First, I don't know chinese... next... trip is end of Nov.

It seems like a bit of twisted fun to try and get a train ticket ahead of time without a big fee. Being my first trip to the far east I would like to be prepared with tickets. I am trying to weigh out which is a better choice, train or air. The girl friend says she wants a deluxe soft sleeper room "for her safety". I've traveled on horrible Russian trains and am not too concerned with this, but I guess it should weigh in on the decision.

So looks like $160 or so each for deluxe sleeper through ChinaTripAdvisor to get something ahead of time (maybe?). Saves hotel, so $320 each total.

Found flights on ctrip.com for $228 total for both (7:30am flight - China Air), but that would require extra night hotel in Beijing for about $150 at the place we are, so $378.

Pretty comparable in price, but I'd really like to know which is the better choice from those that have done both.

1) I could see the airport being stressful for a 7:30am flight. Arrive 6am? Not morning people!
2) Train seems like it would be much more scenic (but possibly dark out the whole time since it leaves at 7pm?)
3) Are the deluxe soft sleepers as good as they seem from pictures I am finding online?
4) What are the chances of not getting a deluxe soft sleeper after all?

Thanks!!

I think you are talking about those cabin with only 2 beds, are you?

They are alright, and enough privacy for two of you and very safe. You won't be able to see anything becasue of the dark outside, except seeing the sun raise will be nice on the train if the weather is good.

Train stations are all in city centres, and airports (especially PEK) are a bit further away. So you need to calculate taxi cost as well, it seems you are quite price sensitive.

For me, I would go for the flight, it save me time (I only do business trips in China, not as a tourist, so time is important to me), and one night in the hotel will get me extra hotel points

If you are not converned of both, and want to enjoy a different experience, train is an excellent option on this route.

Soft sleeper curent prices AFAIK are 439RMB for upper bed, 499RMB for lower bed on the Z train and per direction.

Chinese trains have a lot of staff including security people and I have never had anything stolen from me nor have I heard that happening to others on the upscale trains (D and Z).

Just helped someone purchase soft sleeper tickets during the Chinese mid-Autumn holidays when travel peaked and he was still able to snatch those beds.

Speaking as someone who has done both, I didn't find the train too bad. We had a 4 berth deluxe sleeper cabin and managed to get a good 6 hours sleep. You'll need to take your own food though as the onboard catering is a little limited.
Air China was fine as far as flights go, (we also got the 0730 - had to be out of the hotel at 0615) but the food was pretty awful. PEK airport was excellent, and we flew to SHA rather than PVG - so much closer to the city but the taxi ride for both needed to be factored in.

All in all, the train is pretty good value (probably not the thing to say on a frequent flier forum, I'll get ejected now!), but you have to understand that deluxe is not necessarily as deluxe as the western view. Lack of Mandarin is not always a problem, there's normally someone around who can help and the stations have all the signs in English and Chinese and are pretty easy to get around.^

AS for worry number 4 - not a problem as you are allocated a berth/cabin on your ticket from the outset.

I would disagree a bit about the catering issue. Chinese trains have one the largest variety of catering in the World, IMHO. From full meals to fresh fruit and everything in-between.

Mosberger, didn't see much evidence of that in the very small restaurant car I'm afraid. Perhaps there was another restaurant car that we didn't see, but we were warned by a local that it would be best if we took our own food (self catering seemed to be the order of the day in the other cabins we passed too!)

well maybe it depends on you, but for i prefer train than by plane to reach shanghai

I find an invaluable resource for info on train travel is the "Man in Seat 61" train website.

http://seat61.com/China.htm

Yep, I did find that site and it has been very helpful, but doesn't really compare train to flying as I would like.

Yes, referring to a 2berth cabin w/ bathroom. My girlfriend is just uncomfortable sleeping in the same room as two strangers really. I can understand a bit, but I consider my self a seasoned veteran of world travel for my age (27) and open to more adventure like a 4 or 6berth.

Good point on the taxi difference between airports and train stations. I hadn't thought about that!

I'm still leaning more towards the train because of less stress getting to the airport and all of that early in the morning. My main concern with the train though is actually getting tickets.

Do 2berth's sell out extremely quickly? Would we have a problem getting one if we had our hotel book it for us as soon as we got to Beijing (4 days prior to train departure).

Unless the terminology has changed recently, the "Deluxe" in deluxe soft sleeper means it's the 2-berth version instead of 4-berth. Doesn't mean it's more luxurious.

And I won't worry about availability. As you've found out, its barely competitive in price after you factor in hotel cost. For local Chinese, many won't be adding a hotel as they have residence in Shanghai or Beijing (or both). For them, flying is cheaper.

Plus, they run something like 5 Z trains, around 6 minutes from each other every night.

Unless things have changed during the past few months, the night trains are T trains and there is only one Z train that leaves in the mid morning.

Moondog - You are thinking about the 9hr 44min D train during the day with sitting only:

D31 11:05

There are still 5 non-stop 11-hr night trains:

Z21 19:32
Z13 19:38
Z7 19:44
Z1 19:56
Z5 20:02

Plus two slower 13-hr night trains, which may not have deluxe soft sleepers:

T109 20:14
T103 20:20

Oops, my bad.

We are thinking of the T109 . If no 2berth's for some reason then can switch to T103.