So the problem with buying and understanding the train tickets in China is that they are all written in Chinese. Good thing it has the origin and destination cities in both English and Chinese, but good luck finding your seat! Also if you want to be sure in which bunk you are, make sure you memorize bottom bunk, top bunk in Chinese.
Table of Contents
So to summarize from what I read about train tickets in China: remember the train number (that might be very very useful to make in time to the train!), number of carriage and the seat number. Also remember where the station is written. It is recommended to buy at least soft seat. This way at least you can sit softly and in general you will get a seat that way. Hard seat has no numbers, so you might end up standing with local farmers and their hens. The best would be to get either “hard sleep” or “soft sleep”. “Hard sleep” has no separated cabins and has 6 berths in one room (3 on one side and 3 on another). “Soft sleep” are closed cabins and offer more privacy. However, they are significantly more expensive and if you have long legs you will not be able to extend them through the end of the bed. So “hard seat “is twice expensive, “Soft seat”- three times more expensive.
Information
Centralised train ticket system, where you can book tickets
Tutorial how to buy the tickets
Useful information to read about train in China in Trip Advisor.
Useful information about trains and their schedules:
Train times & fares of most popular trains
Sample ticket for sleeper/seat trains:
