Shanghai Day Tour: Exclusive Trip to Historic Suzhou and Zhujiajiao Water Town

Embark on an exclusive day trip to the historic Suzhou and Zhujiajiao Water Town. Explore ancient UNESCO gardens, the Grand Canal, and the No.1 ancient street in Suzhou. Discover the charm of Zhujiajiao Water Town, known as the ‘Little Oriental Venice’, and immerse yourself in the local culture and customs. Private transfers included.

Duration: 9 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • The Classical Gardens of Suzhou - Your friendly local guide and driver will meet you at your hotel in Shanghai. Enjoy a comfortable journey to Suzhou. As this is a private tour, the itinerary is fully tailored to your preferences. Below is a recommended itinerary, but feel free to inform your guide if you wish to make any changes. Typically, the…
What's Included
  • Professional guide
  • Private driver with comfortable car
  • Hotel pickup and drop-off in downtown Shanghai area
  • Local tasty lunch (only if ‘All Inclusive Tour’ is booked)
  • Entrance fee to one Suzhou garden (only if ‘All Inclusive Tour’ is booked)
  • Boat ride in the canal (only if ‘All Inclusive Tour’ is booked)
What's Not Included
  • Food and drinks (if “ All Inclusive “ and “ Tour with Lunch “option is not booked)
  • Entrance fees or optional boat ride (If”All incluisve” option is not selected)
  • Gratuities
Additional Information

Delight in an exclusive private day tour to the renowned water towns of Suzhou and Zhujiajiao. Discover the 2,500-year-old Suzhou, featuring ancient UNESCO gardens, the Grand Canal, the No.1 ancient street, and the silk industry. Explore the 1,700-year-old Zhujiajiao Water Town, often referred to as the “Little Oriental Venice.” Visit the traditional…

Location
The Classical Gardens of Suzhou
No.12 Gongyuan Road, Canglang District,
Cancellation Policy

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

Customer Ratings
5.0
(30 Ratings)
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Ben_f
Mar 17, 2026
Water town fun - High value tour. Got to see a lot and do a lot. Excellent food for lunch. Gardens and water town were impressive. Roy was friendly and very helpful
Review provided by Viator
Janet
Mar 9, 2026
Great guide, comfortable travel and a fantastic day out - We had a fantastic day trip to Suzhou and Zhujiajiao from Shanghai with Roy from Sunny Tours. This was our second tour with the company, and both experiences were excellent, even though each tour had a different guide. Roy spoke fluent English and had an impressive knowledge of both destinations, which made the experience even more enjoyable. The vehicle was very comfortable and the driver was excellent, making the long journey feel easy and relaxing. Having a car and driver allowed us to see far more than we would have been able to on our own in the limited time we had. Although it was a full day of travelling, the time passed quickly as Roy shared interesting information about the places we visited and even helped us plan the rest of our trip in China. The tour also included lunch at a local restaurant, which gave us a great opportunity to try some new dishes. The restaurant was very clean, the facilities were excellent, and the food was delicious. Overall, it was a well-balanced tour and the day was clearly very carefully planned and organised. We are extremely grateful to Roy and Sunny Tours for such a wonderful experience — it truly could not have been better.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Pnwtravellinman
Mar 3, 2026
Customized just as requested - I had visited the region in 2002 and wanted to share the fond experiences with my wife. I worked with Sunny weeks prior to our cruise and she was awesome. She had a great "can do" approach and built an itinerary just as I requested. Our guide, Roy, picked us up as scheduled and conducted a most enjoyable tour. He was knowledgeable and easy to understand and selected an excellent restaurant for lunch. Beware, however, when the local guide refers to the stir fry beef as "a little spicy" LOL! It was a great full day tour and I highly recommend Sunny Tours.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Ali_t
Feb 10, 2026
Do this tour!!! - Annie was an amazing tour guide for us!! We were able to go on our own and do everything how we wanted to for the day. It was perfectly mapped out and well designed to ensure we had such a lovely experience! Such a great lunch and beautiful sights to see and she had ALL the knowledge about the spots we visited
Review provided by Viator
Phil_c
Jan 3, 2026
Shanghai water towns - Great trip, good driving as guiding. Relaxing trip. Good communication. Highly recommend. The trip involves. a couple hours drive outside of Shanghai, but it's well worth it. Earlier Chinese dynasties dating as early as 300 BC built water canals. This trip visits two water towns. Shizou is a great example of this. Marco Polo came here an noticed its similarities to Venice. Also has the Chinese leaning tower. Greta history. Great company to use. Very communicative.
Review provided by Viator
Adventure09377048856
Dec 1, 2025
A day well spent - The tour was very well organised. The car was immaculate and our guide Melinda was very informative and friendly. Would highly recommend it.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Getaway783413
Nov 29, 2025
Fantastic Tour of Suzhou & Zhujiajiao! - Wonderful experience with our guide Melinda! We were picked up at our hotel by Melinda & a driver in a nice, luxurious & spacious van. Melinda was excellent, she explained a lot of Chinese culture to us & gave us detailed information at each site we visited. She was very professional, entire trip was very well planned, for example we went to Zhujiajiao in the morning to avoid the crowds and we really enjoyed it being so tranquil and peaceful. We also never had to wait for our transportation, the van would always just drive up at the right time and pick us up to go to the next stop. We went to a silk factory & learnt about silk production which was very educational for my teenage son. We couldn’t have asked for a better experience, we learnt so much stuff and it was so nice to have a private & customized tour. Melinda was super friendly & wonderful to talk to, she gave us suggestions of what to do & where to dine in Shanghai for the rest of our trip.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jennifer_p
Nov 6, 2025
Fantastic Guide - This was a great way to see the history of the Shanghai area outside of the city. The historical water towns were fascinating. Our guide, Melinda was so friendly and knowledgeable and let us take as much time as we wanted when we saw shops or food vendors we wanted to explore. She made sure we had our tickets and place in line and made sure we got the best price for shopping. Our driver Charlie was very safe and punctual. If you want a break from the busy city, this is a great excursion.
Review provided by Viator
337daniely
Oct 31, 2025
Terrific Tour Company! - Terrific time - well organized tour guide, and very accommodating and responsive. Pick up was on time, and good transport and lunch. Thank you!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Kristen_i
Nov 16, 2025
Interesting - Judy was an excellent, informative guide for our group of three active adults. She deserves the four stars.
Review provided by Viator
From $50
up to 15 guests
1 - Adult
Cancellation: Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start of your experience (local time).