Beijing-Lhasa rail tickets on sale

Source: CCTV.com

06-29-2006 11:00

On Saturday, the first train from Beijing to Lhasa will set off from the Chinese capital's West Railway Station. Tickets for that maiden voyage went on sale today. Here's LIAO LIANG again.

It's not yet 8 in the morning. And the ticket booth is already crowded with customers.

Pan Junwei is first in line to get tickets for the Qinghai-Tibet Railway. This excited young man got three tickets for soft sleepers. Pan Junwei said, "I got here at 10 last night, and have been waiting the whole night. I'm so glad to be the first person to get tickets."

Pan, who works at a restaurant in Beijing, has never been to Tibet. He's going there, not only to admire the culture and great scenery, but also to learn Tibetan cooking.

Like Pan, all the customers waiting here today are anxious to get on the first train to Tibet on July 1st. But the number of tickets sold in Beijing was limited. They sold out within 10 minutes.

But customers don't have to be disappointed. Tickets for July 2nd to 8th will be sold over the next two days. And after that, people can buy tickets 10 days in advance.

At the same time, travel agencies are trying to get group tickets for tour groups looking forward to train travel to Tibet. Agencies are having a hard time getting enough tickets though. So some of the groups have had to be postponed.

Editor:Chen Minji