2011 China Train Reviews

Hello,<br /> <br /> Riding the Bullet train was a great experience. The service you provided was wonderful and the tickets were delivered to you our hotel as promised. The train stations were clean. The station in Shanghai was massive and new! The service on the train was equally impressive. <br /> <br /> The train from Beijing to Shanghai made one stop. An announcement was made that said the first stop was at the Shanghai station. I must have looked a little puzzled. The Chinese citizen sitting next to me said that the translation was incorrect and that we were approaching the Nanjing station.....not the Shanghai station. Of course, I could have read the signs in English as we entered the station.<br /> <br /> I certainly would not hesitate to recommend the use of travelchinaguide.com for any travel services within China.<br /> <br /> Respectfully.<br /> Stephan

The booking was well handled, the tickets were waiting for us on arrival, we had a phone call from the booking office at travelChinaGuide to make sure we had received the tickets. This was all very smooth. <br /> <br /> Cheers

Dear Travel China Guide, <br /> <br /> I was extremely impressed with the efficiency and reliability of your service. I appreciated your updates throughout the whole process and was extremely pleased that the tickets were delivered on time at the right place.<br /> <br /> I am so happy with your service I have recommended your company to our travel agent that processes all our company business (and pleasure) travel requirements.<br /> <br /> Thank you once again.

Dear Joyce,<br /> <br /> Booking experience through TCG is Very good and follow up and communication was excellent. <br /> <br /> Train journey is also Very good. In Beijing check in to the platform opened 40minutes whereas in Shanghai it was 15 minutes. Train was kept very clean. Staff was courteous and efficient. Seats very comfortable see photo.<br /> <br /> Kind Regards<br /> Richard<br />

I would like to thank your company Travelchinaguide for the on time delivery of the train tickets. You keep me informed the entire time on the purchase and delivery to the hotel. I will refer you company to any others from the USA. It made my trip more relaxing knowing the tickets were delivered and seeing a copy of the tickets and seat numbers before actually getting the tickets.<br /> <br /> Your company did an excellent job.<br /> <br /> Thanks Again.<br /> James

Booking experience through TCG is Very thorough.<br /> Smooth travels ...no problems. Great way to get from Shanghai to Yiwu. Comfortable in First class.<br />

Dear Joyce,<br /> <br /> Barbara and I really enjoyed and impressed with the service and experience of the bullet train to Tanggu which was very smooth, very quiet and very fast!! - 57min from Beijing.<br /> <br /> Your booking service was very prompt &amp; courteous with all the relevant information given to keep us informed. The Beijing South railway station is very impressive - clean, modern and very large. Information for the train times and platform location was very easy to follow.<br /> <br /> Thanking you for your excellent service.<br /> <br /> Kind regards <br /> RUSSELL<br />

As we were arriving in Shanghai late in the evening and wished to travel by bullet train the next day, we really appreciated your service in organizing for the train tickets to be available at our hotel when we arrived. It was easy to organize by scanning the required documents. It was also very helpful to have a copy of the tickets provided to us by email. The train station is huge with over 30 platforms but it is very well organized and has places to sit and places to eat while you wait. The trains leave exactly on time. It is useful to take snacks with you although there are drinks and food on the train.

Dear Joyce,<br /> <br /> Thanks very much for the excellent service which your company afforded us. We booked our rail tickets through you from Australia and on our way to returning to the UK we opted for the overnight train from Xian to Beijing. As we were traveling through China we only had the hotel in Xian as a delivery point for our tickets but as soon as we arrived at reception our train tickets were there waiting for us. We will certainly recommend your services to other travelers requiring train tickets and information.<br /> <br /> As for the train:<br /> We stayed at the Bell Tower hotel in Xian and the train station is only 4kms from there so we planned a 18:00 taxi from the hotel to the station for the 19:30 sleeper to Beijing. Our timings were not very good, a 15minute wait for a taxi, and a 1 hour journey to the station followed by a sprint for the train, but we made it. Note for other travelers - do your homework on transfer times to the station.<br /> <br /> The train itself was clean and comfortable; we had a deluxe soft sleeper and would recommend this type of seating/sleeping for an overnight journey if there are two of you. Comfortable (but a bit hard) bunks, an armchair, table and a washroom with toilet and sink. There was no buffet service on this train which surprised us, but a drinks trolley that served water and beer but no nibbles. So be wary and stock up before hand for anything you think you'll need on the journey. One last item, if you are traveling into Beijing West station be very patient at the taxi queue (a 1.5 hour wait with the taxi driver not speaking English and could not recognize the hotel name in English).. Have your destination written in Chinese and better still have onward transport from the station pre-arranged.. <br /> <br /> Regards<br /> Alan <br />

Hello Joyce,<br /> <br /> First of all sorry for the late reply. As there are so many interesting things to see and do in China, I only got time now to provide feedback on TravelChinaGuide Train Booking service.<br /> <br /> TCG booking service is excellent &ndash; the overview of the trains on the web-site is OK and the information is nearly correct (only minor time differences). The booking service is good and the instructions on how to take the train are very useful if it is the first time you get on a train in China. (be in the waiting room 40 min ahead of departure etc.) The delivery of the tickets was perfect &ndash; which was a great relief when we arrived at the hotel! (Both for the train Beijing &ndash; Xian and Xian &ndash; Chongqing, all delivered in Beijing.) Thanks! <br /> <br /> The train &ndash; soft sleeper &ndash; was clean and OK.<br /> Suggestions for inexperience travelers: make sure you have a cup or thermos + cup because there is free hot water on board the train &ndash; so you can set your own (instant) coffee or tea. In certain stations there are separate waiting rooms for soft seats/sleepers &ndash; usually far less crowded than the regular waiting room (Xian!), make sure you find it. Ensure you arrive at the station with plenty of time to spare &ndash; getting into the station also takes time because of the ticket and security check, and the masses of people! Read the information on train tickets on the TCG website so you know which car to take and which berth to select. (All this information is actually provided by TCG either on the web site or with the delivery/confirmation of the tickets.)<br /> <br /> Also attached:<br /> Photo 1: this is how the trains are announced in the Beijing West Station waiting rooms &ndash; the info is alternatively shown in English and Chinese. (It is good to learn the name of the destination city in Chinese (writing) as well &ndash; and it is not all that hard.)<br /> Photo 2: this is how the waiting room (one of the many!) in Beijing West Station looks like: a approximately 100mx50m room packed with people, bags and suitcases.<br /> Photo 3: this is the main information board (in Shanghai Hongqiao station): it tells where to wait/board the trains &ndash; information is displayed by train number and destination.<br /> Some additional advice for people wanting to purchase their own tickets: it is very useful to write down the departure station and destination station (in Chinese) + if known the preferred train number so you can hand this over to the person behind the ticket counter. Some people understand English, but not everybody &ndash; and Chinese pronunciation is rather difficult!) Also check your tickets to make sure that &ndash; in case you travel in a group &ndash; you have adjoining seats in the same car. And most of all, purchase the tickets well ahead of time &ndash; a few days as seats are limited and demand is high! (Or use &ndash; for your own peace of mind TCG-train booking center.)<br />