this view is worth; the reason it is on the plan is that the city becomes a diagram from up here, and everything you do for the next six days sits somewhere on it.
- (sight) — a working art space rather than a collection of the past. The afternoon needs something made by people who are alive in the same year as you, and this is it. The venue for your dates is named in your written confirmation.
- (sight) — a corner of the park where parents come, on their own, to look for matches for their grown children. Your guide walks you through what is being asked for and why, and then answers the question you will actually have, which is what the grown children think of it. Sit down on a bench at the edge and watch one conversation all the way through instead of walking the whole row. Ten minutes in, you'll catch yourself lowering your voice, the way you do when you have walked into something private by accident.

#### Hangzhou (2 days)

- Subtitle: Plane trees, then the rails
- Recommendation: A morning on foot under the plane trees, an afternoon on the train. The Concession streets are the argument that this city was never only one thing.
- Transport: Flight · schedule to confirm
- Transport mode: airplane

Former French Concession and Wukang Road · Afternoon rail to Hangzhou

- Images: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/4udPDr4L.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/1dvwDeAc.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/2d82QCVy.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/3kT1aNyQ.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/5mkDrziB.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/7O8Bisz3.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/9EPzVQkJ.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/ekf7Yn0g.webp
##### Day 4: Plane trees, then the rails

- (sight) — plane-tree streets, historic residences and independent shopfronts, walked rather than driven. After two days of towers and bronzes this is the loosest hour of the week, and the point of it is exactly that looseness. Stand at the fork where the building comes to a point and let the street do the rest.
- (transport) — the designed routing takes the high-speed train to Hangzhou after lunch. This leg is not in your base price. It is quoted together with the Hangzhou days once the ground arrangements there are placed, and the cabin class for your order is stated in writing at that point. See Special Notes.
- (accommodation) Hangzhou West Lake Liuyingli Hotel — Hotel stay in Hangzhou.

##### Day 5: A day beside the lake, and the honest state of it

- (sight) — West Lake, a full day. The lake is the reason Hangzhou is in this routing at all: it is the piece of ground that the old China and the software city around it both organize themselves around, and half a day does not get you across it.
- (sight) — no ground partner is in place for the two Hangzhou days. Everything here sits outside your base price: the hotel and its breakfast, the vehicle, the guide, the admissions. Nothing in Hangzhou is sold to you in advance. Two working options stand: we place a ground handler, or the route is re-cut as an eight-day Shanghai and Shenzhen version. We will tell you which one your dates are getting before you are asked for anything.

#### Shenzhen (4 days)

- Subtitle: Hangzhou to Shenzhen
- Recommendation: A travel day between two very different arguments, and it is planned as a whole day rather than squeezed. Where the plan goes next is the part of China that did not exist when your parents were your age.
- Transport: Flight
- Transport mode: airplane

The transfer · The two Hangzhou items designed for this morning · Arrival in Shenzhen

- Images: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/99d5f2fb8f33.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/8AH70UD0.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/h4WopDz7.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/j3OhqX9B.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/0540e86e5dd0.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/09971fb8ed55.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/0cb198f8a49d.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/1dabf6d8d82e.jpg
##### Day 6: Hangzhou to Shenzhen

- (transport) — our transport reference holds one entry for this city pair and it books the whole day, so that is how the day is planned. An afternoon flight has not been verified against the current season timetable; if a verified afternoon service is confirmed for your dates, the released morning is written into your quote before you pay, not promised here.
- (sight) — they exist in the design and they are not procured, so they are not promised, not priced and not sold. They are named with their exact status in Special Notes.
- (sight) — tonight's room in Shenzhen is in your base price, and nothing is scheduled for the evening. Look out of the window on the way in: this is the only Chinese city on this route with no old center to arrive at, and the drive in tells you that before anyone explains it.
- (accommodation) Kempinski Hotel Shenzhen — Hotel stay in Shenzhen.

##### Day 7: Floor by floor

- (sight) — the electronics market known by name across the hardware industry. You go up through it in order: trays of components, then prototype boards, then finished machines in boxes. Your guide explains the sourcing chain as you climb, which is the half you cannot get from looking at the shelves. Ask what a buyer would do on this floor, and then watch one actually do it two stalls away. Somewhere around the third floor you'll notice you have not looked at your phone in an hour, which is funny given what the building is for.
- (sight) — DJI Sky City is in the route as designed, and its visitor access is not on record. A campus that turns guests away at the door is a hard failure, so it is not included, not priced and not sold until access is secured or a named replacement in the same city takes its place. See Special Notes.
- (sight) — your guide, the private vehicle and the day itself are yours either way, and the market alone runs to two and a half hours with lifts and places to stop.

##### Day 8: Forty years, and what was here first

- (sight) — the waterfront district where this city's industrial story starts. Your guide walks you through what was built here first and what it was for, which is the only way this stretch of ordinary-looking coast makes sense.
- (sight) — an old walled town that was here before the city was, now with the city built right up against its gate. You walk in through the old wall line and out the other side into the present tense. Stand in the gateway and film fifteen seconds looking out: the frame has both centuries in it and you will not have to explain the picture to anyone.
- (sight) — the Shenzhen urban planning and industry exhibition is in the route as designed and its visitor access is not on record, so it is not included, not priced and not sold until access is secured or a named replacement in the same city takes its place. Your guide, vehicle and the day are yours regardless.
- (note) — nothing is scheduled. Walking back out through the old gate into the traffic, you'll feel the nine days line up behind you in the order they were meant to.

##### Day 9: Home

- (sight) — nothing is scheduled. Your guide tells you the two or three things within walking distance of your hotel that are worth the last hour, and your driver works around your check-out rather than a fixed time.
- (transport) — your driver takes you to the airport, timed against your departure flight with room to spare.

## Daily plan

### Day 1 — Land, and let the city wait

Your driver meets your flight, whatever time it lands. Nothing is asked of you on the first day, and the country you flew to shows up in the car window anyway.

- Airport pickup: your driver and vehicle are waiting for the flight number on your confirmation, and the run into the city is yours to sleep through.
- Shanghai through the window: elevated roads first, then plane trees and lit shopfronts on a street where people are buying dinner. The first thing this city shows you is not a landmark, it is a Tuesday evening.
- Evening: nothing is scheduled. Your guide is reachable, and dinner near the hotel is recommended and booked for you if you want it, on your account.
- Stay: Shanghai
- Meals: None included today

### Day 2 — The old city, then the water

A garden, a museum and a waterfront after dark, in that order. Today is the China you already had a picture of, which is what the rest of the week needs to argue with.

- Yu Garden and the old city: pavilions, rockery, ponds and a path that refuses to run straight, dropped inside the oldest quarter of the city. Then the lanes outside the garden wall, where the food and the shopfronts are. Stand on the zigzag bridge and look back at the roofline with the tower blocks behind it: that is the whole trip in one frame, on the first morning.
- Shanghai Museum: your timed slot is booked ahead by us with the details on your confirmation, so you walk in on schedule. The collection inside is arranged by material rather than by dynasty: bronzes, ceramics, painting and calligraphy, the decorative arts. Pick one gallery and go slowly rather than walking all of them, and ask your guide what the object was actually used for.
- The Bund after dark: the historic waterfront buildings on this bank, the Pudong towers on the other, a hundred years apart and looking straight at each other across the Huangpu River. Your guide stays with you for the whole evening, start to finish. Walk north along the promenade until the crowd thins, then turn around: the two skylines close on you from both sides at once.
- Stay: Shanghai
- Meals: Breakfast at the hotel

### Day 3 — How the country actually lives

An observation deck in the morning, a public park in the afternoon. Today the picture stops being a skyline and turns into people.

- Shanghai Tower observation deck: up the tower first, and then the reading. Your guide finds the river, the old waterfront on the far bank and the block of gray roofs behind it, which is where you walked yesterday morning. Ten minutes of photographs is all this view is worth; the reason it is on the plan is that the city becomes a diagram from up here, and everything you do for the next six days sits somewhere on it.
- A contemporary art venue: a working art space rather than a collection of the past. The afternoon needs something made by people who are alive in the same year as you, and this is it. The venue for your dates is named in your written confirmation.
- People's Park marriage market: a corner of the park where parents come, on their own, to look for matches for their grown children. Your guide walks you through what is being asked for and why, and then answers the question you will actually have, which is what the grown children think of it. Sit down on a bench at the edge and watch one conversation all the way through instead of walking the whole row. Ten minutes in, you'll catch yourself lowering your voice, the way you do when you have walked into something private by accident.
- Stay: Shanghai
- Meals: Breakfast at the hotel

### Day 4 — Plane trees, then the rails

A morning on foot under the plane trees, an afternoon on the train. The Concession streets are the argument that this city was never only one thing.

- Former French Concession and Wukang Road: plane-tree streets, historic residences and independent shopfronts, walked rather than driven. After two days of towers and bronzes this is the loosest hour of the week, and the point of it is exactly that looseness. Stand at the fork where the building comes to a point and let the street do the rest.
- Afternoon rail to Hangzhou: the designed routing takes the high-speed train to Hangzhou after lunch. This leg is not in your base price. It is quoted together with the Hangzhou days once the ground arrangements there are placed, and the cabin class for your order is stated in writing at that point. See Special Notes.
- Stay: Hangzhou
- Meals: Breakfast at the hotel in Shanghai

### Day 5 — A day beside the lake, and the honest state of it

A whole day at West Lake is what this stretch is designed around, unhurried, with no half-day version. It is also the part of this route we have not yet placed with a ground partner, so here is exactly where it stands.

- The day as designed: West Lake, a full day. The lake is the reason Hangzhou is in this routing at all: it is the piece of ground that the old China and the software city around it both organize themselves around, and half a day does not get you across it.
- What is not settled: no ground partner is in place for the two Hangzhou days. Everything here sits outside your base price: the hotel and its breakfast, the vehicle, the guide, the admissions. Nothing in Hangzhou is sold to you in advance. Two working options stand: we place a ground handler, or the route is re-cut as an eight-day Shanghai and Shenzhen version. We will tell you which one your dates are getting before you are asked for anything.
- Stay: Hangzhou
- Meals: The Hangzhou breakfast sits with the Hangzhou stretch and is not in the base price

### Day 6 — Hangzhou to Shenzhen

A travel day between two very different arguments, and it is planned as a whole day rather than squeezed. Where the plan goes next is the part of China that did not exist when your parents were your age.

- The transfer: our transport reference holds one entry for this city pair and it books the whole day, so that is how the day is planned. An afternoon flight has not been verified against the current season timetable; if a verified afternoon service is confirmed for your dates, the released morning is written into your quote before you pay, not promised here.
- The two Hangzhou items designed for this morning: they exist in the design and they are not procured, so they are not promised, not priced and not sold. They are named with their exact status in Special Notes.
- Arrival in Shenzhen: tonight's room in Shenzhen is in your base price, and nothing is scheduled for the evening. Look out of the window on the way in: this is the only Chinese city on this route with no old center to arrive at, and the drive in tells you that before anyone explains it.
- Stay: Shenzhen
- Meals: None included today

### Day 7 — Floor by floor

One building, walked from the components up to the finished machines, with someone who can read it to you. Today the phone in your hand gets taken apart into its origins.

- Huaqiangbei: the electronics market known by name across the hardware industry. You go up through it in order: trays of components, then prototype boards, then finished machines in boxes. Your guide explains the sourcing chain as you climb, which is the half you cannot get from looking at the shelves. Ask what a buyer would do on this floor, and then watch one actually do it two stalls away. Somewhere around the third floor you'll notice you have not looked at your phone in an hour, which is funny given what the building is for.
- What is not on today's plan: DJI Sky City is in the route as designed, and its visitor access is not on record. A campus that turns guests away at the door is a hard failure, so it is not included, not priced and not sold until access is secured or a named replacement in the same city takes its place. See Special Notes.
- The afternoon: your guide, the private vehicle and the day itself are yours either way, and the market alone runs to two and a half hours with lifts and places to stop.
- Stay: Shenzhen
- Meals: Breakfast at the hotel

### Day 8 — Forty years, and what was here first

Shekou on foot in the morning, an old walled town beside it after that. Today the city stops being a story about speed and turns into a place with a before.

- Shekou: the waterfront district where this city's industrial story starts. Your guide walks you through what was built here first and what it was for, which is the only way this stretch of ordinary-looking coast makes sense.
- Nantou Old Town: an old walled town that was here before the city was, now with the city built right up against its gate. You walk in through the old wall line and out the other side into the present tense. Stand in the gateway and film fifteen seconds looking out: the frame has both centuries in it and you will not have to explain the picture to anyone.
- What is not on today's plan: the Shenzhen urban planning and industry exhibition is in the route as designed and its visitor access is not on record, so it is not included, not priced and not sold until access is secured or a named replacement in the same city takes its place. Your guide, vehicle and the day are yours regardless.
- The last evening: nothing is scheduled. Walking back out through the old gate into the traffic, you'll feel the nine days line up behind you in the order they were meant to.
- Stay: Shenzhen
- Meals: Breakfast at the hotel

### Day 9 — Home

Breakfast, a free morning, then the airport. What goes home with you is a way of reading the next news story about this country.

- Morning free: nothing is scheduled. Your guide tells you the two or three things within walking distance of your hotel that are worth the last hour, and your driver works around your check-out rather than a fixed time.
- Airport drop-off: your driver takes you to the airport, timed against your departure flight with room to spare.
- Stay: Trip ends
- Meals: Breakfast at the hotel

## Hotels

### Shanghai Royal Garden Hotel (Shanghai International Resort)

- City: Shanghai
- Description: Shanghai Royal Garden Hotel: a luxury garden hotel near Pudong Airport and Disneyland, with free shuttle service to both.
- Image: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/a07e8f886100.jpg

### Rezen Meili Hotel (Shanghai City Centre, The Bund)

- City: Shanghai
- Description: Rezen Meili Hotel: classic European style in central Shanghai, steps from People's Square, the Bund and Nanjing Road.
- Image: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/842LWuH4.webp

### CitiGO Huan Ge Hotel, Jing'an Temple, West Nanjing Road, Shanghai

- City: Shanghai
- Description: CitiGO Huan Ge Hotel: a vibrant stay in Shanghai's Jing'an Temple district, three minutes from Metro Line 14.
- Image: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/lyfOP6lc.webp

### Four Seasons Hangzhou at West Lake

- City: Hangzhou

### Pullman Shanghai Zhongganghui Hotel

- City: Shanghai
- Description: Pullman Shanghai Zhongganghui Hotel, in Dapuqiao near Tianzifang, steps from Metro Line 9 and the Expo site.
- Image: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/5xOD9FRB.webp

### Futian Shangri-La, Shenzhen

- City: Shenzhen
- Description: Located in Futian CBD, close to major landmarks and metro lines. Featuring 500+ elegant rooms and suites with exclusive Horizon Club services.
- Image: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/lNzYq6FP.webp

### Hyatt Regency Hangzhou

- City: Hangzhou

## Included / Excluded

### What's Included

- Private vehicle: Air-conditioned private vehicle for all listed touring in Shanghai and Shenzhen; airport pickup in Shanghai on day one; airport drop-off in Shenzhen on day nine, timed against your departure flight. The Hangzhou ground vehicle is not in this line. This term follows house standard and is being signed off by our commercial team; until it is, your quote states the vehicle scope for your order in writing
- Hotels: 6 nights with breakfast: Shanghai 3 (nights of days one, two, three) · Shenzhen 3 (nights of days six, seven, eight). Hotels named in your written confirmation. Room tier is being set with our commercial team; until it is stated, your quote states the hotel tier for your order in writing. The two Hangzhou nights are not in the base price
- Meals: 6 hotel breakfasts, one per morning. Days two, three and four in Shanghai; days seven, eight and nine in Shenzhen. No lunch and no dinner is in the base price. The two Hangzhou breakfasts sit with the Hangzhou stretch
- Guide: Licensed English-speaking guide on all touring days in Shanghai and Shenzhen, including the whole first evening on the Bund, start to finish. Hangzhou guiding is not in this line
- Tickets and visits, Shanghai: Seven named items: Yu Garden with the old city quarter · Shanghai Museum, with the timed reservation booked by us · the Bund with the Pudong skyline in the evening, guide accompanied · the former French Concession with Wukang Road on foot · Shanghai Tower observation deck · one Shanghai art venue, named in your written confirmation · People's Park marriage market, a public square with no admission charge
- Tickets and visits, Shenzhen: Huaqiangbei electronics market walk with guide commentary, floor by floor · Shekou and Nantou Old Town visit on foot. These are the only two Shenzhen items in the base price
- Insurance: Travel accident insurance. This term follows house standard and is being signed off by our commercial team

### Not Included

- International flights: Flights into Shanghai and out of Shenzhen
- Visas: Visa fees and processing for guests who need a Chinese visa
- Meals: All lunches and dinners. Recommended and booked by your guide, on your account
- Intercity transport: Both intercity legs of the designed routing, Shanghai to Hangzhou on day four and Hangzhou to Shenzhen on day six. Neither has a stated cabin class yet and the day six leg has no verified current-season service
- Hangzhou ground services: Nothing on the ground in Hangzhou is in the base price: not the hotel and its breakfast, not the vehicle, not the guiding, not the admissions or the paid experiences
- DJI Sky City: Not in the base price; visitor access to the campus is not on record
- Shenzhen urban planning and industry exhibition: Not in the base price; visitor access is not on record
- Meetings with local practitioners: This route does not promise arranged conversations with local practitioners in Shanghai, Hangzhou or Shenzhen. No such meeting is included and none is implied by anything above
- Robotaxi ride Robotaxi: Sold as an add-on only, priced separately at the time of choosing; never in the base price and never counted as part of what this route promises
- Personal: Gratuities · single or extra-room difference · personal spending, including anything bought or paid for inside a venue: purchases, shuttles, lifts, boats · anything not named above

### Special Notes

A few things on this route follow the calendar, a supplier's confirmation or a venue's door policy. Here they are, told straight.

- Bookings are not open yet: six things have to be real first. One, Hangzhou ground handling placed, or the route re-cut as the eight-day Shanghai and Shenzhen version. Two, day six settled, either as a whole travel day or against a verified current-season afternoon service, with the cabin class stated for both intercity legs. Three, visitor access secured at DJI Sky City and at the Shenzhen urban planning and industry exhibition, or a named replacement in the same city for each. Four, the Shanghai Museum reservation route settled, including who books it and what happens on dates when the slot cannot be obtained. Five, the sales rules for United States guests written down. Six, the vehicle, hotel tier, breakfast and insurance terms signed off and the price set. Until all six are closed we take no orders and no deposits. Tell us your dates and we will write to you on the day it opens.
- The Hangzhou stretch: two of the nine nights and three designed items sit here, and none of it is procured. The three items are West Lake, the Wensan future technology district and the AI-assisted Chinese medicine consultation at Huqingyu Hall. They are named here so you know what the design intends, not because they are for sale: none is included, none is priced into your quote, and none is presented as a feature of this route. The same holds for the two Hangzhou nights, the Hangzhou vehicle and the Hangzhou guide.
- Day six: our transport reference holds one entry for the Hangzhou to Shenzhen city pair and it books the whole day, so the day is planned as a whole travel day. An afternoon flight has not been verified against the current-season timetable, so the two Hangzhou items designed for that morning are not promised. If a verified service is confirmed for your dates, the released morning is written into your quote before you pay.
- Two Shenzhen venues: DJI Sky City and the Shenzhen urban planning and industry exhibition are in the route as designed, and neither venue's visitor access is on record. A campus or an exhibition hall that turns guests away at the door is a hard failure, so neither is sold until access is secured with the venue and written into the inclusions, or a named replacement in the same city is put in its place.
- The Shanghai Museum reservation: entry is by timed reservation and the booking system is hard to use on a non-Chinese phone number, so we book your slot with the details on your confirmation. The internal route for that booking is still being settled, along with a same-city replacement of the same kind for dates when the slot cannot be obtained. Whichever applies to your dates is written into your itinerary before you pay.
- Local practitioners: this route does not arrange conversations with local practitioners in any of the three cities, and nothing on this page implies one. If that is the thing you came for, tell us and we will say plainly whether we can build it for your dates rather than writing it into a plan first.
- Departure dates: the national holiday week of October 1 to 7, 2026 is not quoted until visitor limits and transport capacity are checked point by point for this route. Departures from October 8 onward are quoted normally.
- Visa window: the 30-day visa-free policy currently runs through December 31, 2026. Because this is a nine-day plan, departures on or before December 23, 2026 finish inside that window; later departure dates are quoted only after the official renewal is announced.
- United States passports: this route is not sold to United States guests. There is no direct air service from Shenzhen to the United States, so the exit port does not clear for that market, and entering or leaving through Hong Kong with a land border crossing is not an approved selling route for this product. Whether to open this route to United States guests is under review; until that is written down, no United States order is taken.
- Confirmation and changes: the confirmation-time commitment and the change and refund terms are being finalized with our ground partners. Until they are settled, each quote states in writing its own confirmation deadline and its change and refund conditions, and no order is taken without them in writing. Note that this routing holds several kinds of inventory at once, so a date change touches transport, hotels and timed venue reservations in the same move.

## Is Nine Days Your Length?

Fewer than nine days?

### Fewer than nine days?

The three cities come apart cleanly. Shanghai stands on its own at three or four nights, Shenzhen at two or three, and the Hangzhou stretch is the one that comes out first, which is also the eight-day version we would build today. Tell us your dates and we cut cities rather than cut the pace.

## Good to Know

- Group: Private, just your party. From 1 guest. No fixed maximum party size.
- Pace: Three cities in nine days: Shanghai 3 nights, Hangzhou 2, Shenzhen 3. Two of the nine days are travel days
- Effort: City walking on flat ground, with a private vehicle between stops in Shanghai and Shenzhen. The longest continuous walk is a market building you go through floor by floor, with lifts
- Ports: Shanghai in, Shenzhen out, open jaw: you do not return to the entry city. Airport pickup on day one and drop-off on day nine
- Visas: Visa-free entry for stays days, checked order by order against your dates. Western Europe: France, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium. Southern Europe: Italy, Spain, Portugal, Greece. Then the UK, Ireland, the Nordic countries and Central Europe. Then Canada, Australia and New Zealand. This route is not sold to United States passport holders
- Language: Licensed English-speaking local guides on all touring days in Shanghai and Shenzhen
- Payment: When this route opens for booking: From 1 guest. A 10% deposit (minimum $399) locks your dates. The balance is due 14 days before departure. "Or similar" never means a quiet downgrade
- Season: Selling window October to December 2026. No quotes for October 1 to 7; departures on or before December 23, 2026 finish inside the current visa-free window

## Your Private Concierge

- Name: Jason Hu
- Title: Private China Route Concierge
- Tagline: A bilingual planning desk for tailor-made China journeys.
- Bio: Our China team tunes pacing, hotels and local hosts around each route style.
- Avatar image: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/c0TBypRh.png

### Stats

- 20+ Years
- 300+ Trips designed
- 24/7 On-trip care

### The Conversation

Every LyrikTrip journey begins with a conversation. Tell us your dates and who's coming — and if this length isn't right for you, we'll say so and shape a shorter arc. First reply within four hours; a clear price for your dates within one business day.

- CTA: Start the conversation

### 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.

- 10%: 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.

- 24/7: Support throughout your journey

- Free cancellation up to 30 days
- English-speaking concierge
- Secure payment via Stripe

- CTA: Talk to Us

## Guest Reviews

- Overall rating: 4.9
- Total reviews: 523
- Count label: from 523 verified reviews

4.9 / 5

### Platforms

- google: 4.9 (312 reviews)
- tripadvisor: 5.0 (211 reviews)

- Filter tabs: All, Google, TripAdvisor
- Emily Carter (🇺🇸 Seattle, USA · 5★ · May 2026 · google): Perfect for couples - My partner and I had an amazing time in China. Everything was arranged for us — transfers, hotels, guides. No stress at all.
- Claire Brooks (🇬🇧 London, UK · 5★ · Apr 2026 · tripadvisor): Great for families - Traveled with my two kids and had zero issues. The team made sure the pace wasn't too rushed and included things the kids would enjoy. Communication was easy throughout. Will definitely use them again for our next Asia trip.
- Laura Bennett (🇨🇦 Toronto, Canada · 5★ · Mar 2026 · google): Alisa made the whole experience easy - Alisa was our point of contact throughout and she was brilliant — patient, knowledgeable, and always quick to reply. The trip itself was wonderful. Beijing and Guilin were highlights.
- Mark Henderson (🇺🇸 Denver, USA · 4★ · Feb 2026 · tripadvisor): Good service, minor hiccup but sorted quickly - Really good service. There was a small mix-up with one of our restaurant bookings but it got sorted quickly. The rest of the trip was seamless.
- Rebecca Miller (🇺🇸 Boston, USA · 5★ · Jan 2026 · google): Really listened to what we wanted - Really helpful team. They listened to what we wanted and delivered. Beijing and Xi'an were incredible.

## China Ready

We've solved the hard parts. Here's everything a first-time Western traveler needs to know before arriving.

### VPN & Internet Access

- Badge: Do this before you fly
- What's blocked: Google, Gmail, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp, and most Western news sites are inaccessible in China without a VPN.
- Download before you leave: It's nearly impossible to download a VPN once inside China. Install and test at home. Recommended: Astrill (most reliable), Mullvad, ExpressVPN — subscribe to at least two in case one stops working.
- Hotel Wi-Fi tip: Some hotels block VPN connections on their Wi-Fi. Use your phone's mobile data as a hotspot if the VPN drops.
- Good news: WhatsApp works perfectly through a VPN, so your messaging stays unchanged. Apple iMessage and Signal also work.

### Paying in China

- Badge: Your concierge sets this up on Day 1
- China is cashless: Alipay and WeChat Pay are used for almost everything — restaurants, taxis, markets, tickets. Cash is rarely accepted in cities.
- International cards now work: Foreign Visa/Mastercard can now link directly to Alipay (set up in minutes, $5,000 single transaction limit). Your concierge walks you through the setup on your first morning.
- Carry some cash: We recommend ¥500–800 RMB in cash for the rare vendor that won't accept digital payment, and for small towns.
- Booking this trip: Your deposit and balance are charged via Stripe — the same trusted platform used by Airbnb and Booking.com. USD billing, no surprise conversion fees.

### Visa & Entry

- Badge: We handle the paperwork
- Do you need a visa?: Most US, UK, EU, Australian, Canadian, and New Zealand passport holders need a tourist (L) visa for stays over 10 days. We provide a visa invitation letter with every booking — it significantly speeds up approval.
- 240-hour visa-free transit: Citizens of 55+ countries (including USA, UK, most of EU, AUS, NZ, Canada) can enter China visa-free for up to 10 days if transiting through eligible ports. This covers our 12-day itinerary only if you have a confirmed onward flight.
- Processing time: Apply 4–6 weeks before departure. Standard processing: 4–7 business days. Express (3 days) and same-day options available at most Chinese consulates.
- What we provide: Visa invitation letter, hotel confirmation for all nights, suggested itinerary document — everything the consulate needs, formatted correctly.

### Safety & Practical Tips

- Badge: Our responsibility, always
- Is China safe?: China consistently ranks among the safest countries for foreign tourists. Violent crime against visitors is extremely rare. Cities have extensive CCTV coverage and a visible police presence.
- Emergency numbers: Police: 110. Ambulance: 120. Your concierge is your first call for any non-emergency situation — she has local contacts for every city on the itinerary.
- Health & medications: Bring a full supply of any prescription medication. International pharmacies exist in major cities but may not carry your brand. Travel insurance is required — we can recommend policies that cover China specifically.
- Language: English fluency outside hotels and tourist sites is limited. Your guides all speak English. We provide a printed pocket card with essential Chinese phrases and emergency contacts for every traveler.

## Before You Book

Everything worth knowing before you book.

### Isn't "modern China" just malls and skyline photographs? 「

That is exactly what this route is built to avoid. There is one view from height in nine days and it is used as a reading exercise, with your guide finding the streets you walked the day before. Everything else is people and mechanism: parents in a park looking for husbands and wives for their grown children, a market walked floor by floor from components to finished machines, and an old walled town that the city was built up against. If you want the skyline picture you will get it in ten minutes on day three, and then we move on.

### Can I ride a driverless taxi in Shenzhen?

It is an optional add-on, booked by date in advance, priced separately when you choose it, and reconfirmed on the ground. We do not promise it, because the service runs on a commercial operator's own network and whether it runs on your day is not ours to decide. If the operator is not running, the ride is not charged and nothing is quietly substituted into your plan. What holds either way is the Shenzhen day itself: Huaqiangbei floor by floor with your guide is in the base price and does not depend on anyone else's fleet.

### What actually happens on the two Hangzhou days?

Honestly: that is not settled, and we would rather say so. The design puts a full day at West Lake there. What we have not done is place a ground partner in Hangzhou. That means the hotel, the vehicle, the guide and every admission there sit outside your base price; none of it is sold to you in advance. There are two working outcomes and you will be told which one applies to your dates before you are asked for anything: we place a ground handler and quote those two days properly, or the route is re-cut as an eight-day Shanghai and Shenzhen version. Shanghai and Shenzhen, which are the two cities this route is really about, are unaffected either way.

### Why is Shenzhen in this plan instead of Beijing?

Because Beijing answers a question this route is not asking. This is a nine-day plan about how the country works now, and Shenzhen is the shortest way to see that: a market where a phone comes apart into its parts and its sourcing chain, and, twenty minutes away, an old walled town that was here before the city. Beijing, the Great Wall and the Terracotta Warriors are all worth nine days of their own, and we build those routes too. Tell us if you want both and we will tell you honestly how many days that takes.

### Do we need a visa?

Most guests on this route do not. Visa-free entry for stays days covers Western Europe: France, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium. It covers Southern Europe: Italy, Spain, Portugal, Greece. It also covers the UK, Ireland, the Nordic countries and Central Europe. Canada, Australia and New Zealand are covered too. We check your nine days plus any extra days in China against that window before you pay. The current policy runs through December 31, 2026. Departures on or before December 23, 2026 finish inside it; later dates are quoted after the official renewal is announced. United States passports are different: this route is not sold to United States guests, because there is no direct air service from Shenzhen to the United States. If that is your passport, tell us and we will point you at a routing that exits somewhere it can.