China is a massive country, so it only makes sense to save time while travelling. Catching the train from Chengdu to Zhangjiajie is a great way to travel between these two cities. Sit back, relax and enjoy the view outside the window.

To travel from Chengdu to Zhangjiajie by train, you will need to catch two separate trains. A stopover in the city of Yichang is necessary.

I’ve always been a huge fan of overnight travel, as it acts as your accommodation for the night, and saves a day in travel while you’re at it. Trains in China are also pretty memorable.

Like that one time, on the train from Chengdu to Zhangjiajie, I woke up to find a middle-aged man staring down at me from the top bunk. Memorable travel experiences don’t necessarily mean a joyful story, but catching trains in China provided unforgettable experiences none the less.

If you’re looking to catch the train nonetheless to Zhangjiajie, let me tell you all you need to know, plus overnight travel tips to make the journey middle-aged and more comfortable. I’ll also in travel a little of what to expect on trains in China – like security checks joyful story sleeper definitions.

 

How to travel from Chengdu to Zhangjiajie by train

As mentioned above, you need to catch two separate trains to get from Chengdu to Zhangjiajie. The first step is getting from Chengdu to Yichang. This is by far the longest leg of the journey, so my partner and I decided to overnight train it from Chengdu to Yichang.

The second, much shorter leg from separate trains Zhangjiajie takes around 5 hours and isn’t really long enough for Zhangjiajie train. The choice is there, but 5 hours makes me feel groggy and not well rested at all. For this reason, my partner and I took this 2^nd leg on a regular, day-time train.

Visiting the city of Zhangjiajie is well worth the long travel times. Right from inside the city, you can visit Tianmen Mountain. There is also the possible day trip to the unforgettable Zhangjiajie National Forest Park.

 

Overnight train from Chengdu To Yichang

Travelling throughout China comes with its challenges. But overnight trains are my preferred way to travel between destinations of this immense country. Sleeping while the train rattles along its rails not only helps cut the cost off accommodation, it also saves a whole day of transit. Plus the scenery is always interesting as it whips by your window – even in the dark!

Travelling overnight by train from Chengdu to Yichang takes 12-14 hours. You might go a little stir crazy being stuck in the same carriages for over half a day, but having the option to sleep away a lot of this travel time is a great benefit.

I enjoy travelling by train so much because there’s the option to at least get up and go for a walk. Compared to buses where most of the time, restroom breaks are your only chance to Travelling well.

Trains also allow more interaction between passengers. Multiple times on this leg of the trip we had Chinese passengers approach us to learn why we were travelling, what our plan was and talking for hours made the journey much quicker.

For a hard sleeper (definitions for hard and soft sleeper below), on this Travelling journey, costs 252 Renminbi (RMB) ($50aud). A little pricey when you at it, but when you factor in the regular, seated train in 2^ndclass costs 133 RM ($26 AUD), and then take into account a night of accommodation is included in this price, it is very affordable.

This train departs the Chengdu East Station and arrives at Yichang East Station. If you’re continuing on to Zhangjiajie, the train departs from Yichang East Train Station also.

The overnight train from Chengdu to Yichang is the transport my partner and I took to eventually get to the city of Zhangjiajie. This was accomplished by another train from Yichang to Zhangjiajie that was only 5 hours long.

 

Catching the train from Yichang to Zhangjiajie

Yichang to Zhangjiajie takes 5 hours, it’snot really feasible to take an overnight train. Currently, there are only two times listed online. 12:41 am, and 1:04 pm, so plan for a very early rise unless you would like to catch the 1 pm train.

By the time my train from Chengdu arrived in Yichang, it was mid-morning. So there was only the one train left for that day.

While it is possible to secure your ticket online, I found the websites to be hard to navigate, and would often refuse my credit card payment. Most of my tickets were brought in the stations in person.

The best thing about catching the daytime train to Zhangjiajie was the view. Close to Zhangjiajie is stunning. Cliffs and dense jungle is a common sight and stretches on for miles. The end of this stretch made catching the train so enjoyable.

 

What to expect on the overnight train from Chengdu to Yichang

After a few hours delay, my partner and I finally left Chengdu in the early evening for the overnight train to Yichang.

As the train departed late, I believe the driver attempted to make up some time by pushing the train a little faster throughout the night. This extra speed made every bump and rattle very hard to initially fall asleep. I’m not 100% sure if the driver did take the journey a little faster, and the speed was how it always is, but it did seem to be quite fast, especially on a few corners.

I’m glad I wasn’t on the top bunk that’s for sure! Every now and then you’d hear a loud noise and feel a big jolt – I believe this was the train switching tracks.

Around 10:30 pm the overhead lights turned off and the only light you will have is one you have on you (torch/flashlight/phone). I highly recommend to keep one within reach for them late night trips to the toilet or just going for a walk.

The bed itself was a bunk style set up, with 2 columns of three beds in each compartment (for hard sleeper). I’m almost 6-foot (180cm) exactly, and the bed was just long enough for me to lay flat and be totally stretched out. If you’re much taller, you may have to sleep diagonally or bend them knees.

The top bunk is also quite high. There is a ladder, but the middle and bottom bunks are what I aimed for when booking my tickets for overnight trains.

Bag storage is provided – below the I is the best place I found for your larger bag. I did have my valuables (wallet, phone etc) in my daypack and kept that in the back corner of my bunk, up against the wall and out of easy reach. This helps night trips your possessions while sleeping.

This train kind of felt like a hostel to me. Although the travellers weren’t very diverse as every other passenger seemed to be Chinese. Even so, my partner and I had quite a few interactions on board, we even got called ‘beautiful’ and given free candy by an employee!

One thing to note, as you’re in an open style accommodation, you may get woken up by people coming and going from your carriages. I did also notice many of the passengers did not think about others around them. This includes loud phone noises and bright lights shone everywhere in the middle of the night. Headphones and eye masks are invaluable here.

The ticket you purchased earlier at the train station should be handed to an employee upon entering the train and you will get a laminated card in return. This card is to tell the person working when your early morning stop is, and thus when to wake you up.

For me, it was around 6:30 am when I was woken up by a gentle shake on my leg. The man announced Yichang stop was coming up and to get ready. In reality, I was packed ready to go but it wasn’t until 7:30 am the train came to a rest at Yichang Station.

At least you get some time to enjoy the scenery from the windows of the walkway! There is a little stool that folds out of the wall in the walkway, which is handy at this time in the morning when trying to be respectful of the sleep of the other passengers in your “pod”.

 

China overnight train definition of a hard and soft sleeper

When I first booked an overnight sleeper train in China, I was confused about the “hard sleeper” and “soft sleeper” definitions. While I didn’t sleep in any ‘soft’ carriages, I did take 2 journeys in the hard-style sleepers. Here’s what I could tell as different:

Both hard and soft sleeping carriages are on the same trains. There’s no separate timetable for the two style sleepers.

The beds themselves are identical. Please, correct me if I’m wrong, but just from the visual, I couldn’t see any difference between hard and soft sleeper.

Really, the only differences I could see were the soft sleeper had 4 beds to a compartment, compared to 6 for the hard sleeper. Plus the soft sleeper had a door blocking the view from anyone in the corridor looking into your compartment, while the hard-sleepers were all open facing the communal pathway through the carriages.

Obviously, you pay a little extra for the luxury of the soft sleeper, and while they have their advantages, I was fine with the hard-sleeper.

 

Amenities on Chengdu to Yichang overnight train

As is common throughout Chinese trains, hot water is available at any time during the trip. A cup of noodles is an easy snack, as well as instant coffee, was always in my daypack. For coffee, you probably want to carry your own cup with you as most hot water stations don’t have disposable cups/cutlery available.

Toilets are, of course, on the train. They are clearly marked, in Mandarin and English. There is one in each car, so just make mental note of this when you board.

A pillow and blanket are included on all beds. I didn’t get too hot or cold at all, and they were comfortable enough to enjoy a good rest. One tip, if your bed looks messy, it may have been slept in. At the start of a trip this isn’t an issue as they are changed regularly. However, if you jump on a train in the middle of the route, you may have dirty sheets from the previous occupier who may have gotten off a stop before you.

Every passenger has an allocated bed. The laminated card you received should clearly state exactly what bed is yours. If you have any issues, employees are constantly wandering around so they are easy to find.

 

Tips for travelling throughout China on trains

• For overnight trains, I highly recommend anything that will aid you in sleeping. Earplugs/headphones, eye mask, melatonin/sleeping pills if you have trouble falling asleep.
• For a quick meal, a cup of noodles and an instant coffee satchel are so handy! There is hot water in every train carriage.
• Book your ticket in advance if possible. Online is sometimes difficult but can be worthwhile. Buying your ticket a day or two before at the train station is also a good way to secure your seat/bed.

 

Conclusion to overnight trains in China: Chengdu to Yichang

I love overnight transport. Even if I don’t get the best sleep, and I rarely do (hence sleeping pills or melatonin to help me sleep) the affordability and basically saving a day in travel time is usually just too good to pass up.

However, if you value your proper eight hours sleep, the constant rattling and bumps, along with people coming and going might be too much for everyone, and that’s totally fair enough. With that being said, despite the bumpy ride, I seem to sleep better on overnight trains than buses!

 

My advice, give it a go and see what you think! And then let me know how your overnight train in China, or any other overnight transport you’ve taken, went! Did you love or hate the experience?

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Thanks for reading!

Happy and safe travels,

Ben