Getting Around

Long-haul: into and out of the country

Inbound: US west / east coast → Hong Kong (HKG), arriving Oct 16

• Most of the brigade is departing from NYC (JFK / EWR), Los Angeles (LAX), Burbank (BUR), Seattle (SEA), or San Francisco (SFO).
• Nonstop options:
  • SFO ↔ HKG: Cathay Pacific, United, Singapore Airlines (some routes via SIN). ~14h.
  • LAX ↔ HKG: Cathay Pacific, American, Singapore. ~15h.
  • SEA ↔ HKG: Cathay seasonal direct; otherwise connect through SFO, LAX, NRT or ICN.
  • JFK ↔ HKG: Cathay nonstop ~16h (one of the longest commercial flights in the world).
  • BUR ↔ HKG: No nonstop — connect through LAX or SFO.
• Connecting via Asia (often cheaper than nonstop): JL/NH via Tokyo (NRT/HND), KE via Seoul (ICN), CI/BR via Taipei (TPE), CX via Bangkok or Manila. Generally costs 15–30% less than direct.
• Arrival timing: aim for an HKG landing by mid-afternoon Oct 16. From the US west coast, daytime departures land Oct 17 — book carefully if you want to start the trip on the 16th.
• Nick is the only one routing from Dublin (DUB): Cathay seasonal direct, otherwise connect via LHR or AMS.

Outbound: Shanghai (PVG) → home, departing Nov 1

• PVG (Pudong) handles all the long-haul. SHA (Hongqiao) is mostly domestic — confirm before you book.
• Nonstop returns:
  • PVG → SFO / LAX: United, Air China, China Eastern. ~12h.
  • PVG → JFK: United, China Eastern. ~14h. Returns are noticeably faster than the eastbound.
  • PVG → SEA: Delta, China Eastern, Hainan.
• Returns generally fly out late morning to mid-afternoon, landing same calendar day on the US west coast.
• If you book a late dinner Oct 31 (Obscura / Fu He Hui), depart no earlier than mid-afternoon Nov 1.
• Arrive PVG 3 hours early; international check-in plus immigration plus security takes the full window.

Internal: trains only

China's HSR network does all the heavy lifting on this trip. Long legs (Yantai → Hangzhou especially) are slow but the trains are comfortable, on time, and you'll see the country roll past. Plan one or two longer travel days as rest days, with the train itself as part of the trip.

The route, leg by leg (all rail)

• Hong Kong → Changsha: HSR ~3h. Clean, direct, beautiful.
• Changsha → Luoyang: HSR ~5h, usually one transfer at Wuhan or Zhengzhou. Stopover at Wuhan is easy if you want Han Show Theatre.
• Luoyang → Pingyao: HSR ~3h via Taiyuan (one transfer).
• Pingyao → Beijing: HSR ~4h.
• Beijing → Yantai: HSR ~5.5h direct. Multiple G-trains daily from Beijing South.
• Yantai → Hangzhou: The long one. ~9-11h HSR via Jinan, usually with one transfer. Two options:
  • Day train: early G-train, arrive Hangzhou evening. Eat dinner, crash.
  • Sleeper: overnight Z- or D-class sleeper Yantai → Shanghai (~14h), then HSR to Hangzhou next morning. Adds an extra night but you don't waste a day on the train.
• Hangzhou → Shanghai: HSR 45 min. Trivial.

If Yantai feels like a punishing leg, the trip-savers are: skip Yantai (use the days for Shandong via Qingdao en route, or extend Beijing) or split the long leg with a stopover in Qingdao or Nanjing.

Booking trains

• Trip.com (English) — easiest, 5-10% markup, takes foreign cards. Use this.
• 12306 (official) — cheapest, English version exists since 2024. Now accepts foreign passports + cards. Much improved but still a UX disaster vs Trip.com.
• Book at least 7 days ahead. Sleeper trains can sell out 2 weeks ahead.
• Bring your passport to the station — your booking is tied to the passport number, not a paper ticket. Ticket gates scan your passport directly.
• Arrive 45 min early. Security + ID check + walking to platform takes time.
• Class hierarchy: Business (recliner pods) > First > Second. Second is fine for <5h. First for longer.

Rail booking checklist (one row per leg)

Book each leg ~7 days ahead via Trip.com (English, foreign-card friendly, ~5-10% markup) or 12306 directly (cheapest, English version exists, foreign-passport friendly since 2024). Train numbers below are example G-trains that ran the route in 2025-26 — verify availability when you book.

• Hong Kong → Changsha South: ~3h on G-train. Book at West Kowloon Station; passport at the gate.
• Changsha → Wuhan: 1.5h. Optional stopover for Han Show Theatre.
• Wuhan → Luoyang Longmen: 2.5h.
• Luoyang Longmen → Taiyuan South: 2.5-3h.
• Taiyuan South → Pingyao Ancient City: ~25 min.
• Pingyao → Beijing West: 4h on G-train. Book seat 5A/5F for window.
• Beijing South → Yantai South: ~5.5h direct on G-train.
• Yantai → Hangzhou East: the painful one — 9-11h with a transfer at Jinan, OR an overnight Yantai→Shanghai sleeper, then HSR to Hangzhou (45 min).
• Hangzhou East → Shanghai Hongqiao: 45 min, frequent G-trains.

For each leg: pick a train, confirm seats, pay, save the e-ticket. Foreign passports are scanned at the gate — no paper ticket needed. Arrive 45 min early for security + ID check + walking to platform.

Estimated all-in transport budget

• Long-haul return from US west coast: $1,100–1,800 economy depending on route and date
• Long-haul return from US east coast (JFK): $1,300–2,200 economy
• HSR full set of legs (HK → Changsha → Luoyang → Pingyao → Beijing → Yantai → Hangzhou → Shanghai): roughly $40–70 per major leg in second class, $90–160 in business; total around $400–700
• Sleeper supplement (if you do the Yantai → Shanghai overnight instead of day train): roughly the same as the day train

Airport-to-city transfers (the only flights)

From HKG, the Airport Express to Hong Kong Station is 24 min and bookable in advance for a small discount. From PVG (Shanghai), the maglev gets to Longyang Rd in 8 min for ¥50, but you may still need a metro transfer; alternatively a regular metro/taxi takes 50-60 min.