China Travel
train tickets at the railway station
In the main cities, train tickets are sold in the ticket office. This is often a separate building than the main building with the waiting rooms and platforms.
At Shanghai Central Railway Station, the ticket office is on the other side of the street. In 2009 (when we travel with the train through China), desk number 10 was the 'English Speaking Counter'. On this counter you could ask in English for tickets to all cities starting from Shanghai.
At Beijing Central Station the foreigner desk is not in the ticket office but in the main building near the softseat waiting room. Ofcourse foreigers can buy tickets in the ticket office but the staff speak little English and there are no signs in English which counter sells tickets to which cities.
At short popular routes (for example: Hong Kong-Shenzhen, Shenzhen-Guangzhou, Hangzhou-Shanghai, Shanghai-Suzhou) it is not necessary to make a reservation unless you want an specific train or specific time. We bought in summer 2009 most times our tickets at the train station one day before we left.
Most easy way is to get your train ticket at the hotel. Many hotels can make reservations for trains, flights but also city tours or entertainment shows. You can avoid then the hassle of buying a train ticket and save perhaps a few hours of your precious time for more important things. The hotel will ask you a small surcharge for the booking service. How much depends of the hotel. We used one time in Hangzhou this service and our 4star hotel asked 40 Yuan surcharge per ticket. A hostel would ask maybe only 10/20 Yuan. The hotel will send a staff member to the station or to a train booking office to buy your ticket.
Another option is to book train tickets through the internet. I didn't check all prices but i think that many prices are hundreds of Yuans higher per ticket than if you book your train ticket in your hotel. Basicly the internet agency do the same as the hotel. They sent some one to the booking office/train station and deliver the ticket at your hotel. With national holidays or exhibitions (like Shanghai Fair 2010) it is the best to make your train ticket many days in advance. A reliable internet agency can then be useful.
train classes Chinese trains have 4 classes:
- hard seat (oncomfortable and very crowded)
- hard sleeper (bunks beds in an open dormitory car)
- soft seat (comfortable seats on short journeys)
- soft sleeper (4 comfortable bunks in one closed cabin)
transportation to the station
Unless you are on a tight budget, the taxi is the best way to travel to the railway station. Taxis are inexpensive (start rate not more than 10 Yuan for the first 3 kms) and allmost everywhere on the street. Raise your hand and the taxi will stop. During rush hours it can be hard to get a taxi. Many taxi drivers don't speak (much) English so a street map in Chinese/English would be a great help. Pay attention that the meter is running when you leave.
food & drinks
In 2009, we used several times highspeed/fast trains and traveled not more than 3 hours from city to another city. In our trains was a dining car with a bar where we could buy take-a-way noodles, snacks, coffee, cola and beer. In the past we used to travel wth the train Chengdu - Beijing (34 hours) and this train had the traditional dining car with a tables, seats and a menu card.
Vendors walk regulary in the train selling little styrofoam food boxes. The food is simple, basic and not really tasty for most tourists. Mostly rice with some vegetables and meat. Especially for the longer distances it's wise to bring some food and fruit with you from the supermarket. Western supermarkets are often on the ground floor in the large department stores. Also do not forget to bring your own toilet paper. In the train cars you can tap hot boiled water for free. You only need to bring your own cup and some tea/coffee bags.
tickets & fares
- Beijing -> Shanghai: soft-sleeper 499 Yuan, hard-sleeper 298-327 Yuan
- Beijing -> Chengdu: soft-sleeper 642/686 Yuan, hard-sleeper 391-418 Yuan
- Beijing -> Guangzhou: soft-sleeper 705/786 Yuan, hard-sleeper 428-458 Yuan
- Beijing -> Kunming: soft-sleeper 890 Yuan, hard-sleeper 539-578 Yuan
- Shanghai -> Chongqing: soft-sleeper 754 Yuan, hard sleeper 458-490 Yuan
If you leave the railway station with your luggage you have to pass the control and to show your train ticket. So don't throw away your ticket away or put it somewhere deep in your luggage.
luggage
The soft seat class carriages have little space for larger suitcases. Train attendants in this class will not allow suitcases/bags in the walking path even if it's just a small part. We had to move one of our suitcases in the back of the carriage behind some seats of other passengers. If you think that you will use the soft seat class regulary, best is to take a smaller suitcase(s). Small suitcases can be placed above your seat in the train. In the second class soft seat, it is not a problem to have a suitcase next to your seat as long as other passengers or train trolleys can go through.
Beijing travel guide - Chengdu travel guide - Guangzhou travel guide - Hangzhou travel guide
Hong Kong travel guide - Shanghai travel guide - China city guides
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