China High-Speed Rail: A Comprehensive Travel Guide

Our Complete Guide for Taking Trains in China

Over the past few months, we’ve been sharing our unforgettable train journey through China—nine cities, 3,300 miles, and one incredible adventure at a time. This week, we’re switching tracks (literally!) and diving deep into one of our favorite parts of the whole trip: riding China’s high-speed trains.

If you've ever wondered what it’s really like to zoom across the country at 200+ mph, this is your front-row ticket. We cover everything—from navigating massive train stations and booking your tickets as a foreign traveler, to picking between second class, first class, or the surprisingly luxurious business class.

This week, we discuss everything there is to know about taking these trains in China and why they offer so much better luxury and value than Amtrak. Chinese trains are easy to book, affordable and offer an amazing value, compared to riding on Amtrak. In this guide we show the best app to book your trains, compare the different seating classes, give you tips for navigating the train and metro stations and share why China train travel is the best method of transportation in this amazing country to visit.