FAQ about Qinghai-Tibet Railway train

As Qinghai-Tibet Railway will be put into trial operation on this Saturday, net friends show great passion and interest on this sky road. We have selected some questions raised by netizens as reference.
Q1. Where the train will depart from in Beijing?
A: The train will depart from at the Beijing West Railway Station.
Q2. When the train will leave Beijing and return from Lhasa?
A: As scheduled, the train T27 will leave Beijing at 21:30 and arrive in Lhasa at 20:58 on the third day after 47 hours and 28 minutes' running.
The train T28 will start from Lhasa at 8:00 am. and come back to Beijing west at 8:00 am. on the third day with a 48-hour-trip.
Q3. Where are the tickets issued?
A: Passengers can purchase tickets at the following railway stations, Beijing West Railway Station, Lanzhou Railway Station, Chengdu Railway Station, Xining Railway Station and Chongqing Railway Station.
Related Consulting Telphone Number:
Beijing West Railway Station: 86-10-95105105

Shanghai Railway Station: 86-800-820-7890
Chengdu Railway Station: 86-28-83322088 83332499
Lanzhou Railway Station: 86-931-4922222
Chongqing Railway Station: 86-23-63862607
Xining Railway Station: 86-971-8192832
Q4. How much does the ticket cost?
A: The ticket for Qinghai-Tibet Railway has been confirmed.

From-----To
Distance (km)
Hard Seat Price
Hard Sleeper (Bottom Berth) Price
Soft Sleeper (Bottom Berth) Price
Beijing West-Lhasa
4,064
389 yuan (US$49)
813 yuan (US$102)
1,262 yuan (US$158)
Chengdu-Lhasa
3,360
331 yuan (US$41)
712 yuan (US$89)
1,104 yuan (US$138)
Chongqing-Lhasa
3,654
355 yuan (US$44)
754 yuan (US$94)
1,168 yuan (US$146)
Lanzhou-Lhasa
2,188
242 yuan (US$30)
552 yuan (US$69)
854 yuan (US$107)
Xining-Lhasa
1,972
226 yuan (US$28)
523 yuan(US$65)
810 yuan (US$101)
Shanghai-Lhasa
4,373
406 yuan (US$51)
845 yuan (US$106)
1314 yuan (US$165)
Guangzhou-Lhasa
4,980
451 yuan (US$57)
923 yuan (US$116)
1434 yuan (US$180)

Q5. How many trains will operate in a day?
A: As planned, there will be both a train running from opposite directions in the four express train lines including Beijing west-Lhasa line, Chengdu(Chongqing)-Lhasa express train line, Shanghai(Guangzhou)-Lhasa and Xining(Lanzhou)-Lhasa express train line.
Q6. Can foreigners take these trains?
A: Yes, of course you can. Qinghai-Tibet Railway train welcomes all the passengers from home and abroad.
Q7. How long it will take to travel to Lhasa by train?
A: Please refer to the following lines:
***Beijing-Lhasa
Train T27 will start from Beijing West Railway Station at 21:30 and arrive at Lhasa Railway Station at 20:58 on the third day after 47 hours and 28 minutes' running.
Train T28 will depart from Lhasa Railway Station at 8:00 am. and arrive in Beijing west at 8:00 am. on the third day with a 48-hour-trip.

***Shanghai-Lhasa

Train T164/5 will start from Shanghai at 16:11 and arrive in Lhasa at 19:50 on the third day running for 51 hours and 39 minutes after 4,373 kilometers.

Train T166/3 will start from Lhasa at 08:32 and arrive in Lhasa at 13:45 on the third day running for 53 hours and 13 minutes .

Train leaves Shanghai or Guangzhou alternatively that means a train leaves either Shanghai or Guangzhou every other day.
***Guangzhou-Lhasa
Train T264/5 will start from Guangzhou at 10:29 and arrive in Lhasa at 19:50 on the third day running for 57 hours and 21 minutes after 4,980 kilometers.

Train T266/3 will start from Lhasa at 08:32 and arrive in Guangzhou at 19:37 on the third day running for 59 hours and 5 minutes .

Train leaves Shanghai or Guangzhou alternatively that means a train leaves either Shanghai or Guangzhou every other day.
***Chengdu-Lhasa
T22/3 train will leave Chengdu at 18:18 and arrive in Lhasa at 18:28 on the third day with a trip of 2 hours and 10 minutes.
T24/1 train will set out from Lhasa at 9:05 am. and get to Chengdu at 9:55 am on the third day after 48 hours and 50 minutes.
***Lanzhou-Lhasa
K917 train will leave Lanzhou at 16:45 and arrive in Lhasa at 22:30 on the second day with a trip of 29 hours and 45 minutes.
K918 train will set out from Lhasa at 9:32 am. and arrive in Lanzhou at 15:45 on the second day after running for 30 hours and 13 minutes.
***Chongqing-Lhasa
Train T222/3 will start from Chongqing at 19:20 and arrive in Lhasa at 18:28 on the third day running for 47 hours and 8 minutes.
Train T224/1 will set out from Lhasa at 9:05 am. and arrive in Chongqing at 9:55 am. with a trip of 48 hours and 50 minutes.
***Xining-Lhasa
K917 train will set out from Xining at 20:07 and arrive in Lhasa at 22:30 on the second day after running for 26 hours and 23 minutes.
K917 train will start from Lhasa at 9:32 am and arrive in Xining at 12:19 am. on the second day with a trip of 26 hours and 47 minutes.
Q8. How many people can every train contain?

A: 14 compartments are set on every train including 2 cushioned berths compartments with 64 persons, 8 semi cushioned berths compartments with 480 persons and 4 ordinary seats compartments with 392 persons. So the total capacity of the train is 936 persons.

Q9. How many tickets can I buy one time?

A: Every passenger can only purchase at most two berth tickets or three seat tickets once.
Q10. Visas or travel documents required to travel to Lhasa and surrounding areas in Tibet?
A: Passengers should fill in a Health Registration Card when buying railway tickets to enter Tibet and a permit for entering Tibet is also needed for the foreign tourists. There are two documents required for foreign tourists who want to travel in Tibet.
***One is the China Visa.
Non-Chinese passport holders (including Taiwan)must have a valid passport and a visa (Travelers from countries having visa exemption agreement with HK do not need a visa) to visit Tibet. Visa can be obtained from the local China consulate in your country. If you are coming to Lhasa from Kathmandu, you'd better get China visa from Kathmandu because no matter you've already got the visa in your country or not, you must get a visa in Kathmandu, which is regulated in an official memo between China and Nepal.
***Another is Tibet Permit issued by Tibet Tourism Bureau.
TTB Permit - Tibet Entry PermitWhen you fly from any city to Lhasa you will need to show this permit when you check in at the airport. Furthermore, whenever you buy a flight to Lhasa you need to show this permit. TTB permits are also needed by groups traveling by Land Cruiser but this will be arranged by the travel agency organizing the trip.
PSB Permit - Alien's Travel PermitIf you want to go further to the unopened areas, you need an Alien's travel permit issued by PSB of Tibet. It is called Alien's Travel Permit or PSB permit.
All kinds of people can get Tibet permit through a travel agency except diplomats, journalists, and government officials who should travel to Tibet under the arrangement by the Foreign Affairs Office of Tibet Government.
Q11. Where I can obtain the TTB permit ?
A. Here are the contact methods for Branch Offices of Tibet Tourism Bureau over China, please find the one you are easy to contact for to apply for Tibet-entrance permission.

***Tibet Tourism Bureau in Lhasa
Tel: 0086-891－6343854 0086-8916349239 (Speaking both English and Chinese)***Beijing Branch Office Tel: 0086-10-84477899 Fax: 0086-10-84476503 Mrs. Cao: Tel: 8610-66569109　8610-84477899 8610-84476703 8610-84476503　 Fax: 8610-66569107 8610-84476503 8610-84477899 Web: www.tibettour.net.cn　 Mail: tibettour2001@vip.sina.com Address: A28F Oriental Kenzo Plaza, Dongzhimen, Beijing 100027 P.R.C.***Shanghai Branch Office Tel: 0086-21-62572089 Fax: 0086-21-63231016***Chengdu Branch Office Tel: 0086-28-85551719 Fax: 0086-28-8555171985551719***Ge'er Mu Branch Office Tel: 0086-979-8483532 Fax: 0086-979-8483532***Xi'an Branch Office Tel: 0086-29-87815987 Fax: 0086-29-87815987***Yunnan Xianggelila Branch Office Tel: 0086-887-8229028 Fax: 0086-887-8227892***Xining Branch Office Tel: 0086-971-8459840 Fax: 0086-971-8459840***Zhangmu Branch Office Tel: 0086-892-8743733 Fax: 0086-892-8915377