Should I Book the Soft Sleeper or Hard Sleeper?

Soft Sleeper is More Suitable for Lhasa to Xian Train Trip

Normally, there are two categories of accommodation available in Qinghai-Tibet train, namely hard sleeper (second-class ticket), soft sleeper (first-class ticket).

A typical hard sleeper consists of 6 bunks (60cm*180cm) and there is no door for such compartment. Besides, the cramped space within each cabin leads to little privacy and the passengers moving in the aisle may interrupt one’s sleep. Yet, travelers can meet and make friends with different people and the ticket is much cheaper than in soft sleeper cabin.

Soft sleeper is more spacious than the hard one

Compared with hard sleeper, soft sleeper is highly recommended for a number of reasons. Firstly, long ride demands quality accommodation on the train. Cozy, quiet and private, soft sleeper promises tourists a relatively comfortable ride. In soft sleeper, there are only 4 bunks (75cm*190cm) and the room is much spacious than hard sleeper. In addition, the soft sleeper has a door that can be shut down. Thus, the personal property of tourists and a sound sleep can be better guaranteed at night.

Due to the high demands of the tickets, please contact us at least 3 months in advance to secure soft sleeper tickets for you.

What Can I Do If Soft Sleeper Tickets Get Sold Out?

In most cases, we can get the soft sleeper tickets successfully for our clients. However, if the Lhasa-Xian soft sleeper train tickets happen to get sold out, to secure your travel, we suggest two viable alternative plans:

Option1: You can book the hard sleeper ticket of Lhasa-Xian train.

Option2: Instead of taking non-stop train from Lhasa to Xian, you can take the train from Lhasa to Xining, then take a flight from Xining to Xian on the same day or later. The alternative Lhasa-Xian travel route makes sense in three aspects

a. The essence of Qinghai-Tibet Railway lies in Lhasa-Xining section. Since all the trains from Lhasa would pass through Xining, you’ll have more flexible choices to choose and enjoy the alpine scenery in the daytime.

b. It can shorten the whole travel time on the train. Compared with the 33 hours’ Lhasa-Xian trains, it only takes you 21 hours on Lhasa-Xining trains and 1.5 hours on Xining-Xian direct flights.

c. You can choose to stay in Xining for a couple of days and pay a visit to Kumbum Monastery, the birthplace of the founder of Buddhism-Lama Tsongkhapa, and Qinghai Lake, the largest inland lake in China.

Tips: If the original plan of buying non-stop train to Xian is insisted, Tibet Vista cannot ensure 100% of buying the ticket because of the shortage of Lhasa-Xian train tickets. As a result, you may face changing date or degrading to hard sleeper berth. Therefore, the above alternative plan is highly recommended and workable during high season. Hopefully, you can accept our suggestion and choose a more secured way of travel.

How to Book and Get Tibet Train Tickets?

1. How to Book Tibet Train Ticket?

Book online with travel agency like Tibet Vista (Recommended)

You are recommended to book tickets early, especially when your departure date coincides with a Chinese festival or holiday, such as the National Holiday and Chinese Spring Festival.

To individual tourists, the best solution is to contact a reliable travel agency like Tibet Vista and book the train ticket at least one month before departure. Just send us your departure date and copy of the passport and we will obtain the tickets for you as soon as the reservation opens.

Buy tickets at a railway station or book at 12306.cn

Buying tickets at train stations is difficult for international travelers because the staff there don’t understand English and not all information displayed is in English and Chinese. Booking at 12306.cn is more difficult because it only uses Chinese language and accepts only Chinese bank cards, Wechat Pay, and Alipay.

2. How to Get the Tibet Train Ticket?

In China, you need the paper train tickets to get into your train. When tour ends, we will drop you off at Lhasa Railway Station and you can collect ticket at the ticket window in the main hall on the 1st floor after passing the security check.

Find the windows signed “取票窗口”(Ticket Collection Window) in Chinese and queue up, hand in your confirmation number and original passport to the staff member, tell him/her your request and get the tickets.

Useful sentences you may need to collect train tickets:
您好，请问取票窗口在哪？
(Excuse me, could you tell me which one is the Ticket Collection Window?)
您好，请帮我取纸质火车票。
(Hi, please give me my paper ticket.)

Note: Instead of collecting train tickets from the Automatic Ticket Machine, international travelers can only collect ticket at the ticket window. Tibet Travel Permit is not needed to collect the train ticket nor board the train out of Tibet.

3. How to Read the Train Ticket

Here are some useful phrases you may need to read Z266 Lhasa-Xian train ticket:
拉萨站: Lhasa Railway Station
西安站：Xian Railway Station
xx年xx月xx日: xx Year xx Month xx Date
xx车xx号: xx Carriage xx Berth
上/ 中/ 下铺：Upper/ Middle/ Lower Berth

Information Guide on Lhasa to Xian Train Ticket

How to Board the Train at Lhasa Railway Station?

Below are the steps to board a train in Lhasa Railway Station:

Step1: Pass Security Check to Enter into the Main Hall
The security check in Lhasa Railway Station is very careful. After arriving at Lhasa Railway Station, line up for the security check to enter the main hall on the 1st floor: present your passport to the staff member, put all your luggage such as backpacks, carry-on bags on the security scanner conveyor belt, then walk through a detector gate and wait for staff to use a scanner on you to check forbidden articles. Please follow the instruction of the station staff to pass the security check.

Step2: Get the Tickets and Find the Waiting Room
After collecting your train tickets in the main hall, you can get the corresponding Waiting Room information on the LED hung on the west of the hall according to your train number. Take the escalator to the waiting rooms on the 2nd floor, check the train number displayed on the LED board in the front of each waiting room, and find the waiting room for your train.

Useful phrases you may need to read the LED board:
车次：Train Number
始发站：Departure Station
终到站：Terminal Station
开点: Departing Time
候车室: Waiting Room

Step3: Find Your Platform and Board the Train
Usually check-in starts 15-30 minutes before departure and barriers close 5 minutes before departure. The LED boards in the waiting room will show “正在检票”(Check-in Now) and “站台” (platform number) during the entire checking process. After check-in, other LED screens hang on the way to the train keep telling the train number, platform number, and direction of your carriage (车厢). Follow the instruction and the staff waiting at the carriage gate will check your ticket again to make sure you board the right carriage of the right train.

Phrase you may need to board the Train:
拉萨-西安：Lhasa-Xian
候车中: Waiting for the train
开始检票：Check-in is Open
正在检票：Check-in Now
停止检票：Check-in is over
站台：Platform

Step4: Find Your Berth
After getting on the train, you can find your berth according to your ticket. Put your baggage on the rack overhead or under the lower berth. The sleeper ticket will be exchanged for a plastic berth card by staff shortly after boarding. Staff will return your ticket and get back the berth card about half an hour before arriving at your destination.

FAQs:

Q1. Is it possible to swap ticket with other people to stay with friends or family in the same cabin?
Yes. It is acceptable. You may ask conductor to try to swap tickets with other passengers to stay with your family or friends. Do remember your cabin and seat number.

Q2. Is it safe on the Tibet train?
Having a ride on Qinghai-Tibet train is relatively safe as each compartment is independent and its door will be automatically closed at night. Passenger is forbidden to enter the compartment without ticket. Besides, the surveillance cameras and 24-hours police patrol make it even safer on the train.

Life Onboard

Having a ride on Qinghai-Tibet train is definitely the experience of a lifetime. The stunning high plateau scenery along the rail and the pressurized train tailor-made for acclimatizing extreme altitude make the ride different from other train journeys. Following are tips for tourists to better enjoy the life on the Lhasa-Xian train:

1. Food and Drinks

Passengers can get 3 meals and drinks from the dining carriage or food trolley on the train.

Dining carriage is equipped with an ordering bar, tables, chairs and large glass windows. It is usually located in the middle of the train and offers various Chinese food and drink such as noodles, dishes and soups. It costs about 20 CNY/meal and accepts payment in cash, Wechat, and Alipay. Even though the menu is in Chinese and the waiters don’t understand English, you can use translation App or watch the dishes on the table ordered by others to get the food you like.

Dozens of tourists are having dinner in the dinning car. Tourists can order some traditional Chinese home-made dishes.

Useful sentences for finding the dining carriage:
您好，请问餐车怎么走？
(Excuse me, could you tell me how to get to the dining carriage?)
您好，请问餐车在几号车厢？
(Hi, do you know the carriage number of the dining car?)

The trolleys loaded with snacks, beverage, instant noodles, box meals are pushed in and out of each carriage sporadically by train attendants. You can stop the trolley and pay cash to get the food immediately.

Passengers can bring their own food such as instant noodles, snacks and fruits to eat or simply as a way to pass the time as the long ride begins. Sharing snack with roommates is the easiest way to break the silence.

Drinks is not a problem because tourists can get free boiled water from hot water dispenser near the sinks, just make sure to bring your own water bottle or thermos.

Notice: Even though Wechat Pay and Alipay are acceptable on the train, we warmly suggest you bring some cash in case both payment methods fail to work when the train travels among mountainous areas.

2. Facilities on the Train

The train to Xian from Lhasa (Z166/ Z266) is equipped with advanced facilities that are tailor-made according to the special elevation, temperature, and other specific situations along the world's highest railway, Qinghai-Tibet Railway. The train has facilities such as air-conditioning, supercharging system, oxygen supply, altitude display, etc.

Toilets: The soft sleeper carriage has one western-style toilet and one squat-style toilet, while hard sleeper carriage only has two squat-style toilets. Toilets are located at the end of each carriage, adjacent to the washbasin, dustbin and hot water dispenser.

The red sign on the toilet door means the toilet is occupied while the green sign means vacant. Avoid using toilets when the train is coming to the station because they will be locked by the train attendant. Next small but important thing is to bring enough tissue or toilet paper, because it is used fast and one won’t find any replacement if it runs out. Of course, don’t forget to push the “Flush” button after using the toilet every time.

You can also know the toilet status from the small LED boards hung on the ends of each carriage. “有人” means occupied, while “无人” means vacant.

Washbasin: Usually only cold water is available. Tourists need to bring their own towel, wet paper tissue, and toilet articles.

Dustbin:There is a big dustbin at the end of the carriage. And you can find small dustbin in each compartment and metal plate on the table along the aisle. Train attendant will sweep the floor and empty the dustbin in each compartment from time to time. All the waste will be disposed by train staff when arrive at stops along the way.

Hot water dispenser: Hot water dispenser supplies free boiled water all the time. Bring your own water flask and get water when the light on the dispenser turns green.

FAQs:

Q1. Where to recharge mobile phones and electronic devices?
There are sockets along the isles, under table in soft-sleeper cabin, and around the washbasin.

Q2. Can tourists have shower in the train?
Unfortunately, there is no shower room in the train. Do bring some wet wipes in store and a small towel. A small but equally important thing is to bring enough toilet paper/ tissue.

3. Altitude Change and Altitude Sickness of Lhasa-Xian Train

After leaving Lhasa (3,650m), the altitude ascends gradually and reaches the highest point Tanggula Pass (5,072m) after around 5 hours. After Tanggula Pass, the altitude decreases sharply and reduces to 2,829m at Golmud after about 6 hours. Then it keeps going down to 2,275m at Xining and reaches 405m when arriving in Xian.

This graph gives you a rough idea of how altitude changes along Lhasa-Xian railway line.

Compared with the altitude sickness caused by the sharp altitude ascending on the Xian-Lhasa train, it won’t be a big problem for most passengers on trains out of Tibet thanks to the modest altitude increase from Lhasa and Tanggula Pass as well as your acclimatization to high altitude during travel in Tibet.

Even though some passengers may suffer from altitude sickness when the train reaches Tanggula Pass at 5,072m, there is no need to be panic about altitude sickness because the Tibet train is tightly sealed and pressurized like an airplane.

An illustration of how to use oxygen outlet on Qinghai-Tibet train

There are two sets of oxygen supply on the train: the dispersion-mode oxygen supply system operated by the train staff and the distribution-mode oxygen supply that can be connected to individual passenger through independent oxygen outlets via a disposable pipe distributed by train staff. You can find the oxygen outlets in your compartment and along the aisle of each carriage.

When suffering from altitude sickness, connect the pipe to the outlet to inhale oxygen to ease the discomfort. If the symptom gets worse, you may find the conductor for help and the doctor on the train will come and give you timely treatment. The oxygen supply stops when reaching Golmud.

4. Views along Lhasa-Xian Railway

The views on both trains are very similar because they depart Lhasa at noon (Z166/ Z266: 11:30/12:55). You’ll have plenty of time to appreciate the Yangpachen Geothermal and the boundless Qiangtang Grassland in Nagchu. When coming to Xining (Z166/ Z266: 9:10/10:35), you can watch the stunning sunrise if weather permits and see Yellow River around Lanzhou (Z166/ Z266: 12:17/ 13:25). The brilliantly illuminated night view of Xian (Z166/ Z266: 20:34/ 21:49) is also worth seeing.

You can appreciate the boundless Qiangtang Grassland on the Lhasa-Xian train.

Pass by the Tanggula Pass in the daytime on the Lhasa-Xian train.

You can enjoy the beauty of Qinghai Lake in the morning on the Lhasa-Xian train.

How to Get to the Train Stations?

Lhasa Railway Station

At an altitude of 3,641 meters, Lhasa Railway Station is one of world’s highest railway stations. Decorated in both traditional Tibetan and modern styles, the station is a landmark building and looks like an ancient Tibetan Palace but equipped with modern facilities such as escalators and LED screens. When tour ends, our guide will drop you off at Lhasa Railway Station.

Lhasa Railway Station

Name: Lhasa Railway Station (拉萨火车站)
Address: Liuwu Village, Deqing County, Lhasa (拉萨市堆龙德庆县柳梧乡)
Location: about 8km to downtown, 20km to southwest of the Potala Palace

Xian Railway Station

Xian Railway Station

Name: Xian Railway Station (西安火车站)
Address: No. 44 of North Huancheng Road in the Xincheng District, Xian (西安市新城区环城北路44号)
Ticket Phone: (86-29)-7212674; Inquiry: (86-29) 7276076
Location: about 10km from downtown, 37 km from Xian Xianyang International Airport (XIY)
Transportation: bus, taxi

From Xian Railway Station to Downtown:

By taxi: The taxi fee in Xian starts from 9 yuan.

By bus: Bus No. 6, 9, 205, 229 etc.

From Xian Railway Station to Xian Xianyang International Airport

By taxi: It takes around 50 minutes and 100 yuan.

By airport shuttle: Get on airport shuttle at Xian Coach Station (西安客运站) which is opposite Xian Railway Station, and get off at Terminal 2, Terminal 3 of the airport successively. It takes about 65 minutes and 25 yuan.

If you are planning your trip from Lhasa to Xian by train or have any questions about traveling Tibet by train, please feel free to contact us for more details. We are ready to help you out.