Travel China by Train - Part 2, Getting to Shanghai

So now you’re in mainland China and you need to get around. First thing to note is that, other than the hotels, you will find it very hard to find someone that speaks English. Tip #1, print off the name and address of your hotel in both English and Chinese. Most taxi drivers don’t speak English and you will need to show that to them to get back to your hotel. When at the hotel they will be very helpful in telling the taxi where you want to go. If you have multiple destinations in a day to see print those out also. You can do that back home before you leave, or in the business center of your hotel.

Getting to your next city by train: Tip #2, buy your train tickets back home or from the hotel. Cities can have multiple train stations, usually North, South, East and West. You will need to go to the right station. Also, at the station, ticket booths are plenty and specific for your destination. The signs are only in Chinese. If you don’t speak or read Chinese it will be near to impossible to find the right booth. However, even though the tickets are in Chinese, they are easy to match your train to the right gate based on time. Tip #3, for long journeys take the evening train and buy a soft sleeper ticket. With that you get a very nice compartment with 4 beds, 2 above and 2 below. You may need to share a compartment but I have done it many times and it is safe and fun if the people sharing the compartment speak English. By picking the right schedule you will be able to sleep on the train and in the morning you will arrive at your next destination.

Train to Shanghai: So after my stay in Zhuhai it was time to travel to Shanghai. Zhuhai does not have direct service to Shanghai so I took a recently completed rail line to Guangzhou. From there it was a short taxi ride to the correct station and I was on my way. Tip #4, is to get there early. It is better to get to the station early and wait than to miss the train. They are very prompt and when the gates close they will not reopen them for you.

The compartments lock from the inside and you have your luggage with you. It is very safe and clean. I would recommend that you bring snacks on the train for the ride. There is a little table in the compartment to eat on.  Go to sleep and when you wake up you will be at your next destination. In this case it was Shanghai. Taxi stands are easy to find outside the terminal. Show your hotel information to the taxi driver and before you know it you will be at your hotel. You will also be refreshed from a good night’s sleep and ready to see the sights.

http://www.chinahighlights.com/china-trains/ is a site where you can buy train tickets. It will also have useful information like how to read a train ticket.

As always, feel free to contact me for specific questions.

Next part will be Shanghai.