Popular Train Travel Routes

25 May 2022 Last updated at 15:31

Nowadays, direct trains from the following main popular destinations in China such as Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Chengdu, Chongqing, Lanzhou and Xining to Lhasa have been opened. From some famous passing cities along the rail, for example, Xi’an, Suzhou and Changsha, you can take the train as well. It’s easy to find available trains to and out of Lhasa in Tibet because trains depart between Lhasa Railway Station and major tourist cities daily, but tickets will be in extremely shortage especially in the peak months of summer.

Train Schedule from Lhasa to Major Destinations

RouteTrain No.DurationDistance (KM)FrequencyPrice of Hard Seat (CNY）Price of Hard Sleeper (CNY)Price of Soft Sleeper (CNY)
Lhasa-Beijing Z22 39h58' 3757 Daily 360 720 1144
Lhasa-Shanghai Z166 48h26' 4373 Daily 402.5 793.5 1262.5
Lhasa-Guangzhou Z266 54h50' 4980 Every other Day 447 865 1468
Lhasa-Chengdu Z324 36h30' 3360 Every other day 302.5 627.5 997.5
Lhasa-Chongqing Z224/Z221 35h53' 3137 Every other day 302.5 627.5 997.5
Lhasa-Lanzhou Z918 24h24' 2188 Daily 240 522 823
Lhasa-Xining Z6802 21h43' 1972 Daily 224 495 781

Train Schedule from Major Destinations to Lhasa

RouteTrain No.DurationDistance (KM)FrequencyPrice of Hard Seat (CNY）Price of Hard Sleeper (CNY)Price of Soft Sleeper (CNY)
Beijing-Lhasa Z21 40h20' 3757 Daily 360 720 1144
Shanghai-Lhasa Z164 46h15' 4373 Daily 402.5 793.5 1262.5
Guangzhou-Lhasa Z264 52h34' 4980 Every other Day 447 865 1468
Chengdu-Lhasa Z322/Z323 36h18' 3360 Every other day 302.5 627.5 997.5
Chongqing-Lhasa Z222/Z223 35h30' 3050 Every other day 302.5 627.5 997.5
Lanzhou-Lhasa Z917 23h40' 2188 Daily 240 522 823
Xining-Lhasa Z6801 20h55' 1972 Daily 224 495 781

Our Top Tibet Tours with Qinghai-Tibet Train Experience

☞ 10 Days Beijing Xian Lhasa Memory Tour by Train

☞ 8 Days Lhasa Tour from Beijing by Train

☞ 7 Days Lifetime Tibet Train Tour from Chengdu

☞ 6 Days Discover Tibet Train Tour from Xining

If travelers plan to tour more destinations in Tibet, like Shigatse from Lhasa, the Lhasa-Shigatse Railway offers 2 daily trains for your convenience. As the extension line of Qinghai-Tibet Railway, it only takes less than three hours to get to Shigatse from Lhasa.

Please note that so far there is only Z (express overnight sleeper) trains available, without any high-speed trains.

Train Schedule from Lhasa to Shigatse

RouteTrain No.DurationDistance (KM)FrequencyPrice of Hard Seat (CNY）Price of Hard Sleeper (CNY)Price of Soft Sleeper (CNY)
Lhasa-Shigatse Z8801 02h55' 248 Daily 40.5 111.5 169.5
Z8803 02h39'

Train Schedule from Shigatse to Lhasa

RouteTrain No.DurationDistance (KM)FrequencyPrice of Hard Seat (CNY）Price of Hard Sleeper (CNY)Price of Soft Sleeper (CNY)
Shigatse-Lhasa Z8804 02h35' 248 Daily 40.5 111.5 169.5
Z8802 02h53'

Transportation

How to get to downtown Lhasa from Lhasa Railway Station?

When passengers arrive at Lhasa Railway Station, there are public buses and taxis taking you to central Lhasa area. If you are traveling with Tibet Discovery, our professional fuide and driver will pick you up at the station and take you to your hotel. The parking and pick-up area is in the square of the station, while any motorized transport vehicles are not allowed within 150 meters of the station entrance.

Public Bus: Bus No.1, No.13, No.14 and No.30 can take you to downtown area, where near Potala Place or your hotel, the ticket price is one yuan for each person, which is relatively cheap, but can be very crowded when trains arrives with many passengers glutted within. If you arrive with big luggage, perhaps you would want to avoid Public Bus due to no vacancy on it. Get on the bus at Lhasa Bus Station (a large bus terminal) on your right hand side after walking out of station exit, and get off at marked stops on the way. You can check the destination information from bus driver and local people. Bus No.6 will take you directly to Sera Monastery terminal.

If you will leave downtown Lhasa and take trains from the railway station, the buses above are helpful in the same way.

Note: The above transportation information is for reference only. Public bus schedule and route may change.

Lhasa Railway Station
Taxi in Lhasa

Taxi：If taking a cab is your first choice, you can take a taxi directly to your hotel or destination costing a few dozen yuan. Most taxies are parking by the main road in front of the railway station square. Please pay attention that taxies will not be always available since arrival time of trains’ matters a lot.

Tips

1. Special instruction: there are many strict clearances and security checks in and out of the Lhasa Railway Station, so please carry your ID certificates with you at any moment. And leave more enough time for boarding.

2. Walk slowly towards parking area for high altitude sickness acclimation since the station is at high elevation after your outbound.

3. Samples of Lhasa Train Ticket are offered below.

Lhasa Railway Station
Chengdu Lhasa Train Ticket
Lhasa Railway Station
Lhasa Beijingxi Train Ticket

Architecture Style

Lhasa Railway Station is designed and built in mixed style combining traditional Tibetan Architectural elements with modern buildings style. Viewed from the outside, its steel-cored wooden frame extends from right above the entrance to station tents area, adopted the typical Tibetan stack-up construction style. Each layer ranging at the entrance makes up the door head, which coincides with the traditional form of Tibetan door lintel and window transom.

Supported by Tibet’s unique beam-columns, the colonnade reflects sacred and solemn ambience. The central two- story corridor framed by wooden shelves and columns faces stations and mountains in the south directly, providing a good wide vision. As for construction color, the most classic Tibet Red (Saffron Color) and white are widely used.

Looking from the inside, the central hall on the ground floor mainly uses the red tone, where floors are laid in white and red deluxe nonskid stones. Eight big pillars stand in the hall, they are built in Tibetan architecture style, and the interior part is steel structure, breaded with special processed Red Pine outside. Those pillars are antiseptic, ultraviolet-proof and anti-deformation, while the most important feature is fireproof.

All the window glasses in the hall are used advanced toughened glass in good sound insulation and airtight function. Some air vents are installed below the windows for indoor fresh air exchange. In order to protect the surroundings, the inward station uses the local rich and pollution free solar energy for heating.

Unique Tibetan techniques used like, diversification of walls, massive bricklaying, timber frames and serial horizontal roof inherit the local Tibet coherence and unity, also evolves to modernization.

Lhasa Railway Station
Station Entrance
Lhasa Railway Station
The Main Hall on the First Floor

Station Layout（Guide Map）

There are three floors in mail building of Lhasa Railway Station: one floor on basement (used as Level 6 Air-Defense Basement and equipment houses) and two floors on the ground (the first floor mainly used as Ticket Office and Waiting Room, the second floor used as Waiting Rooms and commercial area and infirmary for freight and passenger transport service).

1F:

The Ticket Hall is in the west of the main floor, set up with over 10 ticket service windows, where train tickets, plane tickets and coach tickets are sold within.

The Soft Sleeper Waiting Room is in the southeast side, covering an area of 800 sq meters in total.

The VIP Waiting Room is located in the southeast as well, decorated with luxury carpets and huge tapestries in Potala Palace pattern on the wall.

A large LED Screen is settled on the wall of the west side of the Ticket Hall, it mainly displays train information, such as train schedule, ticket price and available tickets left, etc. An information service desk sits in the middle of the hall where passengers can consult basic direction guidance here. Escalators are equipped with on both sides of the hall in the ground floor.

Lhasa Railway Station
Service Areas on the First Floor

2F:

The Shopping Mall is in the northeast side of the 2nd floor where have some fast-food restaurants, cafe houses and shops for snacks.

The Ordinary Waiting Room is in the south, including specialized waiting rooms for Maternal and Child, Soldier, small soft sleeper and medical treatment.

The Ticket Entrance is in the southwest, nearby an electronic screen showing train schedule information. Automatic escalators are erected along both sides down the entrance.

Lhasa Railway Station
Service Areas on the First Floor

Track

After checking the tickets, there is a LED screen showing timely train schedule, and there are 7 station platforms inside the station, sheltered by large-scale rain-proof sheds without column, 10 station tracks: 8 arrival and departure tracks and 2 freight tracks.

The Front Square

The railway bus terminal station is on the right hand of the exit where provides many city buses to downtown Lhasa. Taxi stands where are just outside the Exit for passengers’ convenience. Also accommodation and meal places can be found in nearby buildings.

Lhasa Railway Station
Train Schedule Screen and Rain-Proof Sheds