Best Travel Options between Beijing and Xian

If you are in the process of planning your Beijing tour? Most probably you are also considering a side trip to Xian, a famous historical city in China, which is home to the archaeological wonder – Terracotta Warriors.

Xian is situated about 1000 km to the southwest of Beijing. You have several options of traveling from Beijing to Xian – by plane, by daytime high-speed train, by overnight direct train, or first visit some important cities on your way before you reach Xian from Beijing.

You can make a doable Xian day trip from Beijing by flight, but we suggest you stay one or two nights in Xian to see, touch and feel the essence and highlights of Xian’s long history and splendid culture. We’ll assist you analyzing the advantages and disadvantages of all the travel options to make a better travel schedule for your Beijing Xian tour.

1. Travel From Beijing to Xian by High Speed Daytime Train
There are 4 major railway stations in Beijing, namely Beijing Railway Station ( the oldest one ), Beijing West Railway Station ( for the trains going from Beijing to Xian, Lhasa and Kowloon), Beijing South Railway Station ( for the trains running from Beijing to Shanghai and Tianjin) and Beijing North Railway Station (temporarily closed).

The address of Beijing West Railway Station Tel: 51826253
Add: Lianhuachi Donglu, Fengtai District ( just south of Military Museum of the Chinese People’s Revolution）

For the Beijing Xian High Speed Train, the Beijing terminus is Beijing West Railway Station, with the Xian terminus at Xian North Railway Station. The major calling points are Shijiazhuang, Anyang and Luoyang on route.

Currently there are over 10 daily high-speed trains running between Beijing and Xian. The fastest high speed train takes 4 hours and 23 minutes; the slowest takes 6 hours. You are supposed to reach the station at least half hour before departure.

Beijing – Xian High-Speed Train Timetable and Ticket Fares ( Unit: Yuan)

Train No.	From	Dep time	To	Arr Time	First Class	Second Class
G651	Beijing West	06:58	Xian North	12:50	824.5	515.5
G653	Beijing West	07:57	Xian North	13:43	824.5	515.5
G671	Beijing West	08:15	Xian North	14:18	824.5	515.5
G655	Beijing West	09:43	Xian North	15:30	824.5	515.5
G659	Beijing West	12:07	Xian North	17:42	824.5	515.5
G87	Beijing West	14:00	Xian North	18:23	824.5	515.5
G673	Beijing West	14:43	Xian North	20:41	824.5	515.5
G661	Beijing West	14:48	Xian North	20:48	824.5	515.5
G663	Beijing West	14:45	Xian North	21:25	824.5	515.5
G665	Beijing West	16:00	Xian North	21:50	824.5	515.5
G669	Beijing West	17:31	Xian North	22:53	824.5	515.5
G25	Beijing West	18:55	Xian North	23:23	824.5	515.5

Train No.	From	Dep time	To	Arr Time	First Class	Second Class
G652	Xian North	07:52	Beijing West	13:26	824.5	515.5
G26	Xian North	09:15	Beijing West	13:50	824.5	515.5
G672	Xian North	09:21	Beijing West	15:11	824.5	515.5
G656	Xian North	10:07	Beijing West	15:33	824.5	515.5
G662	Xian North	10:55	Beijing West	16:41	824.5	515.5
G660	Xian North	11:12	Beijing West	17:11	824.5	515.5
G658	Xian North	12:42	Beijing West	18:26	824.5	515.5
G88	Xian North	13:20	Beijing West	18:26	824.5	515.5
G664	Xian North	14:33	Beijing West	20:25	824.5	515.5
G666	Xian North	15:58	Beijing West	21:31	824.5	515.5
G674	Xian North	17:20	Beijing West	23:00	824.5	515.5
G670	Xian North	18:03	Beijing West	23:29	824.5	515.5

Advantages: Direct from Downtown Beijing, On Time, Faster, Safe, Frequent, Comfortable, Daytime Window sightseeing
Disadvantages: Higher Prices, Need Advance Booking, Not Easy to Book your Ticket

Note: For online train ticket booking, check out China Train Ticket Booking.

2. Getting from Beijing to Xian by Overnight Train ( Normal Fast Speed )
There are four major fast direct overnight trains running between Beijing and Xian with the train journeys lasting from 12 hours to 14 hours. All the four overnight direct trains start from Beijing and end at Xian, and vice versa.

The 4 Major Beijing to Xian Overnight Fast Train Timetable & Fares ( Unit: Yuan )
Train No.	From	Dep time	To	Arr Time	Hard 6-bed Cabin	Soft 4-bed Cabin
T41	Beijing West	14:22	Xian	05:15+1	268.5	422.5
T231	Beijing West	18:50	Xian	07:43+1	254.5	398.5
Z43	Beijing West	20:12	Xian	9:55 + 1	442.5 ( Soft 4-bed Cabin)	780.5 (Soft 2-bed Cabin)
Z19	Beijing West	20:40	Xian	08:31+1	398.5 ( Soft 4-bed Cabin)	735.5 (Soft 2-bed Cabin)

The Major 4 Xian to Beijing Overnight Fast Train Timetable & Fares ( Unit: Yuan )
Train No.	From	Dep time	To	Arr Time	Hard 6-bed Cabin	Soft 4-bed Cabin
T232	Xian	17:38	Beijing West	06:08+1	254.5	398.5
Z20	Xian	19:21	Beijing West	06:58+1	442.5 ( Soft 4-bed Cabin)	735.5 (Soft 2-bed Cabin)
Z44	Xian	19:27	Beijing West	08:27+1	442.5 ( Soft 4-bed Cabin)	780.5 (Soft 2-bed Cabin)
T42	Xian	19:39	Beijing West	09:29+1	268.5	422.5

Important Notice:
The above-mentioned overnight trains start from Beijing West Railway Station and arrive at Xian Railway Station. So don’t be confused with Xian North Railway Station which accommodates the high speed trains from Beijing.

Advantages: Direct from Downtown Beijing, On Time, Save One Night Accommodation, Safe, More Daytime Sightseeing, affordable Prices
Disadvantages: Longer Travel Time, Not so Comfortable, Hard to Book Your Tickets

Note: For online train ticket booking, check out China Train Ticket Booking

3. Traveling from Beijing to Xian by flight
Over 20 daily flights connect Beijing and Xian, mainly operated by three domestic airlines – Air China, Eastern China Airline, Hainan Airline. The 1 and half flight makes it possible for people to have a day trip to Xian from Beijing and return on the same day.

Major Beijing to Xian Early Morning Flight Timetable
Airline	Flight No.	Plane	Depart	Arrival
Air China	CA1231	Boeing 737 800	PEK 07:40	XIY 9:10
Hainan Airlines	HU7137	Air Bus 330-100	PEK 07:05	XIY 10:10
China Eastern Airlines	MU2102	Air Bus A321	PEK 07:50	XIY 10:10

Major Xian to Beijing Later Afternoon Flight Timetable
Airline	Flight No.	Plane	Depart	Arrival
Hainan Airlines	HU7338	Air Bus A300-200	XIY 22:40	PEK 00:40
Air China	CA1236	Boeing 738	XIY 20:25	PEK 22:25
China Eastern Airlines	MU2119	Air Bus A321	XIY 21:55	PEK 00:05

The planes take off at Beijing International Capital Airport and land at Xian Xianyang International Airport. The one and half hour flight doesn’t include the time and hassle getting to and from the airport.

Advantages: Fastest, Easy to Book Your Tickets, Frequent and often less expensive than train
Disadvantages: Airport Inconvenience, Sometimes not On Time, Both Airports in Beijing and Xian are out of town.

4. Visiting the Important Cities between Beijing and Xian before You Reach Xian

Between Beijing and Xian also lie some UNESCO World Cultural Heritage crowned destinations like Datong (Yungang Grottoes), Pingyao (Pingyao Ancient City), and Luoyang (Longmen Grottoes and Shaolin Temple) and Yan’an (Hukou Waterfalls) which could be fit into your Beijing Xian tour package if you have enough time traveling time between Beijing and Xian.

High speed trains connect Beijing with Luoyang, Pingyao and Yan’an. Plentiful daily trains run from Beijing to Datong. So when you arrange your Beijing Xian travel, you may put any of the cities in between onto your Beijing Xian travel plan to enrich your China trip experience.

5. Hassle-Free Organized Beijing Xian Tours