China Train Schedule & Tickets Booking

And it will end on March 13, with February 13 and 23 as busiest days. During the 40-day travel rush, China trains are expected to serve 539 million passengers in total, a year-on-year increase of 5%.

Beijing, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Shanghai, Nanjing, and Hangzhou will see the largest flow before Chinese New Year holiday from February 15 to 22, after which passengers concentrate in Chengdu, Chongqing, Wuhan, Nanchang, etc. The busiest train routes include Xi'an to Chengdu/Taiyuan, Dalian to Harbin, and Qingdao to Shanghai.

For tourists planning a China railway trip during this period, it's wise to avoid the hottest destinations and routes above. Meanwhile, book train tickets as soon as they are released, and get to the departure station at least 2 hours in advance for boarding procedures.

The schedule is to be adopted in the first quarter of 2026, according to which 12,130 trains in total will run on China's railway network. Main adjustments are as follows:

1. Yan'an will be connected with the capital city of Beijing by high speed train for the first time. The shortest travel time is only 5h42m, reducing by 4h37m from the normal trains running now. Similarly, passengers shuttling between Fuzhou/ Xiamen - Zhuhai can take direct bullet trains for a more efficient trip.

2. Between Shanghai and Hong Kong, the overnight high speed sleeper trains that originally operated on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays, and Mondays will serve daily. What's more, two additional Shanghai - HK bullet trains will run in the daytime, with stops at Nanjing South, Hefei South, Wuxi East, etc. Since then, passengers will be able to transfer between Hong Kong West Kowloon Railway Station and 110 railway stations in Chinese Mainland by bullet train.

3. Four high speed G trains will be added between Changbaishan and Beijing Chaoyang, and 14 more will stop at Yabuli West.

4. It will take 9h37m to travel from Shanghai Hongqiao to Lanzhou West by bullet train, 57 minutes shorter than those operating at present, and 8h51m from Datong South to Shanghai Hongqiao, 2h33m shorter.