China High-Speed Rail Tickets, Booked For You

Why train tickets are the hardest thing to buy in China

The 12306 app is the official system and it now accepts some foreign cards — but not reliably, and never predictably. Most independent travellers either fail at payment or discover that the popular sectors on popular dates sold out weeks earlier. Passport-linked ticketing also means mistakes are painful to unpick.

We hold seats and issue tickets in your name. You get the train number, carriage and seat, plus a short note on which station and which entrance to use — Chinese stations can have four entrances and the wrong one costs you twenty minutes.

The routes that matter for a China itinerary

Beijing–Xi'an, about 4.5 hours. Xi'an–Shanghai, about 6 hours. Shanghai–Hangzhou, 1 hour. Shanghai–Suzhou, 30 minutes. Guangzhou–Guilin, 2.5 hours. Hong Kong, China–Shenzhen, 18 minutes. Beijing–Shanghai, 4.5 hours.

These routes are faster and far more comfortable than flying once you count airport transfers, and they run every twenty to thirty minutes. On most China itineraries we use rail for the middle distances and fly only the long hops.

Classes, seats and what to choose

There are four practical classes. Second class is fine and comfortable for short hops. First class has wider seats and is worth it on journeys over four hours. Business class is expensive and rarely necessary. Sleeper berths only come into play on the long western routes.

Families should note that seats are assigned in rows; we always try to seat groups together and will tell you honestly when the train layout makes that impossible.

Standalone ticketing

You can book rail seats through us without a tour. Plenty of guests come only for the specific sector their own card was rejected on, and we are happy to do that. Send the route, the date and the number of passengers.