China trip planning
Not the version written for tour groups: what is worth the queue, what photographs this season, and what exists only for the camera. Planned by someone who lives here, and arranged so that you travel alone, freely, with everything settled before you need it.
The difference
A thousand China itineraries exist online, and most describe the same twenty places, written by someone who came once. This is a different occupation. I live here; the plan begins with what the people around me are doing this month — the food worth the queue, the towns people choose for their own holidays, what photographs now.
| The version you'll find online | What I'd send you instead |
|---|---|
| The Forbidden City, the Great Wall, and a restaurant with an English menu | A Saturday-morning market, breakfast at a stall with no sign, and the place locals queue forty minutes for |
| "Ten hidden gems in Hangzhou" — written in 2019, recycled ever since | What the people around me are posting about this month |
| Dinner at seven, because that is when you eat at home | Dinner at nine, dessert at eleven, because that is the rhythm here |
| A tour that shows you the city | A day that shows you how the city spends its day off |
None of this is compulsory. It is what people here are doing now. Take what appeals, leave the rest, and decide on the ground — every plan I write contains deliberate empty space.
My home ground is Zhejiang. Hangzhou and the Longjing hills above it; Moganshan and Anji, the bamboo counties where Shanghai spends its weekends; the water towns to the north; the islands off Zhoushan; and the market city of Yiwu. Most of the plans I write never leave the province. Where a journey reaches further — Xi'an, Yunnan, the far west — it is built as an addition to this base, never instead of it.
Three days in a single teahouse, doing nothing, is a plan I will write.
Some of what I recommend I have visited; I will say so. Some is current and I have not; I will say that also. What I will not do is present a research list as lived experience — that is precisely what you are paying to avoid.
And if a recommendation proves disappointing, write to me. I would rather lose the recommendation than have you standing in a queue I could have warned you about.
The track you choose below changes who the plan is for. Everything above is what every plan rests on.
What changes a China itinerary most is not budget. It is who is moving through it. Choose the nearest match — a shortcut, not a category.
Children, parents, or friends travelling together. Paced for days that cannot run to twenty thousand steps, with one base instead of six.
See family & group →Alone, or with one companion. This is where the practical planning carries the most weight: where you stay, how you return at night, and what to do with an evening alone.
See solo travel →Two of you. Fewer cities, better hotels, slower mornings. Largely a plan about what to leave out.
See couple & honeymoon →Business travel with two free days, regions off the standard route, long stays, or a journey that fits none of the above.
See other trips →If none fits, describe the journey in the enquiry form and I will tell you which track it belongs to — or that none does.
How it works
No guide following, no group to keep pace with, no schedule you did not set. You move when you wish and change your mind when you wish; everything behind the scenes is arranged before you need it.
No one meets you holding a flag; no one walks behind you. You are never required to make conversation with a person paid to be present, nor to wait for the slowest member of a group.
Leave early. Stay longer. Skip a stop, or spend the afternoon doing nothing. Nothing depends on another person's timetable, because there is none but yours.
The plan is a menu, not a timetable. It holds deliberate empty space, and a day with nothing scheduled is a feature rather than a gap. Wake wanting something entirely different — write, and tomorrow is rearranged. That is the work, not an addition.
Some return having done half of what I wrote, and call it the best journey they have taken. That is the intended outcome.
Before each day begins, the parts you have chosen arrive in one place: what is booked, at what hour, the address written in Chinese to show a driver, and the true travel time between stops.
The reason you can be wholly free during the day is that nothing is decided during the day.
During service hours I am reachable, and I know your plan. A place is closed, a driver cannot find you, tomorrow needs rearranging — write, and it is resolved.
Not a call centre, and not a script. [时区] [X]–[X]. The identifier is on your run sheet, and on the contact page should you misplace it.
I am not beside you, and I will not pretend otherwise. Where something requires a person present, one is arranged in advance — or I tell you it is not possible, rather than leave you to assume.
Outside service hours, you receive an answer when I return. I would rather say so now than have you learn it at two in the morning.
Every track delivers the same eight things.
01 · Family & group
Complete plans for days that cannot run to twenty thousand steps.
A day with a six-year-old and a day with a seventy-year-old are two different plans.
Give me the ages and I will tell you plainly whether one journey can hold all of them. Sometimes the answer is two shorter journeys to the same city, run in parallel, meeting for dinner.
If anyone in the group has mobility needs, say so in the first message. China is more accessible than its reputation — but only if the plan is built that way from the start.
02 · One traveller
Planned for women travelling alone or with one companion, and for anyone else travelling alone. Gender alters the details; the work behind the plan is the same.
Half the work on this track is the unglamorous planning above — the half that does not photograph, and the reason most itineraries still leave you guessing.
The other half is what you came for:
Safer than most people expect — and I plan around the exceptions.
No one travels with you, here or on any track. But if you would rather not manage a clinic appointment or a market day alone, say so, and a companion is arranged. Most solo travellers do not need it. Some want it for precisely one afternoon; that is entirely reasonable.
03 · Couple & honeymoon
For honeymoons, anniversaries, and couples who would rather do three cities well than eight badly.
Almost every honeymoon itinerary shown to me is three cities too long. With ten days I would spend them in two places, and let one of them begin to feel familiar. That is the part people describe afterwards.
If it is a honeymoon, say so. Some hotels and restaurants do for couples what they will do for no one else, and they require notice — not the day before.
04 · Something else
The three tracks above cover most journeys. Here is the remainder.
The best plans I have written began with one sentence: "I am in Hangzhou for a trade fair, and I have three free days."
If your journey fits no category on this page, that is usual — it only means there is no shortcut for me to take. Describe it in the form, and I will tell you plainly whether I can plan it.
And where you would be better served by a licensed agency or a specialist guide, I say so in the first reply rather than take the fee.
No tiers, no packages, nothing to negotiate. You are in China for a number of days; that is the number charged for, and it costs the same whether you spend it out of doors or in one teahouse until four.
| Who's travelling | Per day | Five days | Ten days |
|---|---|---|---|
| One or two of you | $29.9 | $149.9 | $299.9 |
| Three or four | $59.9 | $299.9 | $599.9 |
| Five or more | $100 | $500 | $1,000 |
Minimum three days. First draft within 3 working days, two revisions included.
Every price covers every day you are in China: the day-by-day plan, the map, booking links that work from outside the country, a hotel shortlist for each stop, a run sheet the evening before each day, and me on WeChat during service hours.
The rate is per day for the whole group, not per person. Four of you pay seventy dollars a day between you, not each. The work is in the itinerary, and an itinerary does not multiply by four.
You are paying for the days you are covered, not the days you are occupied. A rest day still carries a run sheet, and I remain reachable; it costs the same as a day of temples. Where the slower days trouble you, book a shorter journey — that is cheaper than pretending a covered day is free.
Long journeys, multi-city routes and distant regions carry the same day rate; the extra work appears as more days, not a higher price. There is also nothing to upgrade to: no guide travels with you, and WeChat standby is constant at every price.
Groups of eight or more: write before completing the form. Some sites admit groups only with a licensed guide — better learned now than at the gate.
Not a separate price list — a set of modules added to whichever journey you choose. Available on every track.
| Add-on | Price | What it covers | Not covered |
|---|---|---|---|
| Photography day | from $[X] | Costume rental, hair and styling, English-speaking photographer, 25+ retouched images, half-day shoot | Transport to location, entrance tickets, printed albums |
| Wellness & TCM day | from $[X] | Tea ceremony, licensed TCM consultation, one treatment, hot springs, and 采耳, if you are brave | Any medical procedure, prescription medication, follow-up care |
| Craft workshop | from $[X] | One hands-on session — Suzhou embroidery, Longquan celadon, Jingdezhen porcelain or Dali tie-dye | Shipping your piece home |
| Food walk | from $[X] | Half a day with a chef or guide, market visit, four to five tastings | Alcohol, meals eaten outside the walk |
Add-ons are priced per person and added to any journey. For three or more, say so, and they are quoted together.
The photography day is what the 出片 conversation becomes, and the most requested addition on honeymoons and solo journeys alike. Locations scouted myself: West Lake and the Longjing terraces in Hangzhou, the gardens of Suzhou, and the Tang-era streets of Xi'an after dark.
This is the section that matters most, and the one to read before the rest.
A poor aesthetic outcome abroad is costly, difficult to reverse, and leaves no real recourse. That is the practical reason. The other is what I am selling: I accept no commission from any clinic, spa, photographer, restaurant or hotel. The moment a clinic pays me, my advice ceases to be yours.
Everything sent is a recommendation you can verify and book yourself. If the fee appears higher than a tour operator's, this is part of the reason.
No — per day, for your whole group. Three or four of you pay $70 a day between you, not $70 each. A group of four on a ten-day trip pays $700 in total, and that covers all four of you.
Yes, and the honest reason is this: you are paying for coverage, not activity. A rest day still carries a run sheet, and I remain reachable on WeChat; it costs the same as a full day of temples. Where the slower days trouble you, book a shorter journey — better value than discounting a day I must still cover.
No. Flights and hotels remain in your name and your booking, so the flexibility to change them stays with you. But choosing is part of the work: two or three hotels are shortlisted per city against your route and budget, each explained, each linked directly to the booking page. You decide, you pay, you own it.
Revisions cover date shifts. If the whole plan needs rebuilding for a different season, that's a new plan at a discounted rate.
[X] working days for a first draft. Rush delivery in [X] hours is available for $[X].
By PayPal invoice, in US dollars — the same way you'd pay any consultant working across borders. You see the invoice, with the scope written on it, before any money moves. [付款政策:全额预付 or 定金比例]
Yes, on every plan. WeChat standby during service hours ([时区] [X]–[X]) — write, and it is resolved. Outside those hours you receive an answer when I return, and I would rather say so now than have you learn it at two in the morning.
That is expected, not exceptional. Write the evening before or the morning of, and the day moves — a swap, a dropped city, something heard of over dinner. Small changes cost nothing. A genuinely different journey — new cities, new dates — is a new plan at a reduced rate, and I will tell you which you are asking for.
No, and that is the point. No guide travels with you and no group sets the pace — you are free throughout. Everything is arranged before each day begins, and I am on WeChat should something need resolving. Where you would prefer company for one afternoon — a clinic, a wholesale market — someone is arranged in advance.
Safer than most expect, and I plan around the exceptions. That is what the solo track above — walking home, night transport, unfamiliar districts — exists for.
The plan is quoted as one document, not per head. What changes is the logistics: larger tables, longer transfers, and some sites that admit groups only with a licensed guide. Those are flagged before anything is booked — a surprise at the gate ruins a morning.
Costume houses mostly stock Chinese sizes, and this is where overseas visitors are disappointed. Give your measurements in the first message and availability is confirmed before you book, not after.
Some, yes, and I will say which. Others are current and I have not; I will say that also. A research list will not be presented as first-hand experience — that is what you are paying me to filter out.
No, and I will tell you which viral places to pass. 出片 is often a queue before a pleasant backdrop. Part of the work is separating those worth a morning from those worth a photograph you could have taken anywhere.
China is the speciality, because it is where I live and what I know. Neighbouring countries on request, with the qualification that they are planned from research, not experience.
I will tell you plainly that it lies outside what I do, and then give you what you actually need: clinic introductions, translation, and the questions to ask. No procedure and no surgeon will be recommended.
A photography day, a tea house and one good bowl of noodles is a plan I can build. So is ten days with a five-year-old. Describe the journey, not the itinerary.
The price was settled the moment you chose the days and the number of you. Nothing to negotiate, nothing to await — the only open question is whether this is a good fit.
Rates are three lines long, and the add-ons are on the same page.