China's most epic high-speed rail journeys
China now boasts the world's largest high-speed rail network, with more than 22,000km of track © Xinhua News Agency / Getty
It was once Japan that was famous for its high-speed train network, introducing the world to its Shinkansen, or bullet trains, way back in 1964. But while the Land of the Rising Sun is still a leader in rail technology, it is now China that holds the crown of high-speed train capital of the world.
In the decade or so since China put into operation its first high-speed passenger trains, the country has constructed more than 22,000 kilometres of high-speed rail track to create the longest network on Earth. In 2017, the country launched the world's fastest high-speed train, known as 'Fuxing' or 'Harmony', which travels at up to 350 kilometres per hour, reducing travel time between Beijing and Shanghai to four and a half hours.
Now, China’s high-speed trains – officially defined as passenger trains that travel at speeds of 250–350 kilometres per hour – take travellers to almost all of the country’s provinces. With Inner Mongolia’s first high-speed line opening in July 2017, only Tibet and tiny Ningxia currently lack high-speed trains. But with plans for the continued expansion of the network it won’t be long until they too are serviced by high-speed lines. All this makes for a super-fast, and relatively inexpensive way, to cover this country's vast distances. If you're in the mood for a speedy look at the Middle Kingdom, here are some of our picks for the most epic high-speed rail journeys in China.
DISCOVERING CHINA BY HIGH-SPEED TRAIN
Race across China on the reliable, speedy and luxurious high-speed railway, visiting Shanghai, Hangzhou and Beijing in style
China has the longest network of high-speed railway in the world, with more than 16,000 kilometres (9,900 miles) of track for trains that can run at more than 200 kilometres (124 miles) an hour.
Travelling China by high-speed train, my young daughter and I were able to experience more of the country in nine days (we travelled from Shanghai to Hangzhou to Beijing) than if we had flown between cities.
Not only did we enjoy premium class luxuries and convenience—almost every town in China is connected by the country’s extensive rail system—but views of the surrounding area and cultural interactions within the train gave us a taste of what life is like outside major cities in the Middle Kingdom. China’s trains are praised for their reliability, and we arrived at our destinations on time, almost to the minute.
CHINA’S MOST SPECTACULAR NEW RAIL JOURNEYS
China’s high-speed rail system is not just a phenomenon of infrastructure – it’s also the way to see stunning vistas previously inaccessible to the regular traveller. Here are the most spectacular journeys you can take on the Middle Kingdom’s new rails:
- Beijing to Guangzhou - To witness the most dramatic change in scenery from beginning to end, take this route in winter: going north to south, you’ll see icy landscapes make way to lush, tropical vegetation. The first part of the journey covers the North China Plain, which is sweeping and flat. After about an hour and a half, you’ll have to keep your eyes peeled for the Yellow River, which the train crosses on a modern bridge suspended by six white towers in a matter of seconds. Towards the end of the trip, in Guangdong province, the train passes through the scenic rivers, lakes and rolling hills of Qingyuan. If your journey ends around sunset, the sight is even more stunning.
- Shanghai to Kunming - A journey on one of China’s longest high-speed rail track will take you from the country’s most cosmopolitan city to one of its most scenic destinations, with a wide range of natural landscapes to take in along the way. While traversing Anhui province in spring, passengers get a view of Guizhou’s farmland that turns yellow with blooming canola flowers. This route also takes the world’s widest reinforced concrete arch bridge, Beipanjiang River Bridge, which is in Guizhou. The bridge spans 445 metres and reaches a vertiginous 300 metres height from the river valley below. This feat of engineering took six years, but you’ll have to pay close attention to catch a glimpse: the train crosses it in eight seconds.
- Hefei to Fuzhou - As far as man-made marvels go, this rail track is just a little more marvellous than most: more than 80 percent of it runs on bridges or in tunnels. It just goes to show how much uneven terrain the engineers had to slice through. But the mountainous landforms that required all those tunnels also mean beautiful scenery for passengers, with the train passing near many UNESCO World Heritage Sites, including Huangshan and Wuyi mountains. Through much of Anhui province, the train passes by and tunnels through verdant hills, often misty from the higher elevation. In Wuyan County, it is hard to miss the vast sprawl of terraced fields.
- Harbin to Dalian - Running in the northernmost reaches of China, this rail line stands
- out for the cold, snowy landscapes it passes through in winter.
- Train buffs will want to experience the vehicles themselves: they’re designed to withstand extreme weather, operating smoothly in snowstorms and temperatures ranging from 40°C to -40°C. Out the window, it’s a sight of snowy fields, frozen lakes, and sunsets that glow warmly against a white wonderland – so Instagrammable.
7 scenic train journeys -- riding the Dragon's Back
Flying's fine if you're in a hurry, but nothing beats China's train system for a slow, relaxing and down-to-earth journey through the country that's practically a continent in itself. About 100,000 kilometers of railways form the Dragon's Back, connecting some of the best nature, culture and landscapes in China.
Here are seven Chinese train rides you will not want to fall asleep on:
- Beijing-Lhasa, Tibet - Renowned as the highest railway in the world, the "Sky Road" (its nickname in Chinese) climbs to a light-headed 5,000 meters. Much of the journey is at an altitude of more than 4,000 meters. A mind-boggling number of bridges dot this magnificent train line -- 675 in total, spanning ravines and fast-flowing rivers; the route also passes the Hoh Xili Nature Reserve, which is known in China as a "death region" for its harsh climate.
- Urumqi-Kashgar, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region - This train route into China's western desert region is a trip into its medieval past. Uyghur towns along the way formed part of the famed Silk Road. The ride meanders through remote desert country with striking views of the snow-capped Tian Shan mountain range and the red-sandstoned Flaming Mountains in Turpan. It's hard to believe you're still in China
- Shanghai-Beijing high-speed railway - Sleek bullet trains hurtle between China's two largest metropolises at speeds of more than 250 kph. The trip is a blurry but comfortable experience lasting less than five hours. Despite the population density on the east coast, the train track was built in a straight line and steers clear of mass development. The scenery isn't as incredible as along the route to Lhasa or Xinjiang, but the thing to admire here is China's ability to develop modern infrastructure.
- Beijing-Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia - Acting like a feeder to the Trans-Siberian Railway, this epic journey provides incredibly scenic views of sheep herds and green fields. Passengers can see the Great Wall giving way to brick houses and sandy towns near the border, before crossing the dry undulating reaches of the Gobi desert. The train uses Chinese rolling stock -- but at the border the bogies need to be changed to the Russian gauge. Each coach is jacked up so the wheels can be replaced before they are lowered back onto the tracks -- an interesting process that can take several hours, together with customs and passport checks.
- Nanning-Guilin, Guangxi - Winding through China's dramatic karst mountains, this train ride is one of China's most scenic. Even the Chinese think so and have called Guilin's scenery "the best under heaven." The river views, the gnarled rocky hills, and the verdant paddy fields make for an exceptional introduction to a region which begs for further exploration off the train. An exciting extension to the journey is to continue from Nanning to Kunming (828 kilometers) through Yunnan's beautiful southern mountain ranges. Nonstop services are possible but in order to make the most of the views, break the journey and take the day trains. Distance: 437 kilometers
- Xi'an, Shaanxi-Chengdu, Sichuan - This trip links two of China's most famous tourist draws -- the terracotta warriors and the panda reserve -- through farm land in Sichuan's fertile river valleys. Northeast Sichuan is relatively hilly. The border with Shaanxi features dramatic escarpments. A good place to view the increasingly mountainous terrain is at Jiangyou (江 油) on the Fu River and Guangyuan (广 元) just south of the Shaanxi border on the Jialing River. The other highlight of this journey is the rivers. The train line never seems far from water, obviously utilizing the river valleys to crisscross the rugged terrain.
- Beijing-Kowloon, Hong Kong - Crossing almost two-thirds of the entire country, this China train journey is one of the best ways to get to grips with the nation's majesty, landscapes, culture and sights. While it would be quicker to fly, the train allows you to whiz through numerous provinces on a single ticket, including Tianjin, Hebei, Shandong, Henan, Anhui, Hubei, Jiangxi and Guangdong. The journey starts and finishes with plenty of urban sprawl but there are some scenic highlights to watch out for, particularly when the train passes over the Yangtze River in places like Wuxue (Hubei) and Jiujiang (Jiangxi) just to the south.
How China became a paradise for rail travellers
A high-speed train blasts through Beijing
The station master is exasperated. He puffs up and down the platform, bellowing into his megaphone in a futile attempt to line everyone up behind the carriage numbers that are embedded in the concrete. But these tough hill farmers won’t be drilled into submission. They crowd the platform edge to watch as the sleek, white bullet-nosed train pulls into Sanjiang station.
This country halt in mountainous Guizhou province is a new stop on the 1,000-mile high-speed rail link connecting coastal Guangzhou to Kunming in the subtropical south-west, which opened in its entirety earlier this year. High-speed trains keep strictly to time, and this is just a two-minute stop so there’s a rush to load bags and sacks of produce before the automatic doors snap shut. It is usual for station staff to bow as the train departs, but Sanjiang’s station master forgets this courtesy: he’s too busy mopping his brow. I am on my way to Congjiang, a journey that once took all day on a bus winding through the steep-sided valleys. The train has cut the journey time to 30 minutes, though most of that time is spent in tunnels with only the briefest glimpses of forest-cloaked mountains. China began rolling out its high-speed rail network 10 years ago, building arrow-straight track on piers high above farmland, villages and river valleys. When mountains got in the way, the Chinese simply tunnelled through them.
There are now more than 14,000 miles of high-speed track used by more than a billion people a year. Speeds range from a cautious 120mph through tunnels to a steady 185mph across the open countryside. The reduction in journey times is phenomenal. It now takes hours rather than days to travel from Shanghai to Kunming in the deep south or from Beijing to Ürümqi in the far west – opening up the possibility of seeing most of the country’s highlights on a tour by high-speed train rather than by plane. Travelling this way is more enjoyable and, door-to-door, trains are competitive time-wise: just over four hours from Beijing to Xi’an; five hours from Xi’an to Shanghai. The carriages are clean and comfortable with at-seat service, and even second class offers twice as much legroom as standard-class seats on British trains. Over the next decade, the network is expected to double in size, reaching parts of China that until now have seen few outsiders. In the autumn, high-speed lines connecting Xi’an to Chengdu and Chongqing will give easy access to the highlands of Sichuan and the Yangtze River. In the south, high-speed track is being laid from Kunming all the way to China’s borders with Laos and Myanmar.
China High-Speed Trains
High-speed rail in China is popular for its fast speed, comfort and safety. It has greatly transformed Chinese economy and society. Since 2016, China has possessed the world's most extensive high speed rail network, making travel around China more convenient and effective. Because of this, China has been chosen by Lonely Planet as one of the top 10 countries to visit in 2018. High-speed trains are designed for speeds of 200 to 350 kph (124 to 217 mph). There are three types of high-speed trains: G, D and C trains. The facilities and appearance of G/D/C trains are similar in that they are all new and modern.
Why Take High-Speed Trains for Trips:
- Fast- The running speed of high-speed trains is between 200 and 350 kph (124–217 mph). G trains (fastest trains) cut more than half the time off the duration of a journey compared to a normal speed train. For example, the G3 train from Beijing to Shanghai only takes 4 hours and 48 minutes, the D321 takes 11 hours and 49 minutes, and a normal-speed train takes more than 15 hours.
- Flexible - There are many high-speed trains running during the day (especially between popular cities), so you can choose the most suitable one according to your schedule. It's easy to cancel or alter, if necessary.
- Punctual - better views on a train Chinese high-speed train. Unlike the high delay rates of airplanes and normal speed trains, high-speed trains have a high punctuality rate. This type of train is less affected by weather conditions or traffic control. It also has priority over a normal-speed train on the same railway line.
- Convenient and comfortable - New and modern facilities on board make your China trip more comfortable. You can enjoy nearly the same service as on an airplane, and you can walk around on a train. What's more, you can use the Internet on a high-speed train without worrying about interfering with the train's signals.
China’s most epic high-speed rail journeys
One of the things that I love most about living in China, apart from watching the dancing grannies, of course, is being able to use the country’s high-speed rail network.
With its sexy, sleek trains, unbelievably punctual departure record (in almost five years, I’ve experienced three delayed trains) and reasonably priced tickets, it’s the best way to get around this vast country.
You Won’t Believe The Countries Replacing Planes With High-Speed Trains
Not only is travelling by train a more relaxing, scenic option compared to plane travel, it's more eco-friendly too – a recent report by the think tank Intergenerational Foundation suggested the UK could cut its aviation fuel emissions by a third if it banned short-haul flights in favour of rail routes. From iconic routes like Japan's bullet trains, which can travel at speeds of up to 225 miles per hour (360km/h), to TGV's swift services, here are the finest high-speed routes to get inspired by.
The inside track on fast trains around the world:
- Tokaido Shinkansen, Japan
- Cairo fast train, Egypt
- Frecciarossa, Italy
- Shanghai Maglev, China
- Fuxing Hao, China
- Haramain Railway, Saudi Arabia
- Eurostar e320, UK, France, Belgium and the Netherlands
- The Thalys network, France, Belgium, the Netherlands & Germany
- Al Boraq, Morocco
- Vande Bharat Express, India
- HS2, England, UK
- Acela Express, USA
- AVE network, Spain
- Chuo Shinkansen, Japan
- TGV, France
- Laos-China Railway, Laos
- Jakarta to Bandung high-speed train, Indonesia
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