8 Half-Day Tours Around the World to Build a Day Around

1.Half-Day Mini Group Xian Tour to Terracotta Warriors Museum

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 467 reviews · from $49Our pick

You’ll leave central Xi’an by air-conditioned minivan, spend about three hours among the Terracotta Warriors’ three excavated pits, and return near the Big Wild Goose Pagoda. An English-speaking guide, museum ticket, bottled water, headsets, and a Chinese buffet lunch are included. Groups usually number about 12.

“Well organized, with real info about the site. Efficient, and the guide was incredible with a perfect English! I also liked the timing. I highly recommend!”

Check availability →Read our full review

2.Soweto & Apartheid Museum Half-Day Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.9 · 99 reviews · 5h 30m · from $84

Spend about five and a half hours with a French- or English-speaking guide such as Advice, Masese, or John, touring Soweto, Mandela House, the Soweto Towers, and the Apartheid Museum. Hector Pieterson is viewed from outside, while the museum provides the main historical visit.

“It was absolutely fabulous, we learnt so much and John was such a super guide! We felt safe and looked after, thank you John!”

Check availability →Read our full review

3.Half-Day Apartheid Museum Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 73 reviews · 5 hours · from $49

Spend five hours exploring Johannesburg’s Apartheid Museum with hotel pickup, a 13-person maximum group, and an English-speaking guide. Expect 22 exhibition areas, film footage, photographs, artifacts, and a moving account of South Africa’s road to democracy. Guides such as Bongani and Tshepo add useful local context.

“Incredibly interesting and informative afternoon. there was some transport confusion beyond the control of the tour company, who responded fantastically by sending out a replacement guide/driver who ran almost a private tour for me. Excellent, thank you.”

Check availability →Read our full review

4.From Tirana: Half-Day Kruja Trip and Skanderbeg Museum Entry

★★★★★★★★★★4.7 · 41 reviews · 5 hours · from $61

Travel from central Tirana to Kruja in a small group of up to 10. Your English-speaking guide leads you through the castle and Skanderbeg Museum, then gives you time at the Old Bazaar and Sari Salltik Tekke. Guides such as Besmiri and Bes have earned praise for friendly, clear service.

“O tour foi ótimo, acabou sendo privativo para eu e minha parceira de viagem. O guia muito bom, falava inglês e italiano (além de albanês, é claro), e foi bastante simpático.”

Check availability →Read our full review

5.Half-Day Colonial Lima and Larco Museum Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.9 · 31 reviews · 4 hours · from $62

Start with hotel pickup in Miraflores, San Isidro, or Barranco, then visit Casa Aliaga, Plaza Mayor, Lima Cathedral, and Larco Museum. A guide such as Juan can add useful historical context. Expect a compact route, with traffic sometimes taking a large part of the four-hour visit.

“very informative guide, great driver, and were accommodating when I messed up the tour date!”

Check availability →Read our full review

6.Underwater Museum, Trogir & Blue Lagoon Half-Day Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.2 · 31 reviews · 4h 30m · from $76

Travel from Split in a small group of up to 12 on a fast boat to Trogir, Jelinak Bay’s shallow Underwater Museum, and the Blue Lagoon. You’ll get snorkeling gear, SUPs, beach equipment, and an English-speaking crew, with about one hour at each stop.

“Très belle demi journée, visite de trogir guidée ou en autonomie, puis le musée aquatique et le lagon bleu. Le rythme est bon pas plus pas moins 👌 je recommande”

Check availability →Read our full review

7.Half-Day Sightseeing Tour with Acropolis Museum

★★★★★★★★★★3.9 · 20 reviews · 5 hours · from $154

Spend five hours touring Athens by bus and on foot, from the Panathenaic Stadium and Syntagma Square to the Acropolis and Acropolis Museum. Guides lead in English, French, Italian, or Spanish. Hotel pickup, admission, and drop-off at select hotels are included.

“Our guide Thomas was so knowledgeable and engaging about the city of Athens, and the pace and content of the tour he directed through the beautiful Acropolis Museum was perfect. Highly recommend!”

Check availability →Read our full review

8.Half-Day Private Lima City Tour and Larco Museum

★★★★★★★★★★4.7 · 20 reviews · 4 hours · from $122

Spend four hours with a private guide visiting Larco Museum, Casa Aliaga, and Lima’s Main Square. You’ll see pre-Hispanic gold, silver, and erotic art, then explore colonial Lima with hotel pickup from Miraflores or San Isidro. English, Spanish, and Portuguese guides are available.

“Loved this activity! Our guide and driver were beyond professional. Our guide was a de facto historian. Loved the museums and learning more of the Peruvian culture. We had time before our first activity to stop at a breakfast location, El Chinito which was very delicious. Would highly recommend.”

Check availability →Read our full review