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Travel By Train
"20 hours on a train? You must be crazy..."
Travelling by train in China can be one of the most rewarding things to do there.
It can also be one of the most horrible nightmares you'll ever experience...
The 4 non-classes
This is a classless society, of course, so we have to deal with only four of them
on the trains.
Hard Seat
Avoid it. Those are the cars of the train you don't want to be caught in. A couple of
hundred people per car are suffering for dozens of hours to get somewhere cheap.
Sometimes you maybe have to buy a Hard Seat ticket to get on the train, but once on, try
to upgrade.
Soft Seat
On short distances you can get those tickets. It's usually a rather nice ride in clean
and uncrowded cars.
Hard Sleeper
Six berths in open compartments with about 60 passengers to a car. This is my favorite
way of travelling in China. It's uncrowded since the beds and tickets are numbered and
it's a great way to meet Chinese and have a chance to talk to them. Prices are really low
compared to other modes of travel and you'll arrive after a good night's sleep.
Soft Sleeper
The ultimate in Chinese train travel, but also ultimately expensive. There's a good
chance that you'll find a cheaper flight.
So... why not take a plane?
Bring some extra time to travel by train. Flying in China can be a hassle and with long taxi
rides to and from the airports and very long delays and cancellations you maybe won't
save as much time as you thought.
On the train you experience the size of the country. You see the small changes in countryside
and people while you travel from province to province and, most important, you have a
chance to meet the Chinese in a relaxed setting. You sleep in the same compartment, you eat
together, share your supplies of cookies and fruits...
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