It's the part between Xi'an and Ankang. By then, the travel time between the two cities will be reduced to 1 hour, down from 3 hours. Covering a total length of 171 km (106.3 mi), Xi'an - Ankang High Speed Railway stretches from Xi'an East Railway Station to Ankang West Railway Station, via Niubeiliang, Zhashui West, Zhen'an West, and Tongmu Station, with a designed speed of 350 km/h (217.5 mph).

As the north section of Xi'an - Chongqing High Speed Railway, Xi'an - Ankang High Speed Railway, jointly with the south section lying between Ankang and Chongqing, which is expected to open in 2028, will halve the duration of bullet trains running between Xi'an and Chongqing to only 2.5 hours from the current 5 - 6 hours.

The newly built high speed railway stretches between Xi'an East Railway Station, which is also newly built, and Hankou Railway Station in Wuhan City, covering a total distance of 717 kilometers (445.5 miles). During the initial operation, 29 pairs of bullet trains travel along it daily. With a top running speed of 350 km/h (217.5 mph), they shorten the travel time between Wuhan and Xi'an to 2h41m from the previous 3h42m. With a stop at Wudangshan West Railway Station, its operation also provides great convenience for visitors to famous Wudang Mountain. Specifically, by high speed train, it takes only around 1.5 hours from Xi'an East Station to Wudangshan West Station, and about 2.5 hours from Hankou Station.

Xi'an East Railway Station, equipped with 13 platforms and 27 railway tracks, will also serve as a main hub of Xi'an - Chongqing high speed railway and Xi'an - Ankang railway. It's easily accessible from downtown by metro line 5.

Previously, it departed on every Tuesday. At the same time, soft sleepers are no longer available; deluxe soft sleeper and hard sleeper cost CNY 2,273 and CNY 1,518, respectively. No update has been released for the return train K24 from Ulaanbaatar to Beijing yet.

Under the new pricing structure, the highest second class ticket price of high speed trains running between Beijing and Shanghai will increase to about CNY 807.6 from the current CNY 673, while the execution price, aka, how much passengers need to pay in practice, will fluctuate with discounts as usual, depending on the departure time, running speed, and duration of distinctive trains.

In other words, only those bullet trains operating in peak hours and with a shorter running time are likely to adopt the ceiling price; the others, on the task of dispersing passenger flow, are slightly affected, and even become cheaper because of greater discounts, offering lower-cost options for those with flexible schedules.

Passengers who prioritize price are advised to avoid peak flow periods for commuters and tourists between the two cities, that is, mornings and evenings on weekdays, Friday afternoons, and Sunday evenings.

It starts from April 29 and ends on May 6. During the 8-day peak season, China's railway system is expected to transport 158 million passengers with approximately 12,000 trains scheduled daily. The peak passenger volume, estimated at 24.5 million, will appear on May 1. Beijing, Xi'an, Guangzhou, Shanghai, Hangzhou, Shenzhen, Chengdu, etc., serve as both hot departure cities and destinations.

Additional high speed trains have been arranged on popular lines; during the holiday, China Railway Corporation will also put more temporary trains into operation based on real-time passenger flow.

Therefore, if you fail to get a ticket before, wait a day or two, and meanwhile, focus on our ticketing page. It's worth noting that tickets for added overnight bullet trains are released 5 - 7 days ahead of departure, rather than 15 days in advance like others. On the departure day, be at the railway station at least 1.5 hours before your train is due to leave, and always take care of your child.

Passengers traveling between Beijing - Xi'an by high speed train will need to pay CNY 489 - 618 for a second class ticket, which increases by 7% compared to the current CNY 456.5 - 577.5; the price of second class seat on Xi'an - Shanghai bullet trains will rise to CNY 750 - 887.5 from CNY 673 - 825. High speed trains running between Datong - Xi'an, Pingyao - Xi'an, Xi'an - Luoyang, Xi'an - Huashan, Lanzhou - Xi'an, Xi'an - Zhengzhou, Tianjin - Qinhuangdao, Shijiazhuang - Taiyuan, Shenyang - Dalian, etc., will also cost 10% - 20% more than present.

It's worth noting that this increase is the result of dynamic pricing policy. During the off-seasons, China Railway Cooperation accordingly offers discounts on train tickets, usually 10 - 20% off and 60% off at most.

The Beijing - Pyongyang trains will run every Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday: train K27/52 will depart from Beijing Railway Station at 17:26 and arrive at Pyongyang Railway Station at 18:07 the next day; train 51/K28, running in the opposite direction, will leave Pyongyang at 10:26 and reach Beijing at 8:40 the next day. Passengers need to handle entry and exit procedures at Dandong and Sinuiju, the border cities of China and North Korea, respectively.

The Dandong - Pyongyang international trains 95/52 and 51/85 will serve on a daily basis. Timetable: 10:00 - 18:07 from Dandong to Pyongyang, 10:26 - 16:23 from Pyongyang to Dandong.

Note: All time based on local time.

Xi'an East Railway Station will be equipped with 13 platforms with 27 railway tracks. Now, the station is undergoing decoration work.

Simultaneously, Xi'an - Shiyan High Speed Railway and Xi'an - Ankang High Speed Railway will be put into use. With the operation of all the mentioned, the travel time from Xi'an to Wuhan will be halved from 5 hours to 2.5 hours; it will only take around 1 hour to shuttle between Xi'an and Shiyan, where Wudang Mountain is located; and passengers traveling from Xi'an to Chongqing will only need to spend 3 hours on board instead of the current 5 hours.

And it will end on March 13, with February 13 and 23 as busiest days. During the 40-day travel rush, China trains are expected to serve 539 million passengers in total, a year-on-year increase of 5%.

Beijing, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Shanghai, Nanjing, and Hangzhou will see the largest flow before Chinese New Year holiday from February 15 to 22, after which passengers concentrate in Chengdu, Chongqing, Wuhan, Nanchang, etc. The busiest train routes include Xi'an to Chengdu/Taiyuan, Dalian to Harbin, and Qingdao to Shanghai.

For tourists planning a China railway trip during this period, it's wise to avoid the hottest destinations and routes above. Meanwhile, book train tickets as soon as they are released, and get to the departure station at least 2 hours in advance for boarding procedures.

The schedule is to be adopted in the first quarter of 2026, according to which 12,130 trains in total will run on China's railway network. Main adjustments are as follows:

1. Yan'an will be connected with the capital city of Beijing by high speed train for the first time. The shortest travel time is only 5h42m, reducing by 4h37m from the normal trains running now. Similarly, passengers shuttling between Fuzhou/ Xiamen - Zhuhai can take direct bullet trains for a more efficient trip.

2. Between Shanghai and Hong Kong, the overnight high speed sleeper trains that originally operated on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays, and Mondays will serve daily. What's more, two additional Shanghai - HK bullet trains will run in the daytime, with stops at Nanjing South, Hefei South, Wuxi East, etc. Since then, passengers will be able to transfer between Hong Kong West Kowloon Railway Station and 110 railway stations in Chinese Mainland by bullet train.

3. Four high speed G trains will be added between Changbaishan and Beijing Chaoyang, and 14 more will stop at Yabuli West.

4. It will take 9h37m to travel from Shanghai Hongqiao to Lanzhou West by bullet train, 57 minutes shorter than those operating at present, and 8h51m from Datong South to Shanghai Hongqiao, 2h33m shorter.