3-Day Harbin City Private Tour in Your Way in Winter Season

We took 3 days tour of Harbin 14 Jan 2021,Harbin ice and snow festival attractions were almost empty. Maybe because the coronavirus was rising cases in Harbin city.We enjoyed the tour with Samantha Song, She was our tour guide, and Our Driver Dr.Yang, They both did great job, the car was disinfected every day, They wore masks all the times, and the car followed us always, Our guide arranged tickets before for us, We went to each attractions very easy and quick, but all attractions needed to scan health codes, It took sometime in the cold, We knew that It made sure visitors all health, We can understand, The whole trip in Harbin was excellent, We were thinking come again When summer time, We will continue to use Harbin Private Tour Guide.

I am an NZ expat working in China. A UK colleague and I decided to travel to Harbin via Beijing between Christmas 2020 and NY. After looking at a few tour companies we sent Samantha an email query about the 3-day private tour of the main Harbin winter attractions. Samantha responded with a suggested itinerary and after removing a couple of things we didn't want to do, we booked and made a deposit - refundable if COVID-19 prevented travel. Simple as that. On the basis of the great communications alone, we referred Samantha to other colleagues who also booked a private tour with this company. Our tour guide, Joanna, along with driver Mr. Chen were excellent. Joanna knows her stuff and provided wonderful insight into the heritage buildings in the city as well as the tourist sites. She was charming, relaxed, and super flexible. We did not feel we were being rushed or taken to things we didn't want to see and there was plenty of time for photos and coffee/bathroom breaks when we wanted them. There was no standing around waiting for transport - Joanna would call Mr. Chen and he'd be waiting for us the minute we exited a site or building - just what you need when the daily temps head below -25C. The narrow streets make negotiating traffic a little crazy up in Harbin so having a good driver was appreciated. Also, these guys really know the best noodles and dumplings in town so our lunches were superb and good value as well. Communications were easy - Joanna has excellent English and she went above and beyond to give us the best time. On the last day of our tour, our employers contacted us to get a COVID-19 test done before we returned to work (we'd been through Beijing where there were some outbreaks over Christmas). Joanna immediately made a couple of calls and sorted out a nearby hospital for a test the next morning and she made sure we knew how and where to collect the results on the following day. Frankly, having Joanna was a huge advantage. It would have taken us at least half a day to negotiate the local health system without Joanna's guidance. Instead, we were en route to Volga Manor for sightseeing and vodka within 30 minutes of arriving at the clinic. Three days was a good length of time for us. We'd had a good tip to visit Ice City before the lights go on at 4 pm as the sun glinting through the ice sculptures looks spectacular. Joanna got us there by 3 pm. She also made sure we had bought heat packs for our hands - essential unless you are a hardened local - you will see plenty of those. We also put heat packs in our phone/camera pockets so the batteries didn't die. Overall, there is nothing I would change about the tour. It was fabulous, given the extreme weather conditions and the uncertain times. Safety was a priority - everyone wore masks and even though there are very few western tourists in China right now, locals were accomodating and friendly all the way. We did feel rather spoiled having Mr. Chen driving us about and having Joanna sort out the entry tickets and lunch venues, nevermind getting us through the hospital visit without any waiting about. If you have time constraints and want to experience the best of Harbin with ease and at your own pace, a private tour guide and driver is well worth considering. Based on this experience, I'm looking forward to returning to Harbin in Spring to further enjoy the relaxed vibe of this beautiful city.

Harbin Private Tour Guide was amazing! Samantha Song was a wonderful tour guide for the 3 days We had to explore Harbin, She is so friendly and always made sure We were enjoying places during our visit. Samantha has a wonderful knowledge of Harbin and private transportation is warm and clean, our driver Mr. Yang was a great driver.Highly recommended.