Contents
What you get#
A real itinerary — not a brochure. Day by day, with the cities in the order that actually works on the ground, how you get between them (flight or high-speed rail, with realistic timings), where you sleep, what a fair price range looks like for your group size, and the two or three things I’d skip if you’re short on time.
It comes from planning these routes for travellers since 2016 and from the operators in Guilin, Zhangjiajie and Yunnan I work with directly. If a route is a bad idea in your month of travel, I’ll say so — that’s the part most itineraries leave out.
How it works#
Three steps, and only one of them is yours.
You fill in the five fields below: your name, an email, roughly where you want to go, how many people are travelling, and when. That’s it — no phone number, no budget interrogation, no forms asking about your “travel persona”.
I read it, check what’s realistic for your dates, and reply within 24 hours with a suggested route and price ranges. If your dates clash with Golden Week, spring rain in Guilin or the Zhangjiajie holiday rush, I’ll tell you before you book anything.
You decide whether to take it further. If you want, I introduce you to the local operator who runs the route — you pay them directly, and I don’t take a cut of your trip price. If you’d rather book everything yourself, you keep the itinerary anyway.
Who this is for#
Groups of 2 to 8 people — families with school-age kids, two couples travelling together, friends splitting a private van, or small company trips. That’s the size where a private driver and guide starts making sense in China, and where a package tour usually stops making sense.
If you’re a solo backpacker on a hostel budget, this won’t be worth your time: my honest advice for that trip is public transport, guesthouses and reading the China travel budget breakdown instead.
What it costs#
Nothing. The route is free, and there’s no obligation to book anything.
Private touring in China typically runs $165–220 per person per day for comfortable mid-range hotels and a private car, lower for groups of 4–8 because vehicle and guide costs spread out. I’ll give you ranges for your exact group size rather than a single made-up number — if you want the full breakdown first, it’s in what a private China tour actually costs.
Where we can plan for you#
We’re strongest in the three regions we cover in depth — Guilin & Yangshuo, Zhangjiajie and Yunnan — and we can also put together Beijing, Xi’an, Shanghai, Chengdu, Jiuzhaigou and Tibet legs around them.
Common questions#
Do I need to pay anything up front? No. You get the route and price ranges first. Payment, if you go ahead, happens directly with the local operator.
How fast will I hear back? Within 24 hours, and usually the same day.
Can you book flights to China for me? No — international flights aren’t something I arrange. I plan everything from the moment you land: airport pickup, trains, hotels, guides, tickets. If you tell me where you’re flying from, I’ll factor the arrival day into the route.
What if I only have 4 or 5 days? That’s fine. Short trips are often the ones where a private route earns its keep, because there’s no slack for a wrong connection. Zhangjiajie in 4 days and Guilin in 3–4 days are both realistic — I’ll tell you what to cut.
Will you try to sell me something? The route is yours either way. If you like it, I connect you with the operator who runs it. That’s the whole arrangement.
Get a free China route & price range
5 fields, 30 seconds. You'll get a real day-by-day route with price ranges for your group — no obligation, no payment, reply within 24 hours.