FlyerTalk Forums Expert How-Tos and Guides
 

I started this thread almost exactly 7 years ago. Not a lot has changed since then, but I think a wikipost is now justified:
-Jing refers to Beijing and Hu refers to Shanghai
-the smaller cities in the middle derive the greatest economic benefit from the service
-air fares have dropped a lot during the course of the past 7 years, and the delay situation has improved quite a bit, so I usually fly these days
-single digit trains tend to stop only in Nanjing, double digit trains stop in Nanjing and Jinan, and triple digit trains have up to 7 station stops.
-the vast majority of trains terminate at Shanghai Hongqiao, which isn't convenient for many people, but Shanghai Station service has recently been launched
-if you have a few days advance on your hands, buy tickets locally; in addition to being a little cheaper, this spares the need for will call