The 6 Vegan & Vegetarian Tours in China We Would Book Again

1.Cooking Dumpling & Meal in Local Family-w/Vegan

★★★★★★★★★★4.9 · 36 reviews · 3.5 hours · from $82Our pick

Spend 3.5 hours in Jing’an learning dumplings from Bonnie and her mother, then sit down to a family-style meal of Shanghai specialties. The class includes tea, snacks, drinks, local travel advice, and vegan or allergy-friendly planning when arranged ahead.

“A truly special and authentic experience. Bonnie was fantastic: very knowledgeable, kind, and professional. You can clearly tell she has hosted this experience many times, as everything is well organized and feels very natural. She explains each step calmly and really involves you in the dumpling-making process, letting you get hands-on multiple times. Bonnie’s mom is lovely and brings true family tradition to the table. Cooking with them makes you feel immediately at home. It’s wonderful to prepare dumplings from scratch, try several different types, and then enjoy them together during the final dinner, all prepared by the family. The atmosphere is warm and genuine — it truly feels like…”

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2.Half-day Private Panda Tour with Vegetarian Lunch in Nunnery

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 8 reviews · from $80Top rated

Start at 7:30 am with hotel pickup inside Chengdu’s second ring road. An English-speaking guide, including guide Lance on some departures, leads you through the panda base before a vegetarian lunch at a Buddhist nunnery, Wenshu Monastery, and a local tea house.

“The driver and Guide were on time, really good tour! The Guide, Lance, was helpful because the breeding center is very big and he knew where to start to be able to see the pandas and not be so crowded. The nunnery is a very beautiful place.”

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3.Make Soup Dumpling: Vegan or Pork in Shanghai Shikumen

★★★★★★★★★★4.9 · 6 reviews · 2.5 hours · from $120

Chef Yin leads a 2.5-hour English, Japanese, or Chinese cooking class in a Shanghai Shikumen lane house. Choose vegan or pork xiaolongbao, make dough and wrappers from scratch, practice the 18-fold pleat, steam your dumplings, and eat them with tea, ginger, and black vinegar. Add both fillings for $20.

“Very well and kind advised cooking class with a good recipe.”

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4.Half-Day Walking Tour with a Vegetarian Lunch at a Nunnery

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 6 reviews · from $50

Meet at Wenshu Monastery at 9 a.m. for a four to five-hour walk through Chengdu’s spice market and back streets. Your English-speaking guide, sometimes listed as Winter, introduces Sichuan ingredients, local snacks, Buddhist customs, vegetarian lunch, and tea at an old teahouse.

“This is a great tour for those that don’t want the typical tour. Winter picked me up from my hotel and took me straight to a local wet market where he happily answered all my questions and provided lots of information about what was there aRead more”

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5.Top Michelin Vegetarian Restaurant Reservation

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 5 reviews · 2 hours · from $7Best value

Book a table at Jing Zhaoyin, Beijing’s Michelin Three-Star vegetarian restaurant, near Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City, and Yonghe Temple. You’ll try plant-based dishes built around mushrooms, soy, vegetables, and grains. The reservation service covers lunch, dinner, or afternoon tea, but the meal costs extra.

“Great food, great service, I had a wonderful night! Recommended.”

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6.Vegan Home Cooking & Local Market Tour with Sanxia

★★★★★★★★★★4.8 · 4 reviews · 4 hours · from $47

Join Sanxia for a private 4 to 6 hour Beijing food experience. Shop for seasonal produce at a local market, make dumplings, noodles, buns, and other vegan dishes in her home, drink Chinese tea, and receive photos plus a handmade Fragrant Hills bookmark.

“Super friendly and was able to learn a lot about cooking as well as everyday life in Beijing.”

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