Private Day Trip to Hangzhou from Shanghai by Bullet Train

Apple is very friendly, patient and knew exactly what we wanted. She brought us to the restaurant that she strongly recommend, and it is the best restaurant that I’ve visited in China ! We talked a lot and had so much fun together. Now that the trip has ended, I really do miss her. Will plan another trip and definitely will want Apple as my guide again!

I have been on many private tours and the reason for this is privacy and flexibility. This your provides both perfectly. Apple has been so enthusiastic, attentive and passionate. She adapted so well in understanding our needs, blending in as part of the group, more like a friend rather than a guide. She insisted on going against our will for dinner only to find out she brought us to 1 of the best restaurants ever. We told her what we wanted and it was all magically fulfilled. She even told many stories with regard to the history and myths of Hangzhou. Definitely recommend it.

Apple is the best guide I ever had to-date. She’s super amiable, helpful and experienced in every way. Our group blended well with her. She really knows what she’s doing and what’s the best for us all (Tourists). Flexible and great in planning every detail. Will definitely be back here with Sunflower and hopefully to re-experience her splendid service!!!

Excellent trip. Our guide Apple was excellent, friendly and blended in to our group perfectly. She even recommended a fabulous place for dinner and tea tasting. Totally recommended.

I had a wondeful trip. Everything was all right. By far Apple is the best guide I have had in years. She is very clever, she knows very well the history of the places we visited and she has many nice stories to tell visotors. In addition she was very helpfull in solving an issue I had with returning money from one railway ticket. I could not resolve it by myself never. So she is so nice, very professional and helpful person. The driver Mr Wang was all right. I will recomend this tour to my friends.

We booked this tour because we wanted to take the bullet train and also to see the key sights of Hangzhou at the same time. We were extremely lucky to have Apple as our guide. Apple is an extremely friendly, patient, cheerful and kind person, and we got along very well! Her English is fluent and well-spoken. The weather was not on our side as rain poured down incessantly throughout our trip. Nevertheless, we highly enjoyed the tour, in particular because of Apple's enthusiasm and love for the city of Hangzhou. We had an early and delightful lunch at a place with Hangzhou cuisine, frequented by locals, and with an impressive array of available dishes on the menu. We enjoyed the food, which included the famous and truly delicious Dongpo pork (created, legend says, by the poet Su Dongpo who was once governor of Hangzhou). We went on to West Lake, which has an unmatched beauty all its own, despite the sweeping curtains of rain. It's no wonder that reams of poetry have been written about it. There were many couples strolling hand in hand, despite the rain. It's a romantic date spot, not just because of West Lake's scenic splendour, but also because of the great romance of Bai Suzhen and Xu Xian, whose enduring love story is set in West Lake. We took a boat ride and saw the three pagodas -- and Apple showed us that it was on one of the Chinese currency notes! We also saw a couple of wild ducklings struggling to navigate the strong current in the waters of the lake. Our other stop was Lingyin Temple, which is remarkable for its numerous Buddhist grottoes and the magnificent halls/temples which constitute Lingyin Temple. We saw many groups of teenagers and people who seemed to be in their early 20s, carrying flowers as they trooped into Lingyin Temple and offered prayers. The temple itself is a grand structure, with multiple halls filled with towering statues of the deities, and each deity has a special significance in Buddhism. There were figures of the 500 arhats, the Goddess of Mercy, the Four Heavenly Kings, and many more. Apple was an invaluable guide, impressing us with the depth of her knowledge, explaining the importance of the deities and what they meant to the people offering their prayers to them. When rain and traffic jams delayed us, Apple was resourceful and able to quickly arrange for our return back to Shanghai such that we barely lost any time at all. We would also like to thank the driver, a chap from Huangshan, who drove us through a spectacular downpour and rush hour traffic. We would love to take another trip back to Hangzhou in a sunnier season and if so, we hope to have her as our guide again! We would very strongly recommend Apple as she was an excellent guide and also a great person to know in Hangzhou.

Great experience. Ms Esther is a very enthusiastic guide. Well-planned itinerary. Driver Mr Wang was professional.

We had one of the best tours we have ever had in China. Apple was less a guide and more of a friend to us on this trip. She took us to one of the most memorable restaurants in Hangzhou where we probably had one of our best chinese meal ever. I cannot thank Apple enough for the hospitality she has shown us. We will for sure like to use her as our guide in our next trip.

Apple was extremely well organized, everything went smoothly and comfortably. She was very informative about things we saw and about how life is living in some of the big cities. There wasn’ta question we asked that she couldn’t answer. The car rides and driver were also great, no long waits for the car to pick us up and the driving was very smooth. She took us to an amazing restaurant with really great food for lunch. I would recommend!

Amazing tour! Our guide was so welcoming, knowledgeable, and an amazing host. The tour was very personalized and so we were able to really get to see what we wanted to see. Also the biggest highlight was the lunch - this was the best meal we had while visiting, including going to some VERY fancy restaurants in Shanghai. 5+ STARS!!