Shanghai to Beijing train service

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  • Anonymous
    Guest

    AlanOrton1
    Participant

    Hello All – I was wondering if anyone has travelled on the express train service from Shanghai to Beijing?

    I’ll be travelling on it later this month as an alternative to flying between the two cities on an upcoming business trip.

    I was wondering if anyone has any tips on how long to arrive at Shanghai Hongqiao station before train departure time, and anything unusual or unique to be aware of at the station that could cause delay etc.
    (Was planning on allowing 30 min in a taxi from Jing’An temple area).

    Also, at Beijing South, do you find taxi’s readily available at the station, as opposed to needing to book a car service?

    Many thanks in advance for any insight.


    PhilbLND
    Participant

    Hi,

    I would say that 30 mins from Jing’an is not long enough. Of course it depends what time you are heading to the station but the highway gets busy from 7am onwards and it is the same way to the domestic airport which makes it extra busy. On a good day you could do it 15 mins but I have sat in traffic for over an hour before.

    To be safe I would allow yourself an hour but that might mean sitting in the station if everything goes smoothly.

    Boarding to the train usually starts 10 – 15 mins before departure time. Also there is often a queue through security to get in to the station itself.

    Also a side point but the trains now have a business class seat which is the top class and is basically the same as an airline biz class – not quite flat bed but near enough. Given the journey is 5 hours I found it worthwhile.

    Not sure about taxi’s in BJ as I always booked a car.


    maxgeorge
    Participant

    If you have not already booked your tickets, allow me to suggest using chinahighlights. com.

    Very reliable, seats reserved and tickets delivered to your hotel for a small fee.

    Standing in line to do the job yourself can be a real horrorshow.


    batterytraveller
    Participant

    If you have tickets then half an hour should be fine, if you don’t or are collecting tickets allow longer. depending on where you are, I’d take the subway to the station, line 2 from Jing’An temple, traffic can be pretty bad.

    if booking in advance then make sure your booking info exactly matches your ID/Passport details, it wasn’t for one of my colleagues on a recent trip Shanghai to Ningbo and it lead to a kafkaesque nightmare of queuing at various windows to sort the problem out. We would have been doomed if not for our Chinese colleague.

    My chinese colleagues tend to use first class for shorter trips from Shanghai but use Business Class for trips to Beijing and find that, despite the journey time they can make it up and back for a meeting in a day if they start early and come home late, sleeping on the train. They also reckon the train is a lot more reliable than flying with evening returns out of Beijing being frequently delayed by several hours.

    I travelled both first and business class and agree with them. First is plenty good if you don’t need to sleep, lots of space in which to work, big comfortable recliner and a lot cheaper than business. Business class was quieter, not least as I was the only one in the cabin, but other than that not worth the extra money unless you are actually going to sleep.


    donkeyasia
    Participant

    @butterflytraveller. my sentiments entirely. I use Ctrips online for all my train booking, and if you need to cancel and want a refund, then it is seamless online or at the station. my only gripe about first class is that China Rail staff are allowed to use it if there is an empty seat, and they are noisy to an extreme.
    apart from the delays to domestic air travel, stations are in the city and when travelling regionally you can get at least 2-3 hours more work in by travelling by train.
    book ahead if it is a Friday or weekend.


    LuganoPirate
    Participant

    I’ve not done this Alan though one day I would love to. However I can point you towards the man in seat 61 who can give you plenty of information.

    http://seat61.com/beijing-to-shanghai-by-train.htm#Train_times,_northbound

    http://seat61.com/China.htm#.V1pOc2jRbxA


    AlanOrton1
    Participant

    Many thanks to all.

    I completed my trip a couple of weeks ago and it was a faultless service and I can’t imagine going back to flying between the two cities again.

    25mins in a taxi from the Jing’An temple area. No queue to go through security on arrival at the station.
    Station is vast but clearly signposted and boarding began around 20 mins before departure.
    In the future I’ll probably look to arrive around 30 mins before train departure. Worth getting on when the gates first open if you are traveling with a suitcase (as I was) as this ensures they’ll be space in the overhead racks.

    My colleague in Shanghai booked the first class ticket for me. I must have been a little lucky as I ended up in a seat in the very rear nose portion of the 16 carriage train. A quasi business class seat as it was a single, larger seat, with console for storing things on at the side, but no recline or footrest like business class.

    I don’t think normal first class would be an issue for me on this route again, though there is a noticeable step up when you travel in business with wider seats, fully reclining and 3 across rather than 4. Meal served in business class looked similar to en economy style plane meal.

    Train left and arrived on time, enjoyed the varying scenery. No wi-fi, but expected that to be the case. Would highly recommend.

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