Beijing to Xian train both ways or train and fly back?

We will be takingthe train from Beijing to Xian, feel the experience will be great for kids and price not bad. Staying one night and plan to return late afternoon

Wonder if returning by air plane might be better choice since sleep on train is not predictable. But also read how flights can be delayed or canceled.

Your thoughts would be great. thanks

Beijing to Xian train both ways or train and fly back?

I agree with you that take train is a great experience for Kids.

But one way on train is enough! Because it will make you very tired.

Beijing to Xian train both ways or train and fly back?

hi misme.........we will be in beijing this may and have been trying to get domestic flight bookings to fly from beijing to xian, then onwards to shanghai. Can you tell me how much it costs and the schedule, travel time to train from beijing to xian? would really appreciate it. thanks.

Hi, If you want to book the domestic airline you can check the ';www.ctrip.com'; to get the information about the airlines and prices. Sometimes you can get very good discount with the trip by flight from Beijing to Xi%26#39;an only 500rmb to 700rmb/ticket. As for the train, it will take 12 hours overnight sleep on the train from Beijing to Xi%26#39;an.

thanks, catherine . that was helpful.

I%26#39;m trying to plan a 3-week family trip for China - we are largely newbies, and it is hard to work out some important details like how to get around. We are considering a stop in Xi%26#39;an and then want to eventually work our way down to Changsha (my daughter was adopted from that area), perhaps with a Yangtze cruise in between (these places seem to be in the same general area).

How can you easily get information on getting around? - direct plane flights, direct good quality train lines, etc.? Is there, for example, a good map of the main direct train lines available somewhere? Thanks!

I think that there are too many trains to see anything on a map. Check this web site: http://www.chinahighlights.com/china-trains/

you cannot buy tickets online and they only go on sale 10 days prior to the departure date.

For flights go here: www.ctrip.com

You should only book 3-5 days ahead of time for the best discounts. To get an idea check flights next week.

To the other poster, it is much too early to book for June. do not worry, there are tons of flights.

I fly a lot in China (25 times + per year) and I never had a flight canceled and a delay of more than a few minutes is quite rare (less than 10% of the time in my experience). Some areas are more subject to weather issues affecting flights: Chengdu and Yunnan.

Distances are great in China, read the scale carefully on a map. I don%26#39;t think that Changsha is so close to the Yangze cruise.

The train will take 12 hours but through the night has severaltimes leaves Bejiing. Any time form 5pm onwards and arrive 6am onwards. Read Z19 trainis fastest followed by T43 or T46. Check out this webiste for more info www.seat61.com or www.chinetrain.com for more info.

We will go later this month and I will post our findings.

MisMe, Yes I think you would be wise to get the train there %26amp; then fly back. There a quite a few flights between these two cities.

If you are flying early April or October there are chances some flights will be rescheduled, that is only because new times tables are announced at that time of year. It%26#39;s another reason why people should only book 3 - 4 weeks ahead at the very very most. People who book too far ahead via a travel agent are usually the ones who get caught out. Sometimes there are delays but it is no worse than anywhere else. And if there are delays they are not long ones.

I am about to book some flights soon myself %26amp; I will wait for 2 weeks before so I get a discount %26amp; also so the flight time won%26#39;t change. The one exception is for a destination where there are only 2 flights a day - I will book that one 3 - 4 weeks before. I usually use ctrip but also check on Elong as they identify flights with low availability.

Sorry I meant to add I should be brave like JPDeM %26amp; only book 5 days before but I always chicken out! I have noticed that if I had have waited there were still flights available at a bigger discount. I guess there is the piece of mind factor for me - book the tickets %26amp; then get on with the next thing:)

Hi MisMe,

Yes it%26#39;s a better choice to return by air since it%26#39;s too tiring, especially for the kids.

Don%26#39;t worry, the flights are punctual most of the time between the two cities.

The mojority of Chinese prefer to fly rather then taking train soft berths because the cost of the soft berth is not a lot cheaper; and the environment of the hard berth (less costly) carriage is unpleasant.