Six traveller types, eleven trains
The fleet is curated, not a catalogue. Each train is built for a different kind of journey. The fastest way to choose is to start with the kind of traveller you are, not the route on the map. Below are the six traveller profiles we see most often, and which of the eleven trains each one tends to book.
Silk Road Express or Jinxiu Tianfu
The two flagship routes. Silk Road Express for the desert oases and ancient Silk Road cities; Jinxiu Tianfu for Sichuan and the gateway to Xinjiang. Both run regularly and are the most well-trodden first itineraries.
Silk Road · Beautiful Sky Road · Tianshan
Desert dunes and ruined cities (Silk Road), the Tibetan plateau and Everest Base Camp (Beautiful Sky Road), and the snow range of the Tianshan with the Ili valley (Tianshan Express).
Beautiful Sky Road
The only dedicated Tibet cultural train in the fleet. Panoramic windows, pressurised comfort and pulse oxygen on board make the climb to Lhasa gradual and humane. The route reaches Shigatse, the Everest region and the great lakes.
Hulunbuir · White Cloud Express Yunnan · Colorful Guizhou
Summer grasslands and yurts (Hulunbuir Express); the old towns and Tibetan plateau edge of Yunnan on the White Cloud Express southwest line; karst peaks and Miao villages of Guizhou on the Colorful Guizhou train.
Lindou · Hulunbuir (winter)
Lindou Express runs the winter forest to Mohe with a library car and a run to the Arctic Village for the aurora; the Hulunbuir Express extends to Harbin for the ice festival in January and February.
White Cloud Express Yunnan 4-berth · Jinxiu Tianfu 13-day
The White Cloud Express southwest line starts from 49,880 RMB in a 4-berth cabin; the Jinxiu Tianfu 13-day short version runs from 49,880 in JinWo class. Both fit a ten to fourteen day window.
The fleet at a glance
Eleven trains in the curated fleet. Use the table to scan landscapes, seasons and best-fit travellers; open any row for the full route, departures and pricing.
| Train | Landscape | Best for | Season |
|---|---|---|---|
| Silk Road Express | Desert oases, Silk Road cities | First luxury train, photographers | Apr–Oct |
| Jinxiu Tianfu | Sichuan, Tianshan, Duku Highway | Gateway, value flagship | May–Sep |
| White Cloud Express 2027 | North-south Xinjiang panorama | Big-trip Xinjiang, group of friends | May–Sep |
| Panda Express Chengdu | Sichuan, panda capital | Family, soft adventure | Year-round |
| New Orient Express | Xinjiang, Urumqi-based | Xinjiang focused, relaxed | May–Oct |
| Lindou Express | Winter forest, Mohe aurora | Winter, quiet reading | Dec–Feb |
| Hulunbuir Express | Grasslands, Greater Khingan | Summer grassland, winter Harbin | Jun–Aug / Jan–Feb |
| Tianshan Express | Tianshan range, Ili valley | Road-trip lovers, photographers | May–Oct |
| Beautiful Sky Road | Tibetan plateau, Everest | Tibet bucket-list | Apr–Oct |
| White Cloud Express (Yunnan) | South-west Yunnan | Old towns, Tibetan edge | Sep–Dec |
| Colorful Guizhou | Guizhou karst, Miao villages | Culture, minority villages | Sep–Nov |
Still unsure?
Send us two lines about your trip and we will recommend three trains in twenty-four hours.