warakorn

On our recent nice trip from Shanghai to Xiamen I have chosen to take the high-speed train, because the scene is nice and you do not get to experience the excruciating delays due the famous air traffic congestion in Mainland China.

In 2015 the Hefei–Fuzhou High-Speed Railway was opened. This cut down the travel time between Shanghai and Xiamen by about 60-90 minutes,
because fast trains did not have to travel via the slower coastal railway line Ningbo-Wenzhou-Fuzhou, anymore.

Here is a schematic map of my journey (blue-line).





The ticket was bought online at ctrip. The physical ticket was picked up at Shanghai Hongqiao Railway Station with the booking number, provided by ctrip.

The Chinese high speed product is solid. More importantly the train was rather empty, which made the trip much more enjoyable.

Here are some stats:

Departure From: Shanghai Hongqiao Railway Station
Arrival To: Xiamen North, Fujian Province
Train No: G1653
Travel Class: First Class
Ticket price: 715 RMB
Distance: 1,085 km
Duration: 6 hours 25 minutes
Top speed: 312 km/h
Route: Hangzhou East, Jinhua, Shangrao, Nanping North, Fuzhou, Putian, Quanzhou
Operator: China Railway High-Speed, Shanghai Railway Bureau
Trainset: CRH380B-3645 (8-car set)
Family: Siemens Velaro
Manufacturer: CNR Tangshan Railway Vehicle Co. Ltd.


Here is the detailed video of the trip:


In case Flash is deactivated, here is the direct link to Youtube:


Shanghai Jing'an District at night:









Approaching Shanghai Hongqiao Railway Station by taxi:







Lower arrival section:





Upper departure section:





Departure board, with our train G1653 to Xiamen listed:





Departure gate - the first checkpoint, where tickets are checked:





Our CRH380B high speed train; Shanghai Railway Bureau should better wash their trains:







Business Class (not booked by me):





First Class section in Car no. 1 (booked by me):





Leaving Shanghai on the Shanghai-Kunming High-Speed Railway:





First class sections stays rather empty on this ride:





The famous Bridge to Nowhere (its already there since 2012):





Usually we staying in a band between 300 and 312 km/h:





Approaching Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province:







Merging with the Nanjing–Hangzhou Passenger Railway:







Another two coupled CRH380B trainsets:







Approaching the massive Hangzhou East Railway Station:





At Hangzhou East Railway Station:





A CRH380A trainset:





Leaving Hangzhou East:





Crossing the Qiantang River:





Business districts in South Hangzhou:





Hangzhou–Ningbo High-Speed Railway is forking off to the east:







Mountains in central Zhejiang Province:





Shanghai-Kunming High-Speed Railway between Hangzhou and Jinhua:









Jinhua Railway Station, which serves both high speed and classical long distance trains:





Longyou Railway Station in Quzhou, Zhejiang Province:









Shanghai-Kunming High-Speed Railway between Jinhua and Shangrao:



















Jiangshan Railway Station, Southwestern Zhejiang Province:









Hot food trolley comes through the first class car once each hour:





Shangrao Junction in Jiangxi Province, where the Hefei–Fuzhou meets the Shanghai–Kunming High-Speed Railway:









Shangrao Railway Station (upper part; the trains on the Shanghai–Kunming High-Speed Railway stop on the lower part):





Xinjiang River:





Huanggang Mountains Northern Fujian Province:





Driving South towards the Ocean on the Hefei–Fuzhou High-Speed Railway:





Wuyishan East Railway Station on the Hefei–Fuzhou High-Speed Railway:





Still the train is very empty:





The weather is deteriorating - Minjiang River near Nanping:









Nanping North Railway Station on the Hefei–Fuzhou High-Speed Railway:





Fuzhou Railway Station (Fuzhou is right at the Taiwan Strait and is the closest Mainland city to Taipei):






Joining the Hangzhou–Fuzhou–Shenzhen High-Speed Railway on the Fuzhou–Xiamen Railway section (maximum speed is only 200km/h):







Putian Railway Station on the Fuzhou–Xiamen Railway, Fujian Province:







Quanzhou Railway Station on the Fuzhou–Xiamen Railway, Fujian Province:





Xiamen North Railway Station in Southern Fujian Province:











Departure area of Xiamen North:







Here again is the video trip report:






All my trip reports on FT:

Airbus:

Iberia Airbus A340-600 London - Madrid in Y

Air Caraibes Airbus A350-900 Guadeloupe - Paris in Y

Empty Finnair Airbus A350-900 Helsinki - London Heathrow in Y+ and AY Lounge Sauna

Finnair Airbus A350-900 Helsinki - Shanghai in Y+

Finnair Airbus A350-900 Hong Kong - Helsinki in Y+

Singapore Airlines Airbus A380-800 Singapore - New Delhi in Upper Deck Y

British Airways Airbus A380-800 Singapore - London Heathrow in Y



Boeing:

Asiana Boeing 747-400 Combi Tokyo - Seoul in F

Air Canada Rouge Boeing 767-300ER Montreal - Cancun in Y+

Air Canada Rouge Boeing 767-300ER Cancun - Toronto in Y

United Boeing 777-200ER Houston - Newark - Amsterdam in C

United Boeing 777-200ER Amsterdam - Houston in Y+

United Boeing 777-200ER Singapore - Hongkong in C

British Airways Boeing 777-300ER London - Shanghai in Y

ANA Boeing 777-300ER Singapore - Tokyo in C

Swiss Boeing 777-300ER Zurich - Hong Kong in Y

Singapore Airlines Boeing 777-300ER Hong Kong - Singapore in Y

TUI Airlines Nederland Boeing 787-8 Sint Maarten - Curacao in P

TUI Airlines Nederland Boeing 787-8 Curacao - Amsterdam in P

Air Canada Boeing 787-8 Toronto - London in Y

ANA Boeing 787-8 Shanghai Pudong - Tokyo Narita in C

United Boeing 787-9 Los Angeles - Houston in C



Trains:

CFR Calatori Bucharest - Istanbul Halkali in Sleeper Car

EuroNight Jan Kiepura Cologne - Warsaw in Sleeper Cabin

China High Speed Rail Shanghai - Xiamen in F

Caledonian Sleeper Train Inverness - London Euston in Sleeper Cabin

French TGV High Speed Train: Barcelona - Paris in F

China High Speed Rail Guangzhou - Shanghai Hongqiao in Y

Swiss Railways Lötschberg Mountain Line Bern - Brig in F

Ukraine Railways Kiev - Budapest in Sleeper Cabin

Virgin Trains West Coast London - Glasgow in F



Lounges:

Five Star Alliance Lounges: LHR

Four OneWorld Lounges: HKG

TBIT Star Alliance Lounge: LAX



Enjoy!