How to travel by train in China

Trip Start Jan 30, 2007
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Trip End Dec 31, 2011


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Thursday, July 10, 2008

Travel by train in China is cheap and cheerful - though not always. If you are coming to China, going on at least one overnight train trip could be a highlight (or at least give you a store of horror stories - the toilets, the food, the smoking, the loud music, the crowding, the thief . . . )

Train travel in China is usually accompanied by these words: safe. modern. comfortable.
These words are relative really. If you've just come from 4th class on an Indian train. Yes, Chinese trains are reasonably comfortable. If you've just been held at gunpoint on the trans-Siberian. Yes - Chinese trains are reasonably safe (though they did have a big crash this year). If you've just been sleeping on a sagging wafer-thin bed. Yes, Chinese trains are modern and if you have earplugs - they are not too soul-destroying china train
china train
 .

There's a great guide for train times and even costs at http://www.travelchinaguide.com/china-trains/
Just enter the places you want to go to.

A similar search engine is about to leave Internet Central at http://www.chinahighlights.com/china-trains/

You can book tickets at http://www.china-train-ticket.com/ though there seems to be a booking fee premium through this site - which seems aimed at UK residents.

There's also some more links to ticket sales at http://www.seat61.com/China.htm

And you can read about a train trip at http://www.grownups.co.nz/read/travel/rail/train-travel-in-china

Or more train trips at
http://www.chinatravel.com/story/tags/China-train-travel/

Or this one, a collection of train stories
http://realtravel.com/tag-z687018-696.html

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