China Train Tickets With a Passport: 12306 Booking, E-Tickets and Boarding
High-speed trains connect the cities most visitors combine — Shanghai, Beijing and Xi'an among them — and railway tickets are real-name documents. The passport used to buy the ticket is the document you must carry for station entry, exit and boarding, and the station printed on the ticket decides where you have to be. Get those habits right before your first journey and the rest of train travel is routine.
Book with the passport you will carry
- Open the official Railway 12306 website or app and set up the account or purchase flow that asks for your document details.
- Enter each passenger's name exactly as printed in the passport, then the passport number and the other requested details.
- Select the train after checking the departure station, arrival station and departure time, not only the city names.
- Save the booking reference offline after paying, then re-read the order details once: date, train number, carriage and seat.
Read the ticket before leaving for the station
The departure station is part of the ticket. Beijing, Shanghai and Xi'an each run more than one major station, and travelling to the wrong one can cost an hour or more. Confirm the full station name in your booking and set that exact station in your map app.
Boarding closes a few minutes before departure, and station buildings are large: allow time for the entrance security check, the walk to the waiting area and finding the boarding gate. The operator's current information controls when gates close.
At the station and on the train
- Pass the entrance security check with your bags, then find the waiting area or boarding gate shown on your ticket or the screens.
- At the ticket gates, follow the signs for the manual lane when the machine cannot read your passport; staff on duty check the document there.
- Keep the passport with you rather than deep in a suitcase; the same document is used for station entry, exit and boarding.
- Before the return journey, re-read the return ticket for its station and train number; the same rules apply in both directions.
Changes, refunds and missed trains
- Missed the train: ask at the station service desk about the current change rules for your ticket before buying a new one.
- Wrong station: check the 12306 app or a service desk for the next usable train from where you are before paying for anything new.
- Refund or change: use the same official channel that issued the ticket, and check the fee and deadline before confirming.
- Lost passport: the booking reference does not replace the document. Resolve the travel document first, then the booking.
Sources and rechecking
These sources were checked for the current guide edition. Confirm the linked page again before acting on a changing route, price, opening rule or booking procedure. Read how ChinaTrip checks its guides.
- 12306 China Railway (English site)Official/operator source · China Railway · checked 29 Oct 2026
- 12306 English FAQ: real-name ticketing, identity documents and ticket servicesOfficial/operator source · China Railway · checked 31 Oct 2026
- China train travel guide (third-party)Research reference · TravelChinaGuide · checked 10 Nov 2026
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These checks are a nationwide starting point.
The underlying checks are widely shared, but local app screens, station rules and venue procedures can differ. The Standard guides apply them to fixed three-day routes in Shanghai, Beijing and Xi'an, with alternatives, useful language and source notes.