Self-Launched Beijing & Shanghai: Great Wall, Hutongs and the Bund
6 days · Beijing & Shanghai
Travel China Guide charges £930
No-markup version: ~£363 per person
Estimate only, not a guaranteed price. Always verify costs independently before booking.
A DIY version of Travel China Guide's 6-day luxury Beijing & Shanghai tour, swapping 4-5* hotels, private vans and a full-time guide for hostels/guesthouses, the metro, high-speed trains and self-booked tickets. You hit the same headline sights — Tiananmen, the Forbidden City, Temple of Heaven, Mutianyu Great Wall, a hutong courtyard visit, the Summer Palace, Yu Garden, Shanghai Museum, the Bund and a Huangpu River cruise — but at your own pace and for roughly a third of the group tour price. Costs are approximate per person, excluding international flights.
Day-by-day
Arrive in Beijing — Yonghegong & Wudaoying Hutong
Beijing
Land at Beijing Capital or Daxing Airport and take the Airport Express (Capital: ~£3 to Dongzhimen) or Daxing Airport Express (~£4) then metro to your hostel near Dongcheng. Note that the 144-hour visa-free transit policy covers most European/US passports for stays like this, but confirm current rules with the Chinese embassy before booking flights. Ease in with a wander around the Yonghegong (Lama Temple, ~£3 ticket) area and the Wudaoying Hutong cafe strip for a cheap first dinner (~£5). Pick up a China Unicom tourist SIM or eSIM and download Alipay/WeChat Pay — almost everything in China is cashless.
🚌Airport Express + metro (~£5 total)
🛏Hostel or guesthouse in Dongcheng/Nanluoguxiang (dorm ~£14, private room from ~£28)
- →Yonghegong Lama Temple
- →Wudaoying Hutong stroll
- →Set up mobile data and Alipay/WeChat Pay
Tiananmen, Forbidden City, Temple of Heaven & acrobatics
Beijing
Book Forbidden City tickets in advance on the official WeChat mini-program or the Palace Museum site — they sell out days ahead and aren't sold on the day for foreigners. Arrive at Tiananmen East metro around opening to clear security, then spend the morning in the Forbidden City (~£8 ticket, audio guide ~£5 or use a free podcast guide). Lunch at a jianbing/noodle spot (~£4). Afternoon metro to the Temple of Heaven (~£4) — the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests is the star. In the evening, book an acrobatics show ticket yourself (Chaoyang Theatre is the cheaper classic option, ~£12-20) instead of the Red Theater group booking, and grab a proper Peking duck dinner — Siji Minfu near the Forbidden City does a half duck for ~£12, far below the group welcome-dinner pricing.
🚌Metro day pass (~£3)
🛏Hostel or guesthouse in Dongcheng/Nanluoguxiang (dorm ~£14, private from ~£28)
- →Tiananmen Square
- →Forbidden City (pre-booked entry)
- →Temple of Heaven
- →Chaoyang Theatre acrobatics show
- →Peking duck dinner at Siji Minfu
Mutianyu Great Wall hike + hutong courtyard evening
Beijing
Skip the private van and either take the 916 Express bus from Dongzhimen to Huairou (Y32, ~£3.50) then a local taxi/minibus to Mutianyu (~£5), or book a shared Mutianyu shuttle on Klook/GetYourGuide for ~£18 return — the simplest option and often cheaper than the bus-plus-taxi combo when you're solo. Buy the cable car up and toboggan down directly at the gate (~£13 combined) and hike between towers 14 and 20 for 2-3 hours. Back in the city by late afternoon, visit a hutong courtyard house (free or ~£2 donation) and eat at a family-run dumpling or zhajiangmian spot (~£7). Photo stop at the Bird's Nest/Water Cube is a free detour on metro Line 8 if you have energy.
🚌Shared Mutianyu shuttle (~£18) + metro (~£2)
🛏Hostel or guesthouse in Dongcheng/Nanluoguxiang (dorm ~£14, private from ~£28)
- →Mutianyu Great Wall hike
- →Cable car up / toboggan down
- →Hutong courtyard visit
- →Bird's Nest & Water Cube photo stop
Summer Palace, then high-speed train to Shanghai
Beijing → Shanghai
Morning metro to the Summer Palace (~£4 entry, ~£1 metro) — allow 2-3 hours around Kunming Lake and Longevity Hill. Book your Beijing–Shanghai high-speed G-train in advance on Trip.com or the 12306 app: second class runs ~£65-75 and takes 4.5-5.5 hours from Beijing South. Take an afternoon departure, arrive Shanghai Hongqiao, then metro Line 2 or 10 to your hostel near the Bund or in the Former French Concession. Evening stroll along the Bund for the skyline light-up (free) and noodles for dinner (~£6).
🚌Metro (~£2) + Beijing–Shanghai G-train second class (~£70)
🛏Hostel or guesthouse near the Bund / Huangpu (dorm ~£15, private from ~£30)
- →Summer Palace
- →High-speed train to Shanghai
- →Evening walk on the Bund
Yu Garden, Shanghai Museum, Bund & Huangpu cruise
Shanghai
Book a Yu Garden entry slot online (~£5) and arrive at opening to dodge crowds, then browse the Yuyuan bazaar for soup dumplings and pan-fried shengjian buns (~£5 breakfast-lunch — the century-old Yang's Dumpling is the budget equivalent of the tour's restaurant stop). Shanghai Museum on People's Square is free with an online reservation. Afternoon stroll down Nanjing Road to the Bund, then book a public Huangpu River sightseeing ferry or a 45-minute cruise directly on Klook/GetYourGuide for ~£8-15 (the ¥2 public ferry crossing is the ultra-budget version). Rooftop drink or cheap dinner in the French Concession (~£10).
🚌Metro day pass (~£3)
🛏Hostel or guesthouse near the Bund / Huangpu (dorm ~£15, private from ~£30)
- →Yu Garden
- →Yuyuan bazaar food crawl
- →Shanghai Museum
- →The Bund walk
- →Huangpu River cruise
French Concession morning & departure
Shanghai
Final morning: walk the plane-tree streets of the Former French Concession — Wukang Road, Anfu Road and Fuxing Park — for free people-watching and a coffee (~£3). If time allows, the Propaganda Poster Art Centre (~£3) is a great small museum. Then take metro Line 2 or the Maglev (¥50/¥40, ~£4-5.50) from Longyang Road to Pudong Airport for your flight out. Note the group tour excludes airport transfers too — budget a taxi (~£20) if you're luggage-heavy.
🚌Metro + Maglev to Pudong Airport (~£6)
🛏—
- →Former French Concession walk
- →Wukang Road & Fuxing Park
- →Propaganda Poster Art Centre (optional)
Self-launched vs. Travel China Guide
| This itinerary (self-launched) | Travel China Guide | |
|---|---|---|
| Price per person | ~£363 | £930 |
| Duration | 6 days | 6 days |
| Who books it | You and your group, direct | Tour operator, guided group |
| Savings | £567 per person (61%) | |
Estimate only, not a guaranteed price. Always verify costs independently before booking.
Want to see more Travel China Guide-style trips? Check them out here.~£363
estimated per person
You never pay Travel Crew for this — you pay hostels, transport, and activity providers directly, the same as if you'd booked it all yourself.
This publishes your dates so other travellers can find and join you — no tour operator needed.
Customise with Tour BusterCreated by
Travel Crew
0 trips
Frequently asked questions
How much does Self-Launched Beijing & Shanghai: Great Wall, Hutongs and the Bund cost?+
Doing it yourself with this self-launched itinerary costs an estimated £363 per person for 6 days in Beijing & Shanghai. This is an AI-generated estimate based on typical budget-traveller prices — actual costs will vary by season and how you book.
Is this cheaper than booking with Travel China Guide?+
Yes — Travel China Guide charges around £930 per person for a similar tour. Doing the same route independently, using the same standard of accommodation and activities, costs an estimated £363 — a saving of roughly £567 (61%) per person.
How long is the Beijing & Shanghai trip?+
This itinerary runs 6 days, covering 6 day-by-day stops through Beijing & Shanghai.
How do I join this trip?+
You can join an existing open departure using this itinerary if one is scheduled, or launch your own departure with your own dates and invite other travellers to join you — no tour operator required.
Isn't it easier to just use a tour operator?+
Well, yes, a tour operator will book all the individual parts of your travel for you and provide a guide. That's obvious, but doing this has the potential to save the group thousands, which can in turn improve your itinerary substantially or save you huge amounts of money. Also, when you launch a departure, Travel Crew has tools in place to help you book the individual sections of the trip or make it easier for you to do this as a group. Really, you do not need a middle man. If you are more comfortable paying more and using a middle man, then you should certainly do this.
Is it safer to book through a tour operator?+
Arguably, there isn't much difference. A self-launched trip runs on the same principle as a group travel crew: collective responsibility, everyone looking out for each other, the same way it would if a group of friends organised the trip themselves — because that's exactly what's happening. You should always take out travel insurance before you go, self-launched or not; that doesn't change either way. Every open departure is published publicly with real dates and a real trip organiser, so it's never an anonymous arrangement, and our support team is reachable any time you need help, including in an emergency while you're away. Longer-term, we're building direct relationships with ground DMCs in popular destinations, offered as an optional paid add-on for extra on-the-ground support. Ultimately, though, the group is responsible for its own conduct and safety on a self-launched trip, same as on any trip you plan yourself.
What kind of trip is this?+
This is a culture, city-breaks, budget trip through Beijing & Shanghai, self-launched rather than run by a tour operator — you organise it with a group you find or bring yourself.
Would you like to name the operator, name the trip, or have any suggestions about how to improve this itinerary?
Drop your comment below — if you've done a similar route, tell us what worked, what you'd add, or what you'd skip.
No comments yet — be the first to share your take.
Sign in to leave a comment.