How to Book Hong Kong High Speed Rail Tickets

Hong Kong to/from China's mainland High Speed Trains have been put into service since September 23rd, 2018. By taking those bullet trains, travelers can conveniently travel from Hong Kong to Guangzhou within about 47 minutes, to Shenzhen within about 18 minutes, to Guilin within about 3.5 hours, to Shanghai within about 8.5 hours, to Beijing within about 9 hours, etc. However, for there are some significant booking policy differences between China's mainland and Hong Kong, you'd better have a clear understanding about the relevant policies before booking your tickets.

Where to Book Your Hong Kong China Tickets

How to Book Tickets in Hong Kong Ticketing Channels

1. Online (www.mtr.com.hk/highspeed)

Foreigners and Hong Kong residents are highly suggested to book your Hong Kong China High Speed Train tickets at Hong Kong’s MTR website (www.mtr.com.hk/highspeed). The site offers both English and Chinese service. Besides, the site accepts all major credit cards with the exception of American Express and JCB.

Warm Tips:

● For tickets sold in HKDs, the fare is the valid implemented fare for the current month which may not be the same as the fare on the date of travel. All the tickets on Hong Kong’s MTR website are displayed in the Hong Kong Dollars (HKDs) and charged by HKDs, though the tickets are priced in Chinese Yuan (CNY). The exchange rate on the MTR site will update each month and adjusted HKD fares will be announced on the first day of every month.

● Only tickets for trains which depart from or arrive at Hong Kong West Kowloon Station are available on this website. For example, you can’t book tickets from Beijing to Shanghai at the site.

● Ticket cancelation service is not available on the MTR site. You can go to the Hong Kong West Kowloon Station to collect your tickets first then refund the tickets.

● Tickets purchased online MUST be collected at the Hong Kong West Kowloon Station before journey.

2. At Station Ticket Counters

Hong Kong West Kowloon is now the only High Speed Railway Station in Hong Kong, and also the only train station in Hong Kong that can book high speed train tickets traveling between Hong Kong and China's Mainland.

There are about 23 counters and 39 automatic ticket machines inside the Station ticket office. The automatic machines only provide Chinese version and only accepts original Mainland Travel Permit for Hong Kong and Macao Residents (Home Return Permit) and PRC Resident Identity Card (limited to second generation cards). Among the 23 counters, there are about 5 special counters providing ticket services for Mainland Domestic Tickets for the journeys starting and ending at Mainland stations. For example, you can book, change and cancel the high speed train ticket for the journey from Beijing to Xi’an. For alteration, handling fee applies at HKD20 per ticket. And for booking, it charged for about 10-30 HKD per ticket as handling fee.

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Mainland Domestic Tickets Booking Fares at Special Counters in Hong Kong West Kowloon Station
Fares	Ticket Purchase Handling Fee (Each)
Below RMB200	HKD10
RMB200 to below RMB300	HKD20
RMB300 and above	HKD30

3. By Phone (+852 2120 0888)

You can also book the Hong Kong China high speed train tickets by calling +852 2120 0888. The tickets booked by this way can only be paid via Visa and MasterCard. No mobile payment method like apple pay available. Tickets purchased via phone must be collected at the Hong Kong West Kowloon Station before journey. Besides, no tickets cancelation service available by phone. Thus the refunds cannot be processed via tele-ticketing. If you want to cancel your tickets booked by phone, please collect your tickets at the ticketing counters at the Hong Kong West Kowloon Station before processing a refund.

4. On Automatic Machine (Only for Chinese)

Booking tickets on Automatic Machine is not available for foreigners, for the machines only provide Chinese version and only accepts original Mainland Travel Permit for Hong Kong and Macao Residents (Home Return Permit) and PRC Resident Identity Card (limited to second generation cards).

5. Though a Travel Agency

You can book a Hong Kong China high speed train ticket through an agent within 30 days prior to the train departure. We China Discovery can provide such a service for you too if you are in need. You can contact us for detailed help.

How to Book Tickets in China's Mainland Ticketing Channels

1. Online (www.12306.com)

The Website of China Rail Corporation 12306.cn is the only official train ticket website serving in China's Mainland. The price of the train tickets is shown in CNY on the site. Only Chinese service provided on the website thus it requires the users with strong Chinese reading ability. It is not suggested for foreigners to book train tickets at 12306.cn. For the people who are interested in that, please check more about how to book high speed train tickets at 12306.com >

2. At a Station Ticket Counter

All the train stations in China's mainland can book Hong Kong China High Speed Train tickets, but not refers to every counter inside the ticket office of the stations. You can book the tickets at ticket selling counters (售票窗口) only, so please be careful not to queue after wrong lines or else it may waste your time. No charge required when you book tickets at the station ticket counter.

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3. By Phone (95105105)

When you are booking tickets by calling 95105105, the support staff can only speak Chinese and provide Chinese service, thus it requires the user with strong Chinese listening and speaking skills. You are not suggested to book your tickets through phone if you can’t understand or speak Chinese fluently or else you may book wrong tickets.

4. On Automatic Machine (Only for Chinese)

All the automatic machines at train stations only provide Chinese service and not accepts passport thus they can do no help for foreigners.

5. At Ticket outlets or through a Travel Agency

There are many ticket outlets (代售点) throughout cities in China's mainland, thus it may be helpful for the travelers who are not convenient to book tickets by other ways. It charges about 5 CNY per ticket as handling fee when booking at ticket outlet. However, not everyone is suggested to book tickets at the ticket outlets. Most of the staff at ticket outlets can only speak Chinese. Besides, you may not be able to book your tickets at the ticket outlets if your passport hasn’t be checked at a train station in China's mainland before.

You can also book Hong Kong high speed train tickets through We China Diacovery. If you need such a service, please feel free to contact us.

Documents Required for Hong Kong High Speed Train Tickets Booking

According to the real-name policy, original valid identity documents are a MUST for China High Speed Train tickets booking, collecting, altering and canceling. Each valid identity document can only be used to book a ticket for the same train on the same day, except that adult passengers use their own documents to book tickets for their children. Your identity document number will be printed on the ticket. When boarding the train, you should present your train ticket and your valid identity document together to the train attendants.

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Valid Identification Documents List

● Chinese Citizen ID Card
● Passport (not available for automatic ticket machines)
● Residence Permit for Foreigners (not available for automatic ticket machines)
● Mainland Travel Permit for Hong Kong and Macao Residents (or called Home-return Permit)
● Mainland Travel Permit for Taiwan Residents (not available for automatic ticket machines)
● Permit for Mainland Residents to Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan, etc. (not available for automatic ticket machines)

When Can You Book Hong Kong China High Speed Rail Ticket

There is a pre-sale period of China Hong Kong high speed train tickets booking. If you book the Hong Kong to/from China's mainland high speed train tickets online or though phone, you can book the tickets within 15 days before departure.

Besides, the deadlines of booking the tickets in Hong Kong channels and in China's mainland channels are significantly different.

● If you book your tickets on Hong Kong’s MTR website (www.mtr.com.hk/highspeed) or through phone (+852 2120 0888), you should book at least 2 hours in advance.
● If you book on 12306.com or through phone (95105105), you should book at least 30 minutes prior to the departure of your train.
● When you want to book the ticket at the ticketing counters of train stations in person, you should book at Hong Kong West Kowloon Station at least 45 minutes prior to the train departure and 15 minutes prior to the train departure at train stations in China's mainland.
● Please remember to book your train tickets as early as possible. With the opening of direct high speed trains, a growing number of travelers and businessman choose to travel from Hong Kong to China's mainland by taking those trains, thus you are highly recommended to book your tickets in advance.

Every day, the official website for ticket booking in Hong Kong (www.mtr.com.hk/highspeed) and in China's mainland (12306.com) provide booking service from 6:00 am to 11:00 pm (GMT+8). Information query service of both the two websites is available throughout the day. However, the service hours of the authorized agents may change according reality situations. Usually, the authorized ticket agents can provide service from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm every day.

Popular High Speed Train Route from/to Hong Kong

By taking High Speed Train, you can now travel from Hong Kong West Kowloon Station to 44 stations in China's mainland, including Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Guilin, Changsha, Guiyang, Kunming, Hangzhou Wuhan, Zhengzhou, etc. Whether you are going to short-haul destinations like Shenzhen and Guangzhou or long-haul destinations like Shanghai and Beijing, you can enjoy a hassle-free journey without interchange. Besides, you can travel to more destinations through over 25,000km national high speed rail network.

Hong Kong Guangzhou Train Route Maps | Hong Kong Guilin Train Route Maps | Hong Kong Beijing Train Route Maps | Hong Kong Shanghai Train Route Maps

Warm Tip:

The booking policy may be slightly changed according to practical situation, please feel free to contact our experienced travel consultant for the real-time help.