Originally Posted by mecabq

Sorry to get too off-topic, but I had difficulty with this. The scene at the train station on Hangzhou was utter bedlam; the Amanfayun staff provided absolutely no help (besides chasing me inside and demanding payment for the car ride to the train station even though I had paid at the hotel when I checked out). When I finally got help from some friendly locals, we waited in a long line together to discover that there were no more seats available on any train that day. Luckily, our new friends helped us board a bus to Shanghai.

At the very least, I would advise making a reservation and otherwise planning ahead for this train.