Hong Kong & Shanghai

• Experience Art Basel in Hong Kong, the Asia Pacific’s premiere art fair, where leading galleries, artists and art lovers from around the world gather

• Discover Art Central in Hong Kong, showcasing the work of pioneering artists from the Asia Pacific

• Get to the heart of contemporary Kowloon at M+, a long-awaited museum of visual culture, and visit the newly opened Hong Kong Palace Museum

• Visit Shanghai’s fantastic private museums, from the cultural treasures of the Aurora Museum to the Prada Foundation’s restored Rong Zhai

• Explore Shanghai’s growing arts district, with a visit to the new museums of a revitalised West Bund

• Take a day trip to Suzhou, renowned for its UNESCO World Heritage-listed classical Chinese gardens

THURSDAY 26 MARCH – ARRIVAL (CANAPES)
Flights from Australia arrive in Hong Kong in either the early morning or early evening. Transfers from the airport to the hotel are available. In the evening, we gather in the hotel lobby for a welcome reception and a chance get to know each other and talk about what we’re looking forward to seeing. Evening at leisure. Overnight Hong Kong

FRIDAY 27 MARCH – ART BASEL & THE HONG KONG PALACE MUSEUM (B, D)
After a leisurely start, we travel by private coach to our first morning at Art Basel Hong Kong. The fair, first organised in 2013, quickly became a major event in the Asia-Pacific art scene, attracting over 150 major galleries from around the world, from international stalwarts to a very healthy representation of galleries and artists from the Asia Pacific. We begin with a guided tour of the Galleries section, followed by time for lunch and to explore the exhibitions at leisure. In the mid-afternoon, we transfer from Art Basel to the Hong Kong Palace Museum in West Kowloon, which was designed by Hong Kong’s Rocco Design and opened in 2022 to house exhibitions of cultural treasures from the Palace Museum in Beijing and from major collections around the world. After a guided tour there is time to explore the exhibitions at your own pace. Returning to the hotel, there is time to freshen up before we go to dinner together. Overnight Hong Kong

SATURDAY 28 MARCH – ART BASEL & M+ MUSEUM (B)
This morning we make a second visit to Art Basel, where we begin with a closer look at the Encounters Sector, which is dedicated to works on a monumental scale that rarely have the space to be exhibited. We then turn to a different sector of the exhibition, which is dedicated to masterpieces of 20th-century art from Asia, which often brings to light different sides to the story of Asian art and its relationship to global modernity. After a break for lunch, we transfer by private coach to M+ Gallery in Kowloon. The long-anticipated museum dedicated to contemporary art and modern visual culture, designed by Herzog & de Meuron and Farrells, finally opened its doors in 2021. Its collections are vast and diverse, encompassing visual arts, film, design and popular visual culture from the 20th and 21st centuries. After our visit, we return to the hotel. Evening at leisure.

SUNDAY 29 MARCH – ART CENTRAL (B, OPTIONAL D)
The success of Art Basel has also brought further attention to the fair that takes place next door – Art Central. Art Central was also founded by Tim Etchells and Sandy Angus (who founded Art HK which became Art Basel HK) along with Will Ramsay to showcase emerging artists from the region and works that are more conceptually or politically challenging than what would typically be displayed at Art Basel. After a guided tour this morning, the afternoon is at leisure to explore the exhibition independently, or to return to Art Basel for a final look. In the evening, there is the option to join your tour leader and local guide for a food tour of Kowloon. Overnight Hong Kong

MONDAY 30 MARCH – TO SHANGHAI (B, D)
After checking out of our hotel this morning, we travel by coach to Lantau Island in western Hong Kong to visit Po Lin monastery, which is home to the Giant Buddha -at 34 metres high it the largest seated statue of Buddha in the world. After visiting the Buddha and a break for a light lunch at the monastery, we continue to Hong Kong airport to fly to Shanghai. On arrival in Shanghai, we transfer to our hotel in central Shanghai where there is time to settle in before we have dinner together. Overnight Shanghai.

TUESDAY 31 MARCH – SHANGHAI MUSEUMS 1 (B, L)
Shanghai has long been a commercial and financial centre and the Chinese-speaking world’s face to the outside, and today the city retains its international feel. The city has grown extensively in the past 20 years, and urban redevelopment, including the creation ex nihilo of Pudong, has focused on creating a thoroughly modern metropolis. Alongside this development has been the establishment of numerous museums and art galleries, many of which are independent or private collections. We begin exploring these fabulous museums today, starting with the Shanghai Museum, whose collection is focused on traditional Chinese art. After lunch together, we then step forward into the contemporary sphere at the West Bund Museum, which collaborates with international museums such as the Pompidou in Paris, for the creation of excellent temporary exhibitions. Over the past decade, the West Bund district itself has been transformed into a new arts district, with multiple art museums established along the revived and mostly pedestrianised riverfront. We will visit a selection of these smaller museums this afternoon, and the final selection will be made by your tour leader after their 2026 exhibitions have been announced. Returning to the hotel, the evening is at leisure. Overnight Shanghai.

WEDNESDAY 1 APRIL – SHANGHAI MUSEUMS 2 (B)
We continue our visits to Shanghai’s excellent museums today, starting with the Aurora Museum. This private collection, housed in the magnificent golden Aurora tower in Pudong, showcases masterpieces of traditional and historic Chinese art, and many of its exquisite pieces are national treasures. We continue to the China Art Museum, a municipal collection of modern and contemporary masterpieces of Chinese art housed in a building that playfully re-interprets traditional architecture (and ancient crowns) which was created for the 2010 Expo. After a guided tour of the collections, we continue to the Rockbund Art Museum, a contemporary art gallery inside the historic Asiatic Society Building. Returning to the hotel, the evening is at leisure.

THURSDAY 2 APRIL – SUZHOU (B, L)
Today we visit historic Suzhou, a cultural centre and ‘canal city’ about 90 minutes by coach from central Shanghai. Our visit to Suzhou includes its fine museum and art gallery in the morning. After lunch together, we visit Suzhou’s World Heritage listed gardens, including the Master of Nets Garden and the Humble Administrator’s Garden, both of which are among the best preserved traditional Chinese Gardens, the latter of which is still frequented by art students who learn traditional aesthetics from the plantings and rockeries throughout the gardens, which themselves echo traditional landscape paintings. Returning to Shanghai, the evening is at leisure.

FRIDAY 3 APRIL – RONG ZHAI AND THE FRENCH CONCESSION (B, D)
Shanghai’s past is well preserved in some districts of the city, especially in the French Concession, a region of the city given over to French merchants and administrators in the 19th century. Much of the district preserves its early 20th century architecture, and its treelined streets are filled with cafes, bars and restaurants enjoyed by Shanghai’s local and expat communities. We begin our visit to the quarter this morning with a visit to Rong Zhai, a 1918 residence beautifully restored by the Prada Foundation which opened as an art an exhibition space in 2019. After visiting the historic building and its exhibition, there is free time to explore the district before returning to the hotel. The afternoon is at leisure, before we meet in the evening for a farewell dinner at one of Shanghai’s fine restaurants. Overnight Shanghai

SATURDAY 4 APRIL – DEPARTURE (B)
The tour concludes after breakfast in the hotel this morning. Transfers are available to the airport for your onward journey.

TBA

• 9 nights’ accommodation in 4* hotels

• All breakfasts and 6 lunches or dinners, including drinks

• All ground transport, guided tours and entrance fees to sites as mentioned in the itinerary, and tipping

• Expertise of an Australian tour leader and art expert throughout

• Assistance of an English-speaking national guide throughout

A $1,500pp deposit is required at the time of booking to hold your place on tour.

A second deposit of $2,000pp is due on 27 November 2025.

We will invoice you for final payment for the tour, due on 10 January 2026.

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