Genuine Reviews of Genie Yips’s services

Experience Shanghai Through the Eyes of a Local

“Genie is not a tour guide, she is a tour shaman.”
Let your journey be crafted by someone who understands your needs, speaks your language, and knows Shanghai like home.

This page is dedicated to all visitors who have created fond memories by hiring my services and will be updated periodically. I am grateful for their honest and genuine feedback, which motivates me to deliver the best services, and it’s always a pleasure to work with visitors from all over the globe.

Personalized. Seamless. Unforgettable.

“She doesn’t just plan trips—She creates moments that stay with us forever.”

“Genie made China feel less like a mystery and more like a second home.”
“If you want to be a traveler, not a tourist, Genie is your guide.”
“She even became our personal photographer!”
“She kept everyone—from grandparents to kids—engaged and happy.”

“Whether you're traveling solo, as a couple, or with family, Genie handles every detail—from itinerary design to translation, reservations, and beyond.”

“Worth every RMB and then some.”
“She turned my vision board into a vision reality.”

What Guests Said in own words:

“An extraordinary adventure!”

“Genie’s deep knowledge and passion brought China’s culture to life. Our group couldn’t have asked for a better experience.”

“Like exploring a city with a friend.”

“With no plan in hand, Genie guided us through hidden alleys and local eats. It was spontaneous magic.”

“Supportive and insightful for both solo and couple travelers.”

“As someone visiting China on my own, I appreciated how Genie helped me navigate language and logistics with ease. I felt confident and taken care of every step of the way.”

“She knows where all the good food is, from high-end Michelin-starred restaurants, which I had never heard of, to the hole-in-the-wall places that make local snacks, to all-you-can-eat buffets, and to extraordinary hot pots. She made everything seem easy, right at her fingertips.”

“I had the absolute pleasure of having Genie as my tour guide in Shanghai, and I couldn’t have asked for a better host. From the moment we met, she made me feel completely at ease with her warm personality and genuine hospitality.”

”Genie is not only extremely knowledgeable about Shanghai’s history, culture, and hidden gems, but she also has a wonderful way of narrating stories that bring the city alive. She tailored the tour to my interests, making sure I got to experience both the iconic landmarks and the off-beat local experiences that only someone with her expertise could provide.”

”What impressed me most was her attentiveness—she anticipated my needs, adjusted the pace to make the day comfortable, and went above and beyond to ensure I had a truly memorable experience. Beyond being a fantastic guide, Genie felt more like a caring friend, always cheerful, thoughtful, and eager to share her love for the city.”

”I wholeheartedly recommend Genie to anyone visiting Shanghai. She is truly a wonderful host, and my trip would not have been the same without her.”

“Genie, it was a great pleasure to travel and spend time with you in Shanghai. Besides your knowledge, your personality impressed us with your generosity and sharpness. We want to extend a heartfelt thank you. We were fortunate to meet you. Wishing you good days and happiness ❤️”

“If you are headed to Shanghai, look up @g3ni3yip who was our amazing experience curator, now friend - Wizard of the city 🏙️”

What People Are Saying

  • Megan Comfort

    I feel like we met a close friend on the other side of the world. Our life is changed after this trip and time with Genie. She took the time to ask us questions about our interests and curated a perfect experience every day that will be with us forever. The conversation, and openness of the people and places we encountered is so hard to explain but so amazing. I would recommend Genie to anyone! So long as you are a kind and good person.

  • Ravi

    “Genie provides a bespoke and absolutely personalized guidance and tour to enjoy and immerse yourself in a place. She takes care of all the logistics and planning- you just need to tell her your likes, wishes and she will make it happen! Highly highly recommend her!”

  • Kate G.

    Our trip would not have been the same without Genie! She helped us get set up on the apps so we could order food and Didi, sent us a hospital rec when I got sick, suggested playgrounds for our kid. It was everything. I am so so so grateful to have had her help and support.

  • Ms. Z

    “Genie was like the personal assistant making sure everything was seamless behind the scenes (hotel staff don’t speak English and don’t know how to arrange your itinerary? No worries, Genie’s got it covered! Can’t book an event because your international card won’t go through and everything’s in Chinese? No worries, Genie will take care of it for you.”

  • Christy F.

    “Genie was amazing! She is professional, thorough, friendly, prompt, and communicates well. I travel a lot internationally and this is the first time I hired a guide and I am so glad I did because my normal translation apps were not helpful with the Chinese/English translation. Genie was able to translate throughout the experiences and she had high expectations of the quality of service and products you would receive. Trust her advice when she tells you which apps you will need. Thank you for all that you did, Genie!”

  • Yuri

    “I contacted Genie to organize the Xiaolongbao experience. Genie has proposed a few alternative options for her tour after I explained our further travel plans and time constraints. It allowed us to better enjoy our time in Shanghai and do some practical things, like getting our laundry done during our tour and picking it up later. Genie has also recommended good places to visit based on my family interests/questions and we went to most of them. Overall experience 11 out of 10!”

  • Rebekka and Oliver

    Genie provided us with a quite spontaneous walk around the city. There was no dedicated plan from our side and we fully relied on her advise and that was great. She provided a lot of insights and it was a great experience. Just like walking the city with a friend. Thanks a lot.

  • Fawaz Khalil

    Genie is super responsive, detailed, courteous, helpful, intelligent and flexible.

    She will help tailor the trip to whatever you need so do not hesitate to share your needs and preferences. Super easy to work with and did I mention being super prompt and responsive!!! You will not be disappointed. We had a great time in Shanghai with her.

  • Randy G.

    We had a splendid time in Shanghai over the Christmas holiday. Genie crafted a thoughtful 3-day itinerary that was well suited to our family (60 year-old couple with two Gen Z daughters). We ate delicious local food, visited parks, gardens, temples and museums. She also showed us cool places to shop. We saw and did a lot in a limited amount of time. Genie is knowledgeable, personable, easy to talk to and we all enjoyed our time with her. We highly recommend Genie!

  • Josh Levine

    Genie is a gem. After asking a few questions, she nailed my tour itinerary. Worth every RMB and then some.

  • Val & Melvin

    Genie was absolutely exemplary! Her deep knowledge of history, engaging storytelling, and warm personality made our tour truly unforgettable. The itinerary she crafted for Shanghai and Suzhou was perfectly planned, allowing us to experience the best of both cities with ease. She is an excellent English-speaking guide and goes above and beyond to assist foreigners in navigating and settling in Shanghai. Highly recommended for anyone looking for a knowledgeable and friendly guide!

  • Sebastien M.

    I had a fantastic time exploring the Shanghai region thanks to Genie’s help ! From hidden gems like Wuzhen to iconic landmarks, it was a great way for me to experience the city’s energy, history and food !

    It is always winning to see a place through the eyes of someone who truly lives here, especially to find awesome foot massage !

  • Mike S.

    This was my first time visiting Shanghai and I am so happy that I hired Genie as my private tour guid.. Genie was great in all aspects, she was very knowledgeable, professional, while showing me the best of Shanghai and taking lots of professional pictures of me at all the places that we visited.
    I felt like that I have known her for a while as a good freind in Shanghai. I had such an exceptional and enjoyable experience visiting Shanghai which I owe all that to Genie.
    I highly recommend Genie to everyone who is planning to visit Shanghai.
    Once again, thank you so much Genie, and wish you the best.

  • Special guests from New Zealand

    Genie was amazing for both her pre- trip planning support and her guiding of Shanghai. She had expert knowledge and curated an itinerary unique to our group and was enjoyable company along the way. I would strongly recommend Genie as a guide or for any support when travelling in Shanghai. Thank you!

  • Solo business traveler from Chicago

    Genie helped me with a private tour in Shanghai. I had a free day while traveling for work and I'm so glad I found her. She was very responsive and considerate of my needs. She was professional and beyond helpful. Worth every penny and then some. She will go above and beyond to help you and will customize to suit your needs. She is resourceful and has a deep network. She will do what she can to help. Did I mention she is a great communicator?

  • Ajeet

    After spending about a week with Genie, my advice to any future client would be to come with an open mind. The planned itinerary will be followed to a tee, but along the way, be prepared to experience small, hidden bits of Shanghai you'd normally miss. Everything from a hole-in-the-wall cafe, shop with small trinkets, to historically snippets of information. Truly an amazing experience I'd never forget.

  • Aidan & Katie

    Genie was a pleasure to deal with, from our initial enquiry, through planning our itenerary, the day of our guided tour and beyond. We got a great feel for the city, the layout and design, the history, the culture, and the food. We had a fantastic time thanks to Genie, and we would strongly the anyone either visiting or relocating to Shanghai avails of her expertise and knowledge. Genie is first class!

  • Rafael

    Genie is underpricing her services: she went well above and beyond what was required, always with a sunny disposition, brilliant suggestions and advice. She has made this Shanghai visit the highlight of my trip. Couldn't recommend her more.

  • Kirk

    Genie is absolutely fantastic - she was a fantastic trip planner, super accommodating to my needs, and made my trip both memorable and easy. I'd strongly recommend her services to anyone!

  • Anonymous

    I am so thankful for Genie! I accidentally misplaced my passport during my trip and she helped me contact the places I visited during the day and we (Genie) managed to get it back! I will forever be thankful to Genie! We also love all the recommendations and had an amazing time in Shanghai!

  • Jeremy B.

    “Genie is very responsive and knowledgeable about anything you may need before and during your trip.”

  • Alex & Sophie

    The day Genie planned and the day we went together were absolutely amazing - Genie told us so much about the city, its history, and answered all of our questions. The restaurants she selected were delicious (we realised that even more when we tried to pick one ourselves)! The additional spots she suggested for our solo days were extremely helpful; much appreciated! Her English is also very good, so we had no issues communicating throughout the planning and during our stay. Thank you Genie!

Recent Reviews

March 30, 2026

I hired Genie before on a solo trip, so I already knew she was great - and yet she was still able to surpass any expectations we had. 

Calling her a “guide” doesn’t really cover it. Yes, she showed us around and gave us an incredible experience, but she also handled everything behind the scenes. She coordinated our Taobao deliveries, made sure anything we needed got to the hotel, dealt with logistics so we didn’t have to think about them (which is a huge luxury during travel) and when my friend’s flight got delayed, she somehow arranged a complimentary airport pickup like it was no big deal. She just handled things before we even realized we needed help - less stress meant more headspace to experience the magic of the city. 

The experience itself never felt like a formal/overly boring “tour.” She took us to places we never would’ve found by ourselves and it felt more like exploring the city with someone who genuinely loves it and also knows what you love. Everything felt thoughtful and intentional without ever feeling forced or checklist-y.

Also, I cannot overstate this: the photos are amazing. She has such a good eye and somehow captured moments all over the city that I’ll probably end up printing someday. I traveled with a friend and now we have so many small and beautiful moments captured and they feel priceless. We would not have anywhere near the same level of artistic and organic photos without her. 

One of my favorite things was something I didn’t even ask for - after the trip, she sent us a custom map of everywhere we went together so we could look back on it later. That kind of detail says everything about how much she actually cares about your experience.

My friend that I traveled with has been one of my best friends for 18 years so we've obviously  done a lot together. And this trip to Shanghai became one of those experiences we're going to reference for the rest of our lives - one of those "remember when" trips that I started to miss the second I left Shanghai. We have so many new magical memories and moments because of Genie. She has this way of making you feel genuinely special and taken care of, because she is so invested in your experience. 

“If you are visiting Shanghai and need an insider’s help with logistics, Genie is the one to call. She made things go so much more smoothly and painlessly than I could have imagined.”

“Genie’s guidance saved us time, reduced stress, and helped us avoid tourist missteps. We truly felt like we had a local friend looking out for us. Her support truly elevated our travel experience. Highly recommended for anyone looking for expert support while exploring Shanghai!”

“Genie was incredibly helpful as our virtual guide for our family trip to Shanghai. Even though we never met in person, she provided us with everything we needed to feel prepared and confident navigating the city on our own — especially important since we were traveling with kids and a grandparent”

“We spent a day in Shanghai with Genie and we got the most out of the day. She is a great guide who knows the city very well and perfectly planned a trip following our requests. Gennie is a caring, nice guide who provides a high-quality service in English”

“My family of 6 (including an 81 year old) had a private tour with Genie on a hot July day. Genie is very knowledgeable and has a deep insight into the places and culture of Shanghai. More than that, she is very accommodating (even when we had flight issues) and kind. She also helped us prepare for our trip to China by providing tips and instructions on setting up our mobile data, weather preparation, and introducing helpful apps. She made herself available to help us out anytime, despite her busy schedule. We had a wonderful time and will book her again when we are next in Shanghai.”

“Genie was out of this world. She was not only a tour guide for the day we hired her but also helped us immensely for our entire stay —ordering Taobao for us, coordinating with vendors, teaching us things, booking tickets to museums and shows; she did it all. Most importantly, though, she was an amazing person to get to know, for both us as adults and our children, and I hope we will stay friends long after our trip.”

What to Expect

Custom itineraries

A day-to-day plan according to your locations, travel distances, preferences, and business hours of different attractions.

Local secrets, not tourist traps

Taking you to places that typical tour guides don’t even know. Creative route that allows travellers to see the real Shanghai, combined with knowledgeable guides that fit you the best.

Booking support and payment solutions

Enable you to enjoy Shanghai just like the locals do and resolve any issues that may arise. Support you in making reservations so you can experience unique and off-the-beaten-path activities.

Friendly, responsive communication

I am usually responsive within hours and can be reached via WeChat, WhatsApp, iMessage, or email.

A capable guide who puts you first

As a licensed National English-speaking tour guide, I am resourceful in curating the best options you need and making referrals to those who can better meet your desires.

Photography, food, and fun!

Photography and food are my passions in Shanghai. If you enjoy these two, we'll likely get along well.

Chat with me

Schedule a call to talk about your upcoming visit to China.

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