Why Us | WildChina

You are exceptional. So are our Experiences

How Wild is WildChina?

What do we really mean by wild? Here’s what the Oxford English Dictionary says:

(Place) uninhabited; inhospitable

Yes, we go beyond the tourist circuit, but equally we love dining in world-class restaurants and drifting to sleep beneath Egyptian cotton sheets.
(People) not civilized; primitive

We help you see more closely: the monk texting friends between prayers, the Guilin rice farmer selling honey online. You’ll rethink what civilized truly means.
Lacking discipline or restraint

Most travel companies stick to the same itinerary – we build in flexibility for those wild and wonderful moments that make travel in China so special.
Very enthusiastic or excited

Absolutely! The passion of our guides is contagious, whether it’s Lao Wang sharing the secrets of taichi or explorer Jeff Fuchs on his favorite tea.

Take a walk on the Wild side

MEET OUR TEAM

OurTravel Designers

Agnes Xia

Born in Xinjiang and raised in Beijing, Agnes has a longtime passion for travel. Her wanderlust led her to backpacking throughout university and then saw her road tripping across Australia during her gap year. She later returned to China to open a hot pot restaurant in her hometown before ultimately deciding to turn her love of travel into a career and joining WildChina.

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OurLeadership

Albert Ng

Executive Director

Albert is a co-founder and executive director of WildChina, where he focuses on driving innovation from an experience and technological perspective. Albert has over twenty years of experience growing and operating businesses. A native of Hong Kong, Albert received his MBA from INSEAD and BA from Columbia University.

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OurTravel Designers

Christine Xu

Travel Designer

Christine has been with WildChina since 2007. She originally hails from Inner Mongolia, where she majored in Foreign Trade English at Inner Mongolia Poly Technic University. Her passion is photography, and she especially loves capturing the ethnic minorities of Yunnan.

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OurExperts

Diana Chan Chieng

Beijing Architecture Expert

Diana Chan Chieng is known worldwide as an Architecture Expert, both in traditional and contemporary Chinese architecture. Diana hosted the first Chinese contemporary architecture exhibition in Paris and has served as a consultant for various, prestigious institutions in Beijing.

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OurExperts

Dvir Bargal

Jewish Shanghai Expert

WildChina's Jewish Expert, Dvir Bargal is a long-time Shanghai resident as well as a celebrated journalist and documentary filmmaker. Dedicating much of his life to rediscovering Shanghai's Jewish history, his articles and documentaries depict Judaism from the Silk Road to the Middle East.

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OurLeadership

Emma Clifton

Head of Strategy

Emma is WildChina's Head of Strategy. A graduate of the University of London, Emma's passion for adventure brought her to China. After studying Mandarin and falling in love with the country, Emma joined WildChina's marketing team in 2015 and now oversees WildChina's strategy.

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OurGuides

Florence Ma

Shanghai Guide

Born in Shanghai, Florence is an expert on Shanghai history and is always up-to-date with current events in the city. A graduate of the prestigious East China Normal University graduate, Florence has outstanding management skills and excellent English.

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OurExperts

Georgia Freedman

Food and travel writer

Georgia Freedman is an American writer and recipe developer. Her culinary and travel insights have been featured in the Wall Street Journal, Afar, Martha Stewart Living, and the award-winning food magazine Saveur, where she was previously the Managing Editor. She first became enamored with Yunnan's diverse minority groups and their unique culinary cultures while traveling the region in 2000 and has returned regularly ever since to continue her exploration of China's foodways. Freedman is the author of the recently published Cooking South of the Clouds: Recipes and Stories from China's Yunnan Province (Kyle Books, 2018).

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OurGuides

Huang Huaihai

Huang was born into a Zhuang family in Southeastern Yunnan. However, after living in Lijiang for seven years, he now considers himself part Naxi. With almost a decade of experience, Huang has coordinated and led groups through numerous regions of China, ranging from the ancient town of Lijiang to the wild and untamed region of Tibet.

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OurLeadership

Jenny Zhao

Deputy General Manager

Jenny is WildChina's Deputy General Manager. During her ten years at WildChina, she's had the opportunity to travel to many wonderful places and test out WildChina experiences including trekking through ethnic minority villages in remote Yunnan, making a pilgrimage to the Everest Base Camp, and dancing with a Uighur family on our Silk Road journey. Her interests include music, swimming, and traveling, of course.

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OurExperts

Mei Zhang

Founder & CEO

Mei Zhang is the founder and CEO of WildChina. Under her leadership, WildChina flourished from a small Hutong operation into an award-winning business. Mei's own expertise has led her to win a number of personal awards, including Travel and Leisure's A-List of Top Travel Advisors, Condé Nast Traveler's Top Travel Specialist, and Wendy Perrin's #WOW List of Travel Experts. Mei is an Aspen Institute China Fellow and currently serves as a member of Harvard Business School's Alumni Board.

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OurExperts

Neil Schmid

Neil Schmid is the Scholar-in-Residence at the Dunhuang Academy, and he is one of the world's leading authorities on medieval Buddhism's visual culture. He studied Chinese and East Asian Studies at Georgetown University, Waseda University in Tokyo, L'Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes in Paris, and finally earned a PhD from the University of Pennsylvania.

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OurGuides

Nyima

Tibet Guide

Nyima has the privilege of working in one of the most beautiful, remote places on Earth. Born in Lhasa, the capital of Tibet, Nyima has decade's worth of experience leading groups in and around Tibet's astonishing scenery.

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OurGuides

Sonam

Tibet Guide

Since entering the industry, Sonam has traveled extensively throughout Tibet, learning more about his home province than he could have hoped. He especially loves the personal interaction with clients, and the fulfilling feeling of knowing his group is completely satisfied with their experience.

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OurExperts

Fuchsia Dunlop

Chinese Cuisine Expert

A chef and award-winning author from England, Fuchsia Dunlop became an expert in Sichuanese food after living in Chengdu and becoming the first foreigner to graduate from the prestigious Sichuan Institute of Higher Cuisine. The Cambridge graduate has written for numerous publications and has published a number of books about her specialization in Chinese cuisine. Fuchsia's latest book 'The Food of Sichuan' is out now.

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OurExperts

Jeff Fuchs

Explorer, Author & Tea Connoisseur

Jeff Fuchs is an explorer, author, and tea expert who was recently voted one of Canada's 'Greatest Explorers' by the Royal Canadian Geographic Society. Fuchs was the first documented westerner to have travelled the legendary Tea Horse Road, the nomadic Route of Salt 'Tsa-Lam', and the 'Hor-Lam', the Route of Pashmina through Ladakh. He has led or been a part of over 30 expeditions in the Himalayas, chronicling both the fading oral narratives and the declining 'Himalayan Water Towers', the glaciers. Fuchs is the author of The Ancient Tea Horse Road, a chronicle of his journey along the Himalayan trade route and he's the inspiration for, and host of, the recent award-winning documentary 'The Tea Explorer'.

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We're not afraid to Dream Big

RECOGNITIONS

We've earned our Stripes

PREFERRED PARTNERS

Beijing

Beijing
Bhutan
Cambodia
Chengdu
Guizhou
Guilin
Hangzhou
Hong Kong
Kunming
Laos
Lijiang & Dali
Myanmar
Shangri-La
Shanghai
Thailand
Tibet
Xi'an

Beijing
Bhutan
Cambodia
Chengdu
Guizhou
Guilin
Hangzhou
Hong Kong
Kunming
Laos
Lijiang & Dali
Myanmar
Shangri-La
Shanghai
Thailand
Tibet
Xi'an

5 stars
The Peninsula Beijing

Combining modern luxury accommodation with traditional Chinese accents, the Peninsula Beijing is the only all-suite hotel in Beijing, with a standard room averaging 65 square meters.
5 Stars
Regent Beijing

Ideally situated in Wangfujing just minutes away from the famed Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square, Regent Beijing has one foot in the old world and one in the new. The hotel features contemporary rooms with subtle nods to traditional Chinese elegance.
5 Stars
Mandarin Oriental Wangfujing

Only a 15-minute walk from the must-see Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square, the Mandarin Oriental is a luxurious retreat in the heart of Beijing.

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Find Out More about Beijing

CHINA HANDS

Our exclusive travel advisor training course and community that will help you to become a China expert - an appellation that is often referred to in Chinese as a "China Hand"

By becoming a China Hand you will:

Look like a superstar in front of your clients
Access exclusive rewards
Get a first look at new experiences
Receive additional marketing support

Request More Information

Our Travelers Say

I don't use tour groups often, but have certainly gotten guides on the ground (have used very successful apps also). I've not dealt with a group with a higher level of professionalism, of-service. Not even close.
My first two guides were also world class. Fred and Jerry were open and candid, clearly knew their stuff, but always sized me up on what was interesting to me and tailored our activities with great flexibility but also how they engaged me.

Chris S, Sep 2019

We traveled in May on a culinary tour with WildChina led by cookbook author, Fuchsia Dunlop. This trip of a lifetime opened our minds to a completely different and amazing culture. We learned so much and loved every minute of this great trip with our wonderful group of eleven strangers who parted as friends.
Read More on TripAdvisor

Pam S., Jul 2019

With little more than a phone number, our Guangzhou guide managed to locate my wife's distant cousins and locate the homes where her grandparents lived 100 years ago -- and arranged a reunion lunch she'll never forget.
Read more on TripAdvisor

Paul H, May 2019

The Road We've Traveled

OUR STORY

WildChina was born on the sacred slopes of Mount Kailash in the Himalayas. Founder Mei Zhang, Yunnan native and Harvard MBA, had just completed the arduous kora pilgrimage, a ritual circuit around the base of the Tibetan mountain undertaken by Buddhists and Hindus for millennia.

To put it mildly, her grueling 56km hike was no walk in the park, even for a Mandarin speaker and relative local. On top of having no guide, lodgings or transport, and having to cope with being 4,500 meters above sea level, Mei was forced to fend off wild dogs along the way. Frightened and frustrated with the obstacles that tarnished an otherwise magical and spiritual journey, Mei had a revelation. She would pioneer a travel service to enable visitors to savor China’s stunning, often difficult to reach gems in a comfortable, stylish and stress-free way.

2000 Hello World

Hello World

Propped up a sign saying: “WildChina in business.” Our first ever trip? Hiking in Yunnan province. We appear in the Wall Street Journal and CNN and our inbox fills up. Clearly, China is ready for us!
2001 Student Invasion

Student Invasion

We take 200 children from the International School of Beijing to discover the cradle of Chinese civilization in Henan province. This sets in motion our commitment to do education travel differently.
2004 Pandas and concubines

Pandas and concubines

We launch our corporate events with a bang, serving 150 global partners of a major consulting firm. Meticulous planning includes formal meetings in Beijing’s exclusive Diaoyutai State Guesthouse and racing around the capital dressed as pandas and concubines. As you do.
2007 All glamped up

All glamped up

We pioneer eco-friendly glamping (glamorous camping) on the Tibetan plateau during the annual horse festival: solar-powered tents, queen beds, and a private chef! Meanwhile, on the other side of the world we are featured in a Harvard Business School case study.
2009 The red carpet

The red carpet

National Geographic Adventure names us one of the “Best Adventure Travel Companies on Earth”, while founder Mei Zhang is awarded “A-List Travel Agent” by Travel + Leisure. Celebration time!
2010 Calling all explorers

Calling all explorers

We launch our annual WildChina Explorer Grant which now receives hundreds of applications from young adventurers around the world keen to make a difference.
2010 China’s travel expert

China’s travel expert

WildChina founder Mei is the only native China expert named by Condé Nast Traveler in their list of world’s top travel specialists. (An accolade she’s maintained every year since.)
2011 The family grows

The family grows

Our sister brand 碧山 (Beshan) launches, to help Chinese travelers take on the world in first-class style. Meanwhile, our team of office staff and guides grows to 250 strong.
2014 The “in” crowd

The “in” crowd

We are named one of the “Most Innovative Companies” of 2014 by Fast Company, alongside Google, Netflix, and Twitter! (Founder Mei Zhang has also retained her Travel + Leisure A-List status every year since 2009).
2015 You’re invited

You’re invited

We turn 15! Cue setting off of firecrackers and burning of incense. (Hopefully this won’t worsen Beijing’s pollution.)

Since WildChina’s first ever trip in the year 2000, we have helped thousands of travelers have life-changing experiences in every corner of this vast and endlessly inspiring nation.

We will never crop out reality or cocoon our customers in a tourist bubble because we believe genuine and profound travel experiences disarm you when you least expect them, whether it’s that first sip of early harvest green tea under a spring sun, or the hushed flicker of yak butter candles in a Tibetan monastery

We believe in the power of travel to transform, to inspire and to bring people closer together, and we work tirelessly to perfect every detail for our customers. It’s this dedication, expertise and passion for travel in China that makes us an award-winning industry leader.

Our journey continues to unfold, Where Will Yours Take You?

Our Journeycontinues to unfold,
Where Will Yours Take You?

WE'VE BEEN IN THE NEWS LATELY

Botanical Adventures & Sustainable Botany: Field Notes from Our Education Team

July 16, 2020

At WildChina Education, many of our experiential learning programs revolve around nature – whether that is environmental service, wilderness survival, kayaking down rivers, or hikes and bike rides through beautiful landscapes. However, we don’t just deliver learning to students; we consider ourselves lifelong learners as well. Our team members come with talents and achievements across many fields. Today, […]
How To Travel Domestically In China: Green Codes and Health Kits in China’s COVID-19 Response

May 19, 2020

You’ve probably heard about it by now: the green Health Code that is your ticket in China to travel, to stay at a hotel, to get into the subway. Well, if not, or if you’d like to know the details on traveling in China sometime soon – this summer, for instance! – read on. Follow […]

Botanical Adventures & Sustainable Botany: Field Notes from Our Education Team

How To Travel Domestically In China: Green Codes and Health Kits in China’s COVID-19 Response