Originally Posted by
iahphx
Well that's a shame.
I'll have my family with me (4 of us) and I'd actually prefer to take a train if our itinerary permits it. We enjoyed (well, maybe "enjoyed" is too strong a word) our overnight trains last year in the 4-person sleepers, and I've never heard anyone say a nice word about flying within China.
The thing that worries me about taking a train to or from Beijing during the Olympics is that -- to my hazy recollection -- you can't make reservations too far in advance for Chinese trains. While that is not usually a big problem, I wonder if it could be a problem during the Olympics. I presume I could arrange air travel further in advance.
My family always enjoy trains. In 2006 summer we took train K79/80 Shanghai-Kunming: 44 hours one-way.
If you book few days in advance once you are in China, soft sleeper seat is never a problem. Just ask hotel business center to book for you.
In fact, you could go for "Deluxe Soft Sleeper", 2 people in a room on selected trains such as T99/100 Z49/50 T109/110 T37/38. Fare will double, and ordinary Chinese won't spend that kind of money.
My 2008 Summer Train adventures will include train rides:
Shenzhen-Shenyang
Shenyang-Dalian
Dalian-Nanjing
Nanjing-Shanghai
Shanghai-Hong Kong