Traveling on the Train in China
Guide to Trains in the Middle Kingdom
Jul 14, 2009 Christopher Brown
China has an extensive network of trains running just about anywhere tourists might want to go. Buying tickets can be a little intimidating, but with a little confidence and a few instructions it will easily become many travelers' favorite means of travel in China.
Buying Train Tickets in China
Travel China Guide's website has a useful searchable train schedule. An alternative is to look at the printed schedule at the train station or ask the person behind the ticket counter.
Travelers in China will discover that train tickets usually are not available for purchase until a few days before departure. Large cities like Shanghai allow purchases up to 10 days in advance, but in many cities five days early or less is all that is offered. Tourists should come prepared with a few alternate train times since tickets often sell out.
Ticket sellers typically don't speak much English so carrying a pen and paper on which to write down train times and numbers might come in handy. Knowing a few Chinese words is helpful; some train vocabulary is listed below. Also, try going to ticket window number one, as some train stations have an English speaking ticket seller there. Sometimes if travelers stand around looking confused for long enough, a helpful local who wants to practice English may ask them if they need assistance. Recently Shanghai has started selling tickets from automated machines for their fast "D" trains.
Pay attention to the duration of the trip. Not all trains going from one destination to the next take the same amount of time. In fact, some trains can take significantly longer to travel the same distance. The letter before the train number indicates the type of train. The newest trains have a "D" in front of the number and tend to be the fastest, cleanest and most expensive. "T" and "Z" trains are express long distance trains that are also quite nice. Trains with "N" or "K" are usually older and quite slow, but sometimes these are all that is available.
Classes of Seats on Chinese Trains
Hard seats are equivalent to second class, but most of the time will be a padded seat like on a bus. Soft seat means first class; the car will probably be cleaner and less crowded. Popular train routes can be very crowded and ticket counters will sell standing tickets on some trains, so it is necessary to check the ticket to make sure there is a seat number. Seat numbering in China is different than in the West, so be aware that adjacent numbers might not be next to each other.
Also consider traveling in sleeper class. Traveling overnight in China is a great way to save the cost of a hostel or hotel and save daylight hours for sight seeing. Hard sleeper usually means six bunk style beds in an open compartment. Travelers have the choice of top, middle or bottom; bottom costs a little more. The advantage of having a bottom bunk is that it has more head room for sitting up when it's not time to sleep, but it can also be disadvantageous because it functions as the seat for the upper two bunks as well. Soft sleeper usually costs almost twice as much, but affords more privacy and comfort. There are four bunk style beds in a closed compartment so a group of four can essentially have their own room.
When to Travel in China
If possible, avoid traveling in China during national holidays. The biggest ones are Chinese New Year, usually around late January to mid February; Labor Day at the beginning of May; and the Mid-Autumn Festival at the beginning of October. On these holidays trains are often extremely crowded or sold out.
Speaking Chinese When Ordering Train Tickets
Any adventurer heading to China would do well to learn the basics of numbers and counting in Chinese. The western written form of numerals is usually used in China, which makes life much easier for foreigners.
- Hard Seat – yìng zuò
- Soft Seat – ruan zuò
- Hard Sleeper – yìng wò
- Soft Sleeper – ruan wò
- Top – Shàng
- Middle – zhong
- Bottom – xià
Shanghai Fast Train
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