The operating standard, in full.
This page exists because “private tour with an English-speaking guide” means almost nothing on its own. Below is exactly how a Serica day is put together, who does what, what is inside a price and what happens when something goes wrong. If you are comparing us with anyone, compare this page.
In at opening
Our day starts before the crowds do. Where a site sells timed entry, we hold the first window of the day — not the one that is easiest to fill. It is the single decision that changes what you see.
Your tickets, already secured
China's major sites have moved to real-name, ID-linked advance reservation, often through Chinese-language apps with daily caps. We hold your entry before you land, matched to your passport.
Your guide walks with you
One guide, one party, the whole day. Licensed, assessed for spoken English, and named to you before you travel — not allocated on the morning.
Nothing more to pay on the ground
Entry, internal transport, reserved seating and the vehicle are inside the price we quote you. No optional extras produced at the gate. No shopping stops, ever.
Every operational question, answered on one page.
| Contracting party | Every booking is a contract with L Z Development Pty Ltd trading as Serica Journeys. You receive a written confirmation naming the company, its registration number, the itinerary, the inclusions and the total price before any payment is taken. |
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| Booking window | We ask for at least 14 days for most journeys. Where a site uses capped, ID-linked advance reservation — the Chengdu panda base among them — we need your passport details at least 72 hours before travel, and earlier in peak season. |
| Entry and reservations | We hold entry for every ticketed site on your itinerary. Many Chinese sites now sell only through Chinese-language apps requiring a mainland mobile number and a real-name identity match. We complete that in advance, against the passport you are travelling on. You are never sent to a ticket window. |
| Guides | One guide per party, for the whole journey. Every guide holds a current Chinese guide licence and is assessed by us for spoken English before working a Serica day. Your guide is named to you, with a mobile number, before you travel. |
| Vehicles and drivers | Licensed charter vehicles with current road transport permits and professionally licensed drivers. Vehicles are sized so that no party of six travels in a vehicle rated for six — there is always spare space and luggage room. |
| Party size | Private only, 1 to 6 guests as standard. Larger parties are quoted separately with a second vehicle and a second guide rather than an upgrade to a coach. |
| Timing | Where a site's first entry window materially changes the experience, we take it. Pick-up times are built backwards from the site's opening on your date, which shifts seasonally, not from a fixed clock. |
| What a price contains | Entry to every site named in the itinerary, compulsory internal shuttles, the vehicle and driver for the whole day, the guide for the whole day, and the meals named. Anything not included is listed explicitly on the journey, before you book. |
| No shopping stops | We do not take commissions from shops, workshops, silk mills, jade factories, tea houses or restaurants, and we do not build them into itineraries. Where a craft or production visit is part of a journey it is because it is worth seeing, and buying is never expected. |
| Payment | Invoiced in advance in a currency we agree with you, payable by card or bank transfer to the company. We do not ask for cash on the ground and your guide will not ask you for money during the day. |
| Before you travel | You receive a written pre-travel note: pick-up point and time, your guide's name and mobile number, what to wear, what the walking and stairs are actually like, altitude where it applies, and what to do if you cannot find your vehicle. |
| Changes, weather and closures | Sites close for state occasions, maintenance and weather, sometimes at short notice. When that happens we tell you as soon as we know, propose a replacement of equivalent standard, and refund the difference if the replacement costs less. We do not substitute a shopping stop for a closed site. |
| Cancellation | Free cancellation up to 7 days before departure. Inside 7 days we refund everything we can still recover from the ground — in practice that means non-refundable site reservations and confirmed vehicle hire are retained and everything else is returned. The exact position is written into your confirmation. |
| If something goes wrong | Your guide carries a direct escalation line to our operations contact for that city. Serious matters come to us directly and are answered by us, in writing. |
| After every departure | Every journey is reviewed against this standard afterwards — timings kept, entry held, guide performance, vehicle condition. Guides and vehicles that do not meet it do not work a Serica day again. |
Something here you want in writing before you book?
Ask. We will put it in the confirmation.