Mandarin Monday: How to Buy Tickets and Take a Train in China

Mandarin Monday is a weekly column where – similar to our Mandarin Month series earlier this year – we help you improve your Chinese by detailing fun and practical phrases and characters.

If you dare venture beyond Beijing to travel around China, the 'getting there' is half the fun. Whether you travel by plane, train, or even bicycle to your destination, it is sure to be an experience and you are guaranteed to meet some interesting people along the way!

Trains: 火车, huǒchē

Trains are the most convenient way to get around China for an affordable price. Depending on the type of train you get, they are usually clean, convenient, and a fast way to travel from A to B.

There are three types of trains based on speed and comfort:

• G / C –  高铁 gāotiě  – bullet trains – the fastest and most comfortable with first-class, business class, and second-class seating.
• D –  动车 dòngchē  – high-speed trains – the first high-speed trains to arrive in China.
• K / T / Z –  普通 pǔtōng – normal trains – the slowest and oldest of China's trains. They're often crowded and stop at more of teh country's smaller, more isolated stations.

Depending on your destination and what type of train you opt for, your ticket choice will depend on how comfortable you want your jounrey to be. For high-speed train journeys, like from Beijing to Shanghai, it’s up to you whether you want to relax in a first class seat (一等座 yīděng zuò), a second class seat (二等座 èrděng zuò) or a business class seat (商务座 shāngwù zuò).

All seats on the high-speed, modern trains are comfortable and come equipped with air conditioning, communal plugs underneath the seats, access to hot water, and decent toilets. If you are taking an overnight train or on a journey that lasts more than 10 hours, you will want to choose a soft bed (软铺 ruǎnpù) or hard bed (硬卧 yìngpù), depending on your budget.

Buying your ticket

Buying a soft bed ticket guarantees a good night’s sleep on a luxurious and wide mattress in a private compartment shared with three other people. The hard bed is perfectly fine but you may want to bring earplugs (耳塞 ěrsāi) and an eye mask (眼罩 yǎnzhào) because there are no doors to separate the beds in the carriage so you will most likely be woken up by snoring, crying babies, or grannies adamant on talking through the night.

If all other options have sold out, it is possible to survive an overnight journey in a hard seat (硬座 yìngzuò), just pray you are sitting next to the window or that you can lay your head on the table in order to catch a few winks. So long as you don’t end up with a standing ticket (无座 wúzuò, literally no seat) you will be fine …

Booking train tickets can be done at the station or online via Ctrip or 12306.cn. Ctrip has an English version website and an app but be warned that it seems to charge more for bookings and credit card fees (but only RMB 10). It’s easy to fill in the departure station (出发站 chūfā zhàn) and the arrival station (到达站 dàodá zhàn) by typing in pinyin and selecting the Chinese characters on Ctrip. Depending on whether you want to buy a return ticket (往返 wǎngfǎn), a one-way ticket (单程 dānchéng), you can select the departure date (出发日期 chūfā rìqī) and the return date (返回日期 fǎnhuí rìqī).

After choosing your destination, date and ticket type, you will be asked to enter the passenger information (乘客信息 chéngkè xìnxī), including your full name (姓名 xìngmíng), identification information (证件信息 zhèngjiàn xìnxī, choose 护照 hùzhào passport) and your date of birth (出生日期 chūshēngrìqī).

Before paying, you will also need to select your method of pick up (取票方式 qǔpiào fāngshì): self pick-up (自取票 zìqǔpiào), home delivery (送票上门 sòngpiàoshángmèn), or priority station pick-up (车站速取 chēzhànsùqǔ). The simplest way is to choose pick-up at the train station and by filling in your name and your telephone number (手机号 shǒujīhào), after which Ctrip will deliver all the info you need straight to your phone. If you choose this option, make sure to leave plenty of additional time to pick your tickets, especially during holidays when queues are ungodly.

Of course you can buy your tickets directly at the station or at ticket offices (售票处 shòupiàochù) dotted around the city. To pick up your train tickets from the train station's ticket pick-up window (取票窗口 qǔpiào chuāngkǒu) with your ID and ticket pick-up number (订单号 dìngdān hào), beginning with an E. Unless you are picking up your tickets at the station that you depart from, you will have to pay a pick-up fee of RMB 5. And don't forget to take your ID once you go to get your train!

Images: Discover Beijing Tours, Angus Foster, China Tour Map