One of the best ways to travel domestically within China itself will be using their High-Speed Trains or High-Speed Rails. China have been on a mighty offensive with their rain networks which makes sense given how broad their land is. They have more than 45,000 kilometres of high-speed rail. This is the longest HSR network in the world. I have heard so many good things about this and that the premium cabins can be luxurious. I have been looking for an opportunity to check them out and to review them to see if they are really that comfortable. This allows you to zip around the country. Even the signature route between Beijing and Shanghai takes only a little more than 4 hours. That gives planes a real run for their money considering the time taken to travel to airports and 2 hours ahead. I have tried numerous High-Speed Trains product worldwide in Europe and Japan. I would love to see how the Chinese ones match up. Let me share my overall experience on the trains from the booking process to the product.
Booking China HSR Tickets
China HSR tickets can be booked via various platforms. The two most recommended ones would be the Railway 12306 app or via Trip.com. I would say that the Railway 12306 offers more information such as the types of trains and seats availability but the interface is better for those who know Chinese. It is also much harder to set up an account. I had some difficulties doing so. I use Trip.com instead and they have an international version of the app which works very well. This is a China-based OTA. I love their customer service which is very prompt and efficient. They do cost a little more with their booking fee. China’s top-tier High-Speed Trains have 4 different cabins. They are Business Class, Premier Class, First Class and Second Class. Some trains might have either Business Class or Premier Class. Booking a ticket on Trip.com is very easy. I would recommend you to pre-verify your details first as it helps with the ticketing. Your tickets will be issued faster. China HSR tickets open up for booking 14 days ahead. I hope that you can buy it much ahead. On the app, you can see the date and time that the ticket will be open for booking.
You can also make a reservation if the tickets are not yet open for booking on Trip.com. The payment will be collected immediately and they will help you make the booking once they open up. If the booking is not successful, you will be refunded in full. There is usually still a time lag and before they can book it for you, the tickets are already taken. I would prefer just doing it myself right on the dot. Have your passport details and credit card saved to make it faster.
Buying high-speed rail train tickets in China is rather challenging and complicated especially if you want to take a particular train and time. The G trains are the fastest. I wanted the Fuxing Train which are the latest and newest models. Trip.com does not show this information so you will have to cross refer to Railway 12306. Do also take note of the different railway stations in the city. For example, there are 4 train stations in Chongqing.
One thing I hate about booking tickets online for China HSR is the seating. They don’t allow you or promise you the seats you want. You might not be seated together. This can be rather weird for business class given how limited the seats are. For my first booking, we got 1 seat at cabin 1 and 1 seat at cabin 8! That is on the opposite end of the train. You can only trial and error. Thankfully, I made another booking and we are in the same cabin but still seated separately. Do take note that while they advertised free cancellation before your train departs, it is still subjected to a small admin fee. E-tickets are provided for booking via Trip.com so that is very easy. You simply board with your ID. More on this later on.
Arrival
I would recommend arriving about an hour early at the train station especially if it is your first time there. China rail stations can be huge and it is chaotic. Much more time might be needed during holidays and the festive period. This is our crowd at Chongqing North Station on a normal weekend in the late morning. It takes time to walk to the gates and the pick-up/drop-off area.
There are also airport-style security checks and ticket checks before you enter the station. This will take some time too. Business Class tickets are around 4 times the price of Second Class and it comes with the most benefits and exclusivity. One of the most useful ones is priority for security and boarding. There will be an exclusive gate for drop-off and security checks. I took a didi from my hotel to Chongqing North Station where my train was departing from. They drop me right at the business class entrance. You have to show the ID to the staff to verify your ticket and you will be allowed access to the station.
Do note that foreigners have to use the manual entrance. Their automated system will not work with our IDs. I then head to the business class lounge to wait for my boarding. This is another perk of business class tickets.
Chongqing North Train Station Business Class Lounge
The business class lounge is a perk for business class ticket holders to wait for their train. It can be found in major train stations across China. This is a great perk as the stations are always very busy and chaotic. You can find signs guiding you easily to the lounge. We are departing from Chongqing North Train Station and they have three lounges over here. There are lounges in the North, South and near Boarding Gate 12B. I went to the one in the North where a staff will escort you to your gate during boarding.
The lounge is quite old and nothing too amazing. It is like something from the 1980s. It does offer a much more quieter environment. The service is very good with a host verifying your tickets and also providing you with a beeper that will alert you when your train is boarding. This will allow them to escort you to the boarding gate. The service is great as you do not have to find your way. The lounge comes with some prepacked snacks and drinks. It is quite barebones. They don’t even have chilled drinks.
The lounge also comes with a toilet which is much cleaner than usual China train stations public toilets.
Boarding
When you purchase the ticket the boarding gate will also be shown on the app and your ticket. Do make sure to head to the gate early as boarding starts around 30 minutes before your departing time. The crowds here are epic. I am not sure how they board everyone in time. Make sure to queue up early if you are not in business class as only business class gets priority lines. In fact, for foreigners, we will not be able to use the automated counters and you will have to queue up at the manual lines. One of the best perks of business class is the complimentary escort service that is offered. A dedicated staff will bring you to the boarding gate and help you with the process. This is very handy for foreign travellers and those who are unfamiliar with the station. Simply head to the lounge for this benefit.
After the staff verify your ticket which is your ID, simply head down and board the train. You will know which cabin and door to use to easily find your seats. All of the seats on China High-Speed Trains are assigned.
Fuxing Business Class Cabin
For my outbound journey from Chongqing, I took a Business Class in Chengdu. This is the most luxurious and exclusive cabin onboard the China HSR. I have also purposely chosen the Fuxing trains as these are the newest models. Business Class are priced around double that of First Class and 5 times of Second Class. They are very exclusive and the cabins are located at each end of the trains. This means that there is only a maximum of 10 seats on each train. The entire cabins consist of 2 rows in a 1-2 and 1-1 configuration. There are only 5 seats in each cabin.
While Business Class is an overkill for this 1hr ish journey, I will still recommend it. The minimum to go for would be First Class. This is more similar to the Western standard that you are used to. It will also offer more luggage space for your bags. They do not have any baggage rules as long as you can carry them yourself. I would say that the baggage space is quite limited. There is a dedicated host who will take care of you in the cabin. It is something like a stewardess onboard the plane. We were greeted upon entering the cabin and ushered to the seat. While we were assigned seats 2A and 2F. We managed to switch with a fellow pax onboard to 2A and 2C to sit together.
This is one of the most premium train cabins I have ever travelled in. The intimate cabin is very exclusive and private. You are afforded plenty of space and legroom. The seat goes fully flat too.
This will be very useful for your bags. There is more than enough space for it. We left all our huge baggage in front of us. The luggage compartments are quite small with only one outside the cabin.
Our dedicated host welcomed us onboard and came by with a snack box and wet wipes. We departed right on time and the host then came by with a round of drinks. They have non-alcoholic beverages on offer. This includes mineral water, fruit juice, tea and coffee. You can also request slippers, earphones, ear plugs, eye masks and blankets.
If you ride the train at a certain time, a free meal is also offered for Business Class passengers. Breakfast is offered for trains departing before 8am, lunch for trains departing between 11.30am to 1pm and dinner for trains departing between 5.30pm to 8pm. You can find the menu here. The host will come by to take meal orders. There are 3 to 4 choices available.
It might make sense to book a train departing at these hours to take advantage of these but it is nothing too fancy. They are those pre-cooked microwave meals costing around 50 CNY. We got the Curry Pork Chop Rice and the Sichuan Double Cooked Pork Rice.
Free Wi-Fi onboard is available on selected China high-speed trains. To access the free wireless internet, you may need to download an app called 掌上高铁. They require a local Chinese phone number for the verification code. We got into Chengdu before we knew it. This beats first-class travel over in Europe and also the Japan Shinkansen Green Class. China HSR is very smooth and comfortable. I am rather shocked that they didn’t have an exclusive toilet for business class passengers.
Premier Class Cabin
For my return journey to Chongqing, I got Premier Class instead to try it out. On certain trains, there isn’t Business Class but rather Premier Class. There is very limited information about this cabin. From what I can gather, it offers a similar product to Business Class but there are more seats per cabin. The pricing is more similar to First Class rather than Business Class. That intrigues me to give it a try and to check it out. Do note that you do not get any of the Business Class privileges. There is no lounge, priority security and priority boarding.
The pricing for Premier Cabin is kinder on the wallet, with it only about 20% more expensive. The Premier Class is similarly located in a separate cabin and rather exclusive. There are only 8 seats inside in a 1-2 configuration. We managed to get side-by-side seats in the first row. These seats are more like First Class than Business Class. The legroom is also quite limited. Seat width is decent since there are only 3 seats in a row as compared to 4 in First Class.
The seat does not go fully flat but comes with a decent amount of recline. Here are some pictures of the seats. This is perfectly decent for a 2 hours ride or so. Anything more, I will fork out the difference for Business. The luggage space is also very limited. Thankfully, we were one of the first to board and were in the row nearer to the conductor. This gives us additional space behind our seats to store our bags. There is also a host in the premier cabin to offer some water or tea when we board. The premium class is worth the slight premium for more privacy on short journeys. Let me share some pictures of the other cabins.
First Class Cabin
Second Class Cabin
Conclusion
I would recommend trying out the Business Class if you are planning a trip to China on the High-Speed Trains. They are a treat and a very comfortable way to travel. Prices are very decent and worth the premium for a comfortable trip around the city. It is not so much the price but rather the hassle of booking the ticket being the ticket. Business Class tickets are high in demand and there is only a limited amount of seats per train. Most of the time there are only 10 seats per train, at the ends of each train. You can find them taken up in a matter of minutes. While I have great things to say about the trains and product, I can’t say the same about the booking system and procedure. It is such a hassle and not foreign-friendly. I wish they could learn from the Japanese Shinkansen and the SmartEx system. There are too many platforms and rules around the China HSR. The best way I will recommend will be through Trip.com which is more expensive. There is limited information online about the China HSR and I hope this will be a useful guide while planning your rides on them.
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