Suzhou Private Day Trip from Shanghai with Bullet Train Option: Explore the 'Venice of the East'

Embark on a private day trip from Shanghai to Suzhou, the ‘Venice of the East.’ Explore the city’s canals, historical buildings, and classic gardens. Choose between a bullet train or private car for transportation and enjoy a customizable itinerary with optional upgrades for lunch and entrance fees.

Duration: 9 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Shanghai - Begin your delightful day trip with a convenient hotel pick-up in Shanghai. Accompanied by your guide, travel to Suzhou using the transportation option you selected. If you choose the fast train or bullet train option, enjoy an exhilarating 30-minute ride to Suzhou. During the journey, take a few minutes to discuss a personalized…
What's Included
  • Hotel pickup and drop-off in downtown Shanghai area
  • Professional guide
  • Transportation based on your tour option
  • Local tasty lunch with ‘All Inclusive Tour’
  • Boat ride in the canal with ‘All Inclusive Tour’
  • Entrance fee to a garden with ‘All Inclusive Tour’
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)
Additional Information

Enjoy a fully guided private day trip to the renowned “Oriental Venice” of Suzhou, led by your personal expert guide with a fully customizable itinerary. Immerse yourself in the beauty of ancient Chinese gardens with UNESCO heritage status, and discover the unique charms of the water town with its picturesque network of ancient canals and bustling water…

Location
Shanghai
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
5.0
(356 Ratings)
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Mohammed_a
Dec 9, 2025
Beautiful Suzhou! - The whole trip was comfortable, hassle free! Suzhou is a must visit place! Enjoyed the trip! My tour guide Lea was very helpful and knew the place very well- we visited all the top spots! Beautiful views! Master of Nets garden was exquisite indeed! Thanks to the team at Sunny Tours!
Review provided by Viator
Mikesj9226sb
Dec 4, 2025
Excellent guide, professional - Melinda was an excellent guide and took us to beautiful Suzhou whilst was open to explaining to us a lot of information. Well planned problem free trip. Very enthusiastic guide
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Rosa_f
Nov 19, 2025
Great tour with great Guide! - The tour to Suzhou with bullet train was awesome! It was great to see why Suzhou is called the Venice of China —- beautiful bridges and architecture along the canal! But best of all, our guide Sammie was simply awesome. She was knowledgeable, informative and patient with all our questions. The restaurant we had lunch at had delicious food and Sammie made sure we got everything we wanted to taste! But more importantly, Sammie’s customer service was exceptional. We had to cut our tour short due to a night cruise in Hangpau river. She personally helped us to pick up our tickets and accompanied us to the boat terminal. In addition, when we contacted her to ask about a particular restaurant, she called them herself without us asking and made sure we knew what the place looked like from the outside. Amazing service!
Review provided by Viator
Shalmali_k
Nov 16, 2025
Wholesome trip! - We started the day at 9 in the morning with our wonderful guide who felt like a friend by 6pm when we ended our day. Roy, our guide, seemed to have answers for everything and made our trip very informative. He went above and beyond to make us enjoy and learn about our surroundings and culture. I would definitely recommend this day trip!!
Review provided by Viator
Harley_g
Nov 14, 2025
Beautiful day in Souzhou - Melinda picked us up from our hotel and was with us in all day from navigating the crowded china trains to taking us to explaining and suggesting a beautiful lunch at a local restaurant. She walked us through and explained the gardens, and pointed out different points of interest as we drove through the city. We also took a beautiful boat a boat ride where her wealth of information continued. She then accompanied us back to our hotel. Even though the day was cold and rainy Melinda made it a beautiful day.
Review provided by Viator
Q5964lwchrisd
Nov 14, 2025
must do - we had heard about these trains in new zealand but really enyed the experience . we managed three train rides with top speeds around 280 km per hour loved it
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Shaza_m
Nov 4, 2025
A Last-Minute Gem: This Tour Exceeded My Expectations! - I booked this trip last minute and it turned out to be one of the best decisions of my holiday. On the advice of a previous tour guide, I chose this experience instead of another water village tour, and I'm so glad I did. My only regret is not booking for two days instead of just one—there's so much to see and do! The area is full of vibrant streets lined with shops, restaurants, and souvenir stalls. There are plenty of activities, from boat tours to exploring local history and culture. The food was wonderful, offering a great taste of the local cuisine. The absolute highlight of my trip was my tour guide, Melinda. She made the experience seamless and truly enjoyable. Melinda’s knowledge, enthusiasm, and genuine interest in making sure I got the most out of the tour made all the difference. I appreciated the extra suggestions for things to do, which helped make my holiday even better. If you're short on time, this tour is still worth it, but if you can, book for longer—you won't regret it. Thank you, Melinda, for an unforgettable experience! Highly recommended.
Review provided by Viator
Vandyl2023
Oct 28, 2025
Day trip from Shanghai - We spent a wonderful day with Annie in Suzhou. From the time we were picked up from the hotel till we returned, she provided interesting information everywhere we went. Annie explained the history of the area and also provided insight on modern China. Her English is excellent. Every part of the trip was organized but we never felt rushed. I highly recommend this tour.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Clarews4545xw
Oct 27, 2025
A great day in Suzhou - Booked this day trip a couple of weeks before we were due to visit Shanghai because I didn’t want us to spend all our time in the city. It was definitely worth it to experience the bullet train, see the beautiful Chinese gardens, take a trip down the canal, go somewhere a bit more relaxed. It is a full day of walking pretty much and it made us feel like we were in China because even though Suzhou is a large city you spend your time in the old part. Roy was our guide and he stayed with us from when we left the hotel to when we returned. He was very knowledgeable on the area but also gave us information about Chinese culture and history. It was great having all the transport sorted for us, particularly between sites so we didn’t have to worry about anything. Overall I would recommend.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Phingphing_l
Oct 19, 2025
Enjoyable and fun! - Brilliant! Melinda took really good care of us and was so knowledgeable about every intricate detail of the places we visited. We enjoyed the experience overall and had a really fun day in Suzhou. The lunch was nothing short but amazing! It was a very worthwhile tour for anyone visiting Suzhou for the first time
Review provided by Viator
From $66
up to 15 guests
1 - Adult
Cancellation: Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start of your experience (local time).