Trains in China: tickets, passes and routes

China's high-speed network (G and D trains) covers about 45,000 km and reaches most cities a visitor plans to see. For a first trip the pattern is simple: use rail for the dense east and centre, and switch to a domestic flight for the long diagonals west to Urumqi, Lhasa or Kunming.

Tickets are sold per journey, not as a national pass. You book a specific train, date and seat class, and the price is fixed by distance and class rather than by how early you buy. Second class is fine for a few hours; first class buys a wider seat and a quieter carriage. On overnight legs, a soft sleeper berth costs roughly ¥150–600 and saves a hotel night.

Booking is real-name. The name and passport number on the ticket must match the document you carry, and you show that passport at the gate and again on board. Buy through the official Railway 12306 app or site, or through a booking agent that adds a small fee; both issue an e-ticket tied to your passport, so there is usually nothing to collect.

Sales open about 15 days before departure (check). Outside holidays, seats on most routes stay available for days, but Spring Festival, the October National Day week and the summer peak can clear a popular train in minutes. If your dates are fixed around those periods, book the moment sales open and have a backup train in mind.

At the station, arrive 40–60 minutes early. Entrances have a security scan, then a passport check at the gate, and boarding usually starts 15–20 minutes before departure. Big cities have more than one station and they are far apart: Beijing has Beijing South, Beijing West and Beijingbei, Shanghai has Hongqiao and Shanghai Station. Check the station name on your ticket, not just the city.

On board there is a food trolley and, on many G trains, a dining car; station shops sell noodles, snacks and water. Bring your own if you have dietary needs. Announcements are in Mandarin and usually English on high-speed services, and the seat display shows your destination.

Do not buy a rail pass. China does not sell a national pass for foreign visitors; point-to-point tickets are cheaper and simpler, and agents that advertise a "pass" are usually reselling individual seats with a markup.

Use the official 12306 app if you can read enough Chinese or use a translation tool; it takes foreign cards in many cases (check). Otherwise a booking agent is worth the small fee for the English interface and support when a train is cancelled.

Keep your passport on you for the whole journey, not in a bag in the overhead rack. It is checked at the gate and sometimes again on board, and hotels also need it at check-in.

If a train is full, look at the next departure or a nearby station rather than a different date; frequencies between big cities are high. For overnight routes, book the soft sleeper rather than hard seat, which is crowded and lit all night.

Pay for tickets, snacks and taxis with Alipay or WeChat Pay linked to a foreign card, or carry cash for small station shops. Set both up before you fly — they are hard to fix at the airport.