Suzhou and Zhouzhuang Water Village Day Trip from Shanghai

Overview

Available languages

Chinese

English

10 hours

Mobile ticket

Visit two picturesque Chinese towns, Suzhou and Zhouzhuang on a day trip from Shanghai. You'll see how daily life has remained unchanged over the centuries in these unique old towns. Visit the Suzhou's magnificent gardens, feast on a Chinese lunch and travel through Zhouzhuang's waterways on a Chinese-style gondola.

Additional Info

Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap

Suitable for all physical fitness levels

This is a Shared Tour - 3 people are needed as a minimum to proceed with the tour.

Cancellation Policy

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

What‘s Included

Boat tour in the water village

English-speaking tour guide

Lunch

Air-conditioned vehicle

Admission tickets

Hotel pickup and drop off in the city center

Gratuities

Meeting and Pickup

Pickup points

Select a pickup point

What To Expect

Master-of-Nets Garden

Suzhou is one of the oldest towns in the Yangtze basin, founded in about 600 B.C. With its interconnected waterways and beautiful environment, the city is often referred as “The Venice of the East”. The gardens embody the harmonious principles of Chinese garden construction, which dictate that gardens should attempt to create a microcosm of the universe in a confined space. Net Master Garden is the best and most celebrated as a model Ming Dynasty Garden in all of Suzhou.

1 hour • Admission Included

The Grand Canal starts in Beijing, pass by Suzhou, and ends in Hangzhou. It is over 1,000 kilometers from the North China to South China, which is known as a miracle in the world.

15 minutes • Admission Not Applicable

Options

Suzhou and Zhouzhuang Water Village Day Trip from Shanghai

Pickup included

Reviews

3.74

424 reviews

Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor

149

134

Great trip
Jeremy B,
Oct 13, 2025
- Review from Viator
4.00
Great trip. Good value. Informative English speaking guide. Mini bus quite cramped hence only 4 stars.
I recently took a day...
Fabio T,
Aug 7, 2025
- Review from Viator
5.00
I recently took a day trip to Suzhou and Zhouzhuang Water Town with my guide Elena and it was hands down one of the best experiences I’ve had! From the moment the tour started, everything was perfectly organized, and I felt completely immersed in the rich culture and history of these two beautiful places.
Not so great tour
juliechand,
Jun 25, 2025
- Review from Viator
2.00
Well the water village was pretty but a tour is enjoyable only when the tour guide is interested enough to show you around and give some info about the places and not just answer to the point. Our tour guide Elena was silent most of the Time , not interested to show much and did not give us time to spend at any of the places. Do not recommend this tour or the tour company. No response in anything.
Great Tour with Tom
B7713WElizh,
Jun 4, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00
We had two tours with the exceptional guide Tom. His English skill is amazing and his deep knowledge of Shanghai and China was fascinating. When I come back to Shanghai, I hope to have another tour with him. Also, the driver was safe and the food delicious.
Wonderful day! Highly recommend.
JaYing W,
May 26, 2025
- Review from Viator
5.00
I booked this tour for my family reunion of 11 adults to celebrate my mothers 90th birthday. Our tour guide Tom and driver picked us up in a comfortable and air conditioned 12 passenger van. It poured on our way from Shanghai to Suzhou but miraculously cleared up for our tour of Master of the Nets Garden. The rest of the day was beautiful, everyone had a marvelous time. The tour company was very responsive when I realized I lost my phone, returning my emails promptly. Luckily, a merchant in Zhouzhuang found my phone and messengered it back to my Shanghai hotel.
An Amazing Day in Suzhou!
Cathy,
May 15, 2025
- Review from Viator
5.00
Elena was a wonderful guide. She was both informative and interesting, and made the Souzhou tour a wonderful experience. She topped it off with a tasteful lunch, an educational silk factory tour, and an authentic visit to the water towel with a gondola ride. We highly recommend this tour.
Trip to Suzhou and water village
Zoltán F,
Mar 3, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
1.00
That was a bad decision. The tour guide didn't even introduce himself, he was like a military officer. The Suzhou program was quite incomprehensible. Lunch is a disaster. There were plenty of nice restaurants in the water village, it wouldn't have been more expensive, but even in Suzhou they took me to a restaurant on the ground floor of a block of flats. The guide wasn't even willing to ask for a beer - we pay for it, of course - but he didn't offer language help either. I do not recommend this service at all!
Refused refund
nicholashN6346EG,
Jan 10, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
1.00
I don't know how the trip was exactly because the tour operator refused to pick me up from my hotel. I was not informed that they wouldn't service my hotel, which is on the way from shanghai to the first destination, until the night before I was booked to go, meaning that I was unable to cancel my booking through trip advisor and get a refund. I believe they must do this on purpose in order to catch people out. They also were dishonest to me and said it was impossible for them to cancel the booking on their end. I went through tripadvisor customer service and they contacted the operator who refused to give a refund. So they lied, they could absolutely give a refund, they just didnt want to. Very unprofessional. Maybe some people get lucky and it all works out with this operator, but I would not trust them.
It was a good day spent on the road
Vacation14939812086,
Nov 9, 2024
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00
We enjoyed the entire trip. Get ready for a lot of traffic coming and going out of Shanghai, but it’s a good way to see rural China in the eyes of the water village. We felt the trip was well planned with a lot of things to see on Suzhou, the garden is incredible and the silk museum is worth it to learn some silk making and buy some real silk products. Our guide Elena was with us the whole time explaining about history and sights we were seeing. Lunch was actually good, would prefer to have it in the water village though. We wish we had more time to spend in the water village.
Very nice day
charjimkeeton,
Sep 29, 2024
- Review from Viator
5.00
Water village was very good. A little more time to explore the site would have been nice. The guide could have provided a little more information and spoken a little louder. Overall, a very good experience, and recommended.