Beijing – Datong Shanxi by Train or Bus

Beijing – Datong by Train

How to Travel between Beijing & Datong by Train


Datong in Shanxi Province is the home to the famous historical site Yungang Caves as well as the spectacular Hanging Temple. It is worth a trip to see such abunddant sights in Datong from the nearby Beijing. Currently, there are only slow trains or regular buses or domestic flights running between them. High speed trains will not be available until October of 2019. So, slow trains or regular buses are the best option for you at present.

How far is Datong from Beijing: the distance is about 350 kilometers (217.4 miles).

Ask Jack

If you have any questions on your Beijing – Datong train travel, just ask Jack. I’d love to offer my help. Contact Jack.

Train Station Map of Beijing & Datong

By Train

  • Option 1: Beijing – Datong by bullet trains (Not open. launched in Q3 of 2019)
  • Option 2: Beijing – Datong by slow trains
1: By high speed train2: By slow trains

1: Beijing – Datong by High Speed Train

It will be possible to travel between Beijing and Datong in Shanxi Province by high speed train (Bullet train) when the Beijing – Zhangjiakou Intercity Rail and Zhangjiakou – Datong High Speed Railway open in the third quarter (probably in late October)of 2019, which will enable passengers to travel between Beijing and Datong in just 1 hour and 40 minutes (100 minutes in total). The current travel time by slow trains is about 6 hours.

When completed, there will be high speed trains running from Beijing North Station and terminating at Datong South Station, the station for high speed trains in Datong, calling at Badaling Great Wall Station, Zhangjiakou South Station, etc. More details will be added when the rail opens.

Read more: Beijing to Zhangjiakou high speed train

Major stations along Beijing – Datong high speed railway: Beijing North – Qinghe – Shahe – Changping – Badaling Great Wall – Donghuanyuan North – Huailai – Xiahuayuan North – Xuanhuan North – Zhangjiakou South – Huai’an – Tianzhen – Yanggao South – Datong South.

  • Travel time : 100 minutes.
  • Total travel fares: To be released.
  • Station used: Beijing North Railway Station (Beijingbei), Datong South Railway Station (Datongnan)

2: Beijing – Datong by Slow Trains

Since there are no high speed trains available, you can only take slow trains for travelling between Beijing and Datong. Slow trains here mean those K, Z, and number-only trains eg: K263, Z283, 2603. They are the old-style trains but time-effective and fairly cheap transport option.

From Beijing to Datong: 12 K or Z type trains leave daily from Beijing Railway Station, plus 6 leaving daily from Beijing West Station. All of the slow trains arrive at Datong Railway Station. Travel time ranges from 6-7.5 hours, ticket fares is from CNY53.5 for a hard seat, CNY99.5 for a hard sleeper.

From Datong to Beijing: Coming back from Datong to Beijing, you have 19 trains from Datong Railway Station to Beijing, 6 arriving at Beijing West Station, and 13 at Beijing Railway Station.

Beijing to Datong train schedule, fares

Beijing – Datong by slow trains
Trains From – To Frequency Duration Ticket Fares (CNY)
Soft Sleeper Hard Sleeper Hard Seat
K, Z trains Beijing to Datong 12 6-7.5h 152.5 99.5 53.5
K, Z trains Datong to Beijing 19 6-7.5h 152.5 99.5 53.5
For a live schedule & ticket availability, please refer to?http://www.chinahighlights.com/china-trains/

Which Train Station in Beijing or Datong

The slow K and Z type trains between Beijing and Datong are using Beijing Railway Station and Beijing West Station, and all of them arrive at Datong Railway Station. In the future, there will be bullet trains running from Beijing North Station to Datong South Railway Station in October 2019.

How to Buy Tickets

You can buy tickets with passenger passports in person in any train stations in Beijing or Datong. Just go to the one close to you with easy access. You cannot use the Chinese official ticketing site www.12306.cn as it doesn’t have a English version site and it only accepts payment by Chinese bank card.

But if you don’t speak Chinese, you may use a trusted online ticket agent.

Book with a trusted online ticket agent

If you are outside China, and want to buy tickets in advance online, you can turn to use an online ticke agent. Below are two trusted ticket agents who get positive reviews and recommended often on Trip Advisor:

Beijing – Datong by Bus 

In addition to train, travelers can also travel from Beijing to Datong by bus, or vice verse. The Beijing – Datong buses are using Liuliqiao Bus Station in Beijing, and New South Bus Station in Datong, which is 9km from Datong Railway Station. Buses run hourly from 08:00am to 15:30pm, taking 4-4.5 hours and bus fare is from CNY120 – CNY133.

Beijing Liuliqiao Bus Station is adjacent to Liuliqiao Subway Stop on metro line 9 and line 10. Just be noted that Datong has two south bus station, and the new south station is the one for bus to Beijing.

  • Beijing Liuliqiao Long-distance Bus Station (六里桥长途汽车站): by subway line 9 and line 10 (check official Beijing Subway website)
  • Datong New South Bus Station (大同新南站汽车站) : by bus 11, 15, 28, 30, 201.

Rail Travel Tips

Beijing – Datong – Pingyao – Xian Train Travel

Beijing – Datong – Pingyao – Xian is a hot rail travel route with lots of famous historic sites to visit. When the Datong high speed train service opens in October 2019, it will allow travelers to travel these destinations all the way by high speed trains, shortening the travel time significantly.

From – To Train Type Frequency Fare Travel Time
Beijing to Datong Slow trains – K, Z trains 18 CNY99.5 6.5-7h
Datong to Pingyao Slow trains – K, Z trains 4 CNY123 6-7.5h
Pingyao Gucheng to Xian North High speed train – D trains 7 CNY150 3h
Search live schedule at www.chinahighlights.com

Other Rail Routes

Beijing to Zhangjiakou train, Beijing to Xian train, Beijing to Hong Kong train, Beijing to Pingyao train

Trusted Online Ticket Agents:

Option 1: China Highlights is a reliable online agency  for China train ticketing. They get positive reviews on TripAdvisor & Trustpilot. Sharon and her team help you buy tickets & plan rail routes even deliver tickets to your hotels with a service fee.

Option 2: Trip.com  is an internatioal brand owned by Ctrip Group, China's largest online travel booking platform. Trip.com offers booking service for flight, train, hotel, activities, etc