China Travel: The 'Xiake Hao' Hotel-Train Is China's Newest Slow Travel Experience
China Travel first: the Xiake Hao hotel-train has private-bathroom cabins, culture lectures and a 10-day winter route from 9,999 yuan.
Key takeaway
China Railway Beijing Group and New Oriental Culture & Tourism unveiled the Xiake Hao tourist train on Oct 24, 2026 — Beijing's first comfort-class tourist train with 18 carriages, 58 private berth compartments with en-suite bathrooms, and a culture lecture hall, tea room and TCM wellness carriages. The maiden 10-day winter route departs Beijing on Dec 22, 2026 through Tianjin, Changchun, Yichun, Harbin, Dunhua, Yanji and Shenyang, priced from 9,999 yuan.
Full report
China just unveiled its first "comfort-class" tourist train out of Beijing — and the cabin specs read more like a boutique hotel than a railway carriage. Every berth compartment has its own private bathroom.
The "Xiake Hao" (Xia Ke Hao, named after 17th-century travel writer Xu Xiake) is a joint project between China Railway Beijing Group and New Oriental Culture & Tourism, announced on October 24, 2026. It is the first tourist train of its kind to start from Beijing, and it marks a bigger shift: in China, the train itself is becoming the destination.
A moving culture space, not just a ride
The Xiake Hao is made up of 18 carriages with 58 private compartments and a capacity of 190 passengers. Cabins come as three-berth and four-berth soft sleeper rooms, and every single one has an en-suite bathroom — a first for many travelers used to shared washing areas on Chinese overnight trains.
Beyond the cabins, the train carries a dining car plus multi-function carriages with a culture lecture hall, a tea room, a chess-and-card room and traditional Chinese medicine wellness space. The itinerary embeds intangible cultural heritage workshops, expert lectures, museum deep-dives and folk performances — which is why its operator describes the train as "a moving culture space."
First route: 10 days and 9 nights through winter Northeast
The inaugural departure leaves Beijing Railway Station on December 22, 2026 and returns on December 31. The route runs through Tianjin, Changchun, Yichun, Harbin, Dunhua, Yanji and Shenyang — a 10-day, 9-night winter journey built around "culture + ice and snow + folk customs."
Onboard and on the ground, the trip is threaded with Northeast China's signature stories: the cinematic memory of Changchun Film Studio, forest work songs and intangible-heritage wood mosaic craft in the Lesser Khingan Mountains, the European-style streets of Harbin's Central Avenue and the Harbin Ice-Snow World, plus a geology lecture at Changbai Mountain's Tianchi crater lake. Tickets start at 9,999 yuan (roughly $1,400), which covers accommodation, meals, transport and the cultural program for the full ten days.
Founder Yu Minhong and New Oriental Culture & Tourism chief advisor Chen Xingjia will join the maiden journey for culture-sharing sessions with passengers.
Why this matters for China Travel
Foreign travelers have spent the past year turning "China Travel" and "Chinamaxxing" into a global trend with billions of views. The missing piece has been slow travel — a way to see the country without rushing between landmarks. Tourist trains are filling that gap.
The Xiake Hao follows a wave of themed tourist trains launched across China in 2026, from the Starlight·Yanzhao cultural train between Beijing and Chengde to provincial "hotel trains" with full private bathrooms. What was once transport is now a mobile hotel, museum and social space in one.
For international visitors, the practical math is easy. The 240-hour transit visa-free policy now covers 57 countries and 24 provinces, and Hainan's 30-day visa-free entry covers 61 countries — both make a rail trip easy to stack onto a longer China itinerary. Tickets for tourist trains are bookable through the official 12306 rail platform and partner channels, and foreign passports are accepted for booking.
A winter plan that keeps getting easier
For travelers already looking at China's event calendar, the sequence is becoming unusually convenient. Shenzhen hosts the APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting week from November 14–19, 2026, with the business summit running November 17–18. The Xiake Hao's maiden winter run starts just over a month later — a natural second leg for visitors already in the country.
Whether you come for the ice sculptures, the private-bathroom cabins or the chance to hear a geology lecture while a forest rolls past the window, China's newest slow-travel option is proof that the journey — not just the destination — is now the experience.
Plan your China trip around the events that matter — see the APEC Shenzhen hub and the Canton Fair guide on ChinaPie.
What to do next
Book tickets through the official 12306 rail platform or New Oriental Culture & Tourism partner channels with a foreign passport; pair the trip with the 240-hour transit visa-free (57 countries) or Hainan 30-day visa-free (61 countries); consider stacking it after the APEC Shenzhen meeting week (Nov 14-19) for a winter second leg.
What may vary
Maiden-journey seats are limited and likely to sell out quickly; winter schedules and routes may adjust after the first run; verify current visa rules and 12306 foreign-passport booking steps before travel; on-train activities are subject to actual arrangements.