ON THE RIVER · SHANGHAI RIVER CRUISES

Shanghai River Cruises: 9 Worth Booking

9 river trips  ·  from $21 a head

Good shanghai river cruises sell their best seats weeks ahead. Below: the 9 to book early, what each fare includes and how they differ once you are aboard.

Huangpu Night Cruise: Cozy Vibe & Modern Shanghai Glow - Understanding the boats and cruise options
China River Cruises, Li River and Yangtze Cruises, Night River Cruises, Night River Cruises in China, River Cruises, Shanghai River Cruises, Tour Reviews

Huangpu Night Cruise: Cozy Vibe & Modern Shanghai Glow

1.Huangpu Night Cruise: Cozy Vibe & Modern Shanghai Glow

★★★★★★★★★★4.3 · 520 reviews · 1 day · from $21Our pick

Cruise the Huangpu River for about 45 minutes, passing the Bund, Lujiazui towers, Oriental Pearl Tower, and historic bridges. Choose a daytime or evening sailing, then select indoor, semi-open, or open-air viewing areas. Tickets cost about $21, but outdoor and seated areas may require an extra RMB100. Collect paper tickets at the pier with your passport and booking code.

“It was an amazing experience from start to end. Really enjoyed the beautiful buildings on both sides of Huangpu River at night. Just a smooth ride.”

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Shanghai Night River Cruise Tour with Xinjiang Style Dining Experience - A Xinjiang Dinner in Pudong
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Shanghai Night River Cruise Tour with Xinjiang Style Dining Experience

2.Shanghai Night River Cruise Tour with Xinjiang Style Dining Experience

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 324 reviews · from $155Top rated

Spend about three hours seeing Shanghai by private car, boat, and dinner table. Your guide, such as Caroline, Queena, Kalvin, or Xin, handles transport, cruise tickets, menu translation, and local context. The evening includes a Huangpu River cruise, Bund and Pudong views, and a Xinjiang halal meal with big plate chicken, lamb kebabs, naan, and yogurt.

“Beautiful tour of the city! Great food and the tour guide was friendly and engaging. She chatted with my daughter the whole time”

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Shanghai: Night River Cruise Tour with Xinjiang Style Dining - What the private pickup adds
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Shanghai: Night River Cruise Tour with Xinjiang Style Dining

3.Night River Cruise Tour with Xinjiang Style Dining

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 210 reviews · 3 hours · from $153

Spend three evening hours cruising the Huangpu River and eating Xinjiang-style halal food. Your English-speaking guide, such as Caroline, Queena, Snow, or Kelvin, handles transport, explains Shanghai’s landmarks, helps choose dishes, and returns you to your hotel or another city location.

“this was a great trip, my guide Queena was brilliant, her English was excellent, the luxurious taxis which we travelled in we amazing and the meal she brought us for i really enjoyed mist of it , but that's personal taste, it was lovely to experience it, definitely a recommend trip”

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Private Evening Tour: VIP Huangpu River Cruise and Shanghai Lights - The 80-minute VIP Huangpu River cruise
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Private Evening Tour: VIP Huangpu River Cruise and Shanghai Lights

4.Private Evening Tour: VIP Huangpu River Cruise and Shanghai Lights

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 150 reviews · from $128

Spend an evening with your own Shanghai guide and driver, visiting Yuyuan Old Street, cruising the Huangpu River from the VIP deck, viewing Pudong’s towers, and walking through Xintiandi. Guides such as Autumn, Mary, Tom, Linda, and Roy are praised for strong English, local insight, flexible pacing, and helpful photos.

“Great and knowledgeable tour guide. She helped me with great pictures. Would highly recommend this trip.”

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Shanghai Night River Cruise VIP Seat with Authentic Dinner - What the VIP cruise seating really adds
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Shanghai Night River Cruise VIP Seat with Authentic Dinner

5.Shanghai Night River Cruise VIP Seat with Authentic Dinner

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 55 reviews · 3 hours · from $168

Spend three hours with an English-speaking guide such as Cassie, Michael, Lucy, or Sunny, riding in a private vehicle, cruising the Huangpu River in a VIP seating area, and dining at a local restaurant. Expect Bund and Pudong skyline views, helpful building-by-building commentary, and dishes such as soup dumplings, scallion-oil noodles, and pan-fried buns.

“Great activity! Shanghai by night is stunning. Our tour guide Linda was very nice and shared a lot of facts about the city with us. Pick-up from/to the hotel was also great.”

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Shanghai: After Dark Dinner and Huangpu River Night Cruise - Is VIP Seating Worth the Extra Cost?
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Shanghai: After Dark Dinner and Huangpu River Night Cruise

6.After Dark Dinner and Huangpu River Night Cruise

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 16 reviews · 4 hours · from $126

Spend four hours seeing Shanghai after dark with a private English-speaking guide such as Jenny or Jessi. Enjoy a local restaurant dinner, a 45-minute Huangpu River cruise, hotel pickup and drop-off, and optional VIP boat seating or a Shanghai Tower or Oriental Pearl Tower visit.

“A great introduction to Shanghai with a wonderful guide. Our guide, Jenny, was originally from Shanghai but had also traveled internationally so was ideal to take us around and explain everything to us. She made us feel very welcome and taken care of and we learnt a lot about the city. We had a short walk to see the major buildings of Shanghai followed by a delicious restaurant dinner. We walked along the river promenade for about 15 minutes before getting on the river cruise which ran for about 45 minutes. The sights of Shanghai at night from the river are impressive. The whole tour was very well organised with…”

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Shanghai in 5 Hours: River Cruise, Shanghai Tower & Dining - Yuyuan Bazaar: old Shanghai in a compact visit
China River Cruises, River Cruises, Shanghai River Cruises, Tour Reviews

Shanghai in 5 Hours: River Cruise, Shanghai Tower & Dining

7.Shanghai in 5 Hours: River Cruise, Shanghai Tower & Dining

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 7 reviews · 5 hours · from $188

Spend five private hours with an English-speaking guide exploring Yuyuan Bazaar, sampling Shanghai-style food, viewing the city from Shanghai Tower, and cruising the Huangpu River. Guides may include Alana, Queena, Kelvin, May, Beate, or Snow. Hotel pickup, private transport, attraction fees, lunch, and the cruise are included.

“Het was geweldig’ een perfect manier om de stad te zien in een korte tijd. Vooral May als tourguide was super fijn om meer te leren over de stad en ze regelde alles perfect. Een aanrader!”

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Shanghai By Night: Amazing River Cruise and Hot Pot Dinning - What the private pickup adds to the evening
China River Cruises, Night River Cruises, Night River Cruises in China, River Cruises, Shanghai River Cruises, Tour Reviews

Shanghai By Night: Amazing River Cruise and Hot Pot Dinning

8.Shanghai By Night: Amazing River Cruise and Hot Pot Dinning

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 7 reviews · 3 hours · from $173

Spend three hours with a private English-speaking guide, cruising the Huangpu River in a VIP seating area before enjoying hot pot at a local restaurant. Your guide can help with the menu and dietary requests. Downtown pickup, drop-off, transport, dinner, and drinks are included. Guides may include Lucy Ye, Roy, Sunny, or Erich.

“We really enjoyed the tour. The guide told us interesting facts during the cruise and then taught us how to eat hot pot.”

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Shanghai Evening Tour: VIP Huangpu River Cruise&City lights - Meeting Patrick and riding through Shanghai
China River Cruises, Li River and Yangtze Cruises, River Cruises, Shanghai River Cruises, Tour Reviews, Tours

Shanghai Evening Tour: VIP Huangpu River Cruise&City lights

9.Shanghai Evening Tour: VIP Huangpu River Cruise&City lights

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 3 reviews · 3.5 hours · from $171

Spend 3.5 hours with guide Patrick on a private evening tour of Shanghai. Ride in an air-conditioned car or van, enjoy VIP seating on a one-hour Huangpu River cruise, then explore Yu Garden Bazaar by night. Bottled water, cruise tickets, hotel pickup, and transport are included, but meals are not.

“Our guide Patrick was fantastic! Spent some time in the Bazaar where he gave us lots of history and information on the area. The cruise was great- we had a seat right outside in the front of the boat with an amazing view. Patrick told us lots of interesting facts and stories about the different buildings and areas we passed and Shanghai in general. He was an extraordinary guide and we highly recommend Patrick and this tour!”

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