The presale clock & payment
The 15-day window is the whole game
Seats open about before travel (counting the travel date), and you can buy until before departure.
- You cannot buy earlier than the window — for peak dates, set an alarm for the on-sale moment.
- 12306 sells tickets in RMB only; keep a working foreign card plus Alipay/WeChat as backup.
- Sales & endorsement run 05:00–01:00 (05:00–23:30 on Tuesday); query and refund are 24h.
Sold out? → Check again at midnight Beijing time for released cancellations, or take a slower/overnight train. Availability can differ between 12306 and an authorized agent.
How you board
Your passport is your ticket
China rail is e-ticket: you reserve the e-ticket and board by showing the passport you bought it with. There is no paper ticket to collect for a normal e-ticket.
- Bring the exact passport used to book — not a photo, not a different document.
- Automatic gates are built for Chinese ID cards; use the staffed / passport ID-check lane.
- Security check, ID verification, and the ticket gate are separate steps — leave buffer time.
Gate can't read your passport? → Go to the manual ID-check lane or staffed window with your booking confirmation and passport. Allow a few extra minutes.
Fees & changes
What refunds and changes really cost
- Refund: free + before departure · if over 48h · within 24–48h · under 24h · minimum .
- Endorsement (change): you can change the date, train, or seat — but NOT the departure/arrival station (except within the same city).
- One change only per ticket; no refund once the trip starts; Spring Festival peak endorsements carry a refund fee.
- Accidental purchase: one free refund is possible within of buying and at least 4h before departure, on official platforms (conditions apply).
Rule → Refunds/changes go back to the original payment method. Numbers here come from 12306's published FAQ — if a figure is not sourced it is not shown.
Pre-trip rail tests
6 things people get wrong
Rail rules move. Keep the checklist.
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