Visitors walking the Great Wall at Badaling on a clear winter day, the wall climbing over the hills
Hosted China

Guides, drivers, interpreters and whole trips, arranged by people who live in the city you are visiting.

Our services

Take only what you need

Private tours of China, built around you rather than a fixed group itinerary. Some travellers want every hour planned and someone at their side. Others want the trains booked and a number to call. Most are somewhere in between. Pick the services that suit you; a host puts them together into one plan and one price.

A local guide with a flag leading a group of visitors through the Temple of Heaven park in Beijing

A private guide for the whole trip

An English-speaking guide with you on the days you choose, from the first morning to the last.

Your guide meets you at the hotel, walks you through the sights at your pace and deals with the things that slow visitors down: timed entry, ID checks, queues, ordering food and paying for it. You can have the same guide travel with you between cities, or a local guide waiting in each one.

What it includes

  • A guide on every day you ask for, or only on the busy ones
  • Timed tickets booked ahead for sights that need them, such as the Forbidden City
  • Help with Alipay, WeChat Pay, menus and taxis while you settle in
  • A plan for each day, adjusted on the spot if the weather or your energy changes

Good for: First trips, short trips, and anyone who would rather not spend the holiday reading signs.

Often asked for in: Beijing, Xi'an, Shanghai, Chengdu, Tibet

Plan your trip
A car on the expressway approaching the terminal drop-off at Beijing Daxing International Airport

Car, driver and transfers

Someone waiting at arrivals with your name, and a car for the days that are hard on public transport.

We meet you at the airport or the high-speed rail station and take you straight to the hotel, then back again when you leave. For day trips out of town, such as the Great Wall from Beijing or the Terracotta Army from Xi'an, a private car with a driver saves hours of transfers and lets you leave when you are ready.

What it includes

  • Airport and station pick-up and drop-off, with a name sign at arrivals
  • A car with a driver for full or half days
  • A vehicle sized to your group and luggage
  • Pick-up times sent to you in advance, with the driver's contact

Good for: Late arrivals, heavy luggage, travellers with limited mobility, and day trips out of the city.

Often asked for in: Beijing, Xi'an, Zhangjiajie, Guilin

Plan your trip
Vendors at vegetable stalls with handwritten Chinese price cards in a covered market in Beijing

Interpreting, in person or by message

For the moments when a translation app is not enough.

An interpreter can come with you for a morning at a market, a visit to relatives, a meeting or a shopping trip where you want to ask real questions. On days without an interpreter, your host is on WhatsApp or WeChat for the quick things: reading a sign, calling a restaurant, or explaining what a station announcement means.

What it includes

  • An interpreter by the hour or the day
  • Help with calls, bookings and questions to shops and hotels
  • Your host on a message app for quick translations during the trip

Good for: Family visits, shopping and sourcing trips, and anyone going beyond the main sights.

Often asked for in: Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Shanghai

Plan your trip
The quiet first-class carriage of a Fuxing high-speed train, with wide seats and soft lighting

Hotels and itinerary, all arranged

One plan with every night, train and ticket already booked.

Tell us how you like to travel and we put the whole trip together: the route between cities, the hotels, the high-speed trains, the tickets that sell out, and the restaurants worth a reservation. You get a single day-by-day plan with addresses in English and Chinese, and every booking confirmed before you fly.

What it includes

  • A day-by-day route between the cities you choose
  • Hotels picked for location and booked for each night
  • High-speed train seats and timed sight tickets
  • One document with every address, booking and contact, in English and Chinese

Good for: Travellers who want everything settled before they leave home.

Often asked for in: Beijing, Shanghai, Xi'an, Chengdu, Tibet, Xinjiang

Plan your trip
A bamboo raft on the Yulong River near Yangshuo, with karst peaks under a clear blue sky

DIY in depth

Travel on your own, with the hard parts done for you.

If you would rather explore without a guide, we plan a route that goes further than the first-timer circuit: villages, smaller towns, markets and walks that are hard to piece together from abroad. We book the trains and timed tickets, write each day as a self-guided plan, and stay on call. You can add a guide or a driver for a single day whenever you want one.

What it includes

  • A route built around what you want to see, not a fixed tour
  • Trains and timed tickets booked, the rest left to you
  • Self-guided notes for each day, with names and addresses in Chinese
  • A host on call for problems, changes and questions

Good for: Second trips, independent travellers, photographers and slow travellers.

Often asked for in: Guilin, Dali, Huangshan, Shangri-La

Plan your trip
Aerial view of the Canton Fair Complex halls in Guangzhou, with the Pearl River and city towers behind

Business hosting

Meetings, factory visits and trade fairs, with the logistics handled.

For business travel we arrange the airport pick-up, the hotel near your meetings, a car between sites and an interpreter for the conversations that matter. We can plan visits around trade fairs such as the Canton Fair in Guangzhou, book business dinners, and leave room for a day of sightseeing if the schedule allows.

What it includes

  • Transfers and a car with a driver between meetings and factories
  • A business interpreter for meetings and site visits
  • Hotels near your meetings or the fair
  • Restaurant bookings for hosting clients or partners

Good for: Buyers, sourcing trips, trade fairs, and teams visiting suppliers or partners.

Often asked for in: Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Shanghai, Hong Kong

Plan your trip
A young giant panda sitting on wooden logs at the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding

Family trips

A pace that works for children and grandparents alike.

Family trips need shorter days, fewer hotel changes and food everyone will eat. We plan around naps and early nights, choose hotels with family rooms or connecting rooms where available, and pick sights that hold children's attention, such as the giant pandas in Chengdu. A guide or driver can make long days easier for older travellers.

What it includes

  • Shorter days and fewer moves between hotels
  • Family or connecting rooms where the hotel has them
  • Sights and restaurants that suit children and older travellers
  • A car on the days with long distances

Good for: Parents with young children, three-generation trips and family reunions.

Often asked for in: Chengdu, Shanghai, Hangzhou, Xiamen

Plan your trip
Hongyadong in Chongqing at night, its stacked wooden buildings lit gold and hung with red lanterns

Evenings and nightlife

China stays up late. These are plans for after dark.

Many cities are at their best at night: the Bund lit up in Shanghai, Hongyadong above the river in Chongqing, night food streets in Xi'an and Changsha. We plan evenings around river cruises, acrobatics and opera shows, night markets, late dinners and bars with live music, with a guide or host along if you like and a car to take you back.

What it includes

  • Evening plans for each city: cruises, shows, night markets and late food
  • Tickets for shows booked ahead
  • A guide or host for the evening if you want company
  • A ride back to the hotel arranged

Good for: Couples, friends travelling together, and anyone who wants more than the daytime sights.

Often asked for in: Shanghai, Chongqing, Changsha, Xi'an

Plan your trip

Fully arranged or DIY in depth

The two most common ways to use us, side by side. You can mix them: a guided first city, then a few days on your own.

Part of the tripFully arrangedDIY in depth
Route and hotelsPlanned and booked by usPlanned with you; you can book hotels yourself
Trains and timed ticketsBooked by usBooked by us
GuideWith you on the days you chooseOptional, by the day
TransfersIncluded where you want themOptional
Day plansGuided, with timingsSelf-guided notes with Chinese addresses
Help during the tripYour guide, and your host by messageYour host by message
Plan a fully arranged tripPlan a DIY trip

Where we arrange it

Every service is available in all 38 cities with a guide on this site. Read the city first, then tell us what you need there.

North

Northwest

East

Southwest

South and centre

All cities on the map

How it works

  1. Ask

    Tell us your cities, dates, group and what you would like arranged. The form takes about three minutes.

  2. Plan

    A host who lives there replies within 24 hours with a day-by-day plan and a price.

  3. Adjust

    Change anything, as many times as you like. Bookings are made only after you accept.

  4. Go

    Arrive with the bookings done and the payment apps set up. Your host is a message away.

Questions

Can I book just one service, such as an airport pick-up or one day with a guide?

Yes. Tick only what you need in the Plan your trip form and say which days. Many people start with a transfer and a guide for their first day.

Which cities do you cover?

The 38 cities on this site, from Beijing, Shanghai, Xi'an and Chengdu to Guilin, Harbin, Hong Kong and Macau. If you are going somewhere else, ask: tell us where in the form. See all cities

When do I pay?

Nothing is booked until you have seen the plan and the price and accepted them. Your host explains how to pay when you accept.

Do your guides speak languages other than English?

The plans and guides are in English by default. If you need another language, say so in the form and we will tell you what is possible in your cities.

Do I still need a visa?

That depends on your passport and route. Our visa-free entry guide explains the 30-day visa-free list and the 240-hour transit rule. Read the guide

Watchtowers of the Great Wall along a ridge, with steps leading up from the foreground

Tell us what you need

Choose your cities and dates, tick the services you want, and a host who lives there replies within 24 hours with a plan and a price.

Plan your trip

Plan your trip

Tell us where and when. A host who lives there replies within 24 hours with a day-by-day plan and a price. No payment now.

Which cities? Tap them in the order you'd like to visit
What should we arrange? optional
What matters most? optional