Private 2-Hour Shanghai Hidden Sites Walking Tour

Meet your private guide at a central Shanghai location and begin your 2-hour walking tour through Shanghai’s lesser-known areas.

Your guide will tell you about the city’s sometimes colorful, sometimes dark past as you walk through small, hidden streets and neighborhoods. Head to Qiao Family Road, an ancient area named after one of the wealthiest trading families in Shanghai. As you pass old houses, hear how this was once the heart of Shanghai, where temples and the first local government were located.

Walk down the first lane in Shanghai to set up public electronic lights, which helped guide people home. Hear how locals thought of the lights as a sign from heaven.

Nearby, see Shu Yin Lou (the Secluded Library), the remnant of a lavish 16th-century garden complex built by a famous scholar who was living alone in his vast mansion. You’ll meet an inheritor of the scholar, a long-time local resident and descendant of the 16th century-BC Guo clan. She still lives in the home that this ancient courtyard belongs to, and will tell you fascinating stories about her life in this sprawling, decrepit compound whose once-exquisite sculptures and walls have broken and toppled over.

After your tour, you’ll return to your starting location.