After years of construction, the China-Laos Railway which connecting Kunming, China and Vientiane,Laos,was officially opened for operation on Dec.3. The 1,035 kilometer-long electrified line starts from the Kunming city, Yunnan province, passing through Yuxi, Xishuangbanna and the other cities and stretches all the way south to the Lao capital of Vientiane. Now it will only take more than 3 hours from Kunming to Xishuangbanna.
The opening of the China-Laos Railway was ended the history of the absence of railways in Pu'er and Xishuangbanna city, driving Laos from an "internally locked country" to a "land-linked country", and greatly improving the economic development of the regions along the line.
The train running along the section in China is named "Friendship" and colored in light green. And the one running in the Lao section, the Lane Xang EMU (electric multiple unit), features red, blue and white, echoing the colors of the national flag of Laos. Both trains run at a speed of 160 kilometers per hour. Also there are some highlights of the China-Laos Train, you can check the detail by reading the article as below.
- Multilingual service
- Special Train attendants' uniform
- Colorful and Meaningful Chinese knots
- Intelligent call button
- Hand-held pager
- Luggage protector
- Rich food options
Multilingual service
One of the highlight of this train is that passengers can enjoy multilingual service. It is not only because that attendants on board can speak Chinese, Laotian or English, but also for the train announcement and many tips on the train, they were also made in these three languages. One of the attendant said that "It's important for us to command more than one language as it's an international railway and we are expected to serve passengers from different countries.” Some of them can also speak Thai language and the Dai national minority language. So you don’t need to worry about the language barrier if you take this train to travel.
Special Train attendants' uniform
Train attendant’s uniform is also an important part of a train. And it is distinctive with rich meaning. The main color of the uniform is "peacock blue" as peacock is an iconic species of Yunnan, where the railroad starts. The flower painted on the shirt is camellia, which is considered as the provincial flower of Yunnan. And the flower embroidered on the sleeves of the coat is peony, one of the best-known flowers in China. But it's special in that its color adopts that of frangipani, the national flower of Laos. "The design of this detail express the friendship between the two countries," said head of the train attendant.
Colorful and Meaningful Chinese knots
On this train, they are provide many thoughtful service for passengers. For example, five colors of Chinese knots are used on the train to represent different passenger groups with special needs. Blue indicates that there are elderly passengers, yellow for children, green for passengers who are sick, purple for passengers with disabilities and red for the pregnant.
The Chinese knots hung on the seat so that train attendant can quickly distinguish the types of passengers and provide services to those in need.
Intelligent call button
This train has set two carriages for those passengers with disabilities and there are two Intelligent call button provided. Passengers can press a button if they need any assistance from attendant. People with disabilities can bring their own wheelchair on board, or they can contact 12306 in advance to provide them with a wheelchair.
Hand-held pager
This Hand-held pager is for those passengers who with disabilities but not seated in special carriages seat. They can press the devices and ask for help from train attendant when they are needed.
Luggage protector
On this train, you'll be reassured with a special invention at hand, which can be simply called "luggage protector." Passengers can place the device on their suitcase and connect it with their cellphone through Bluetooth. If the distance between the luggage and the mobile phone exceeds the set range (12-30 meters away), the passenger's cellphone will automatically give an alarm.
Rich Food Options
A rich variety of cuisines are specially customized for passengers on this train. And there are quite a few options, including Yunnan cuisine and Western food. Yunnan cuisine is one of the most popular styles among Chinese cuisines, which features fresh ingredients from nature. Lately the new dishes on the train include Dai-flavored spareribs, shredded pork with mustard, sour cowpea, roasted pork belly, and papaya chicken, they are all the specialties of Xishuangbanna.
And you may heard about the Yunnan rice noodle before, which we called it"过桥米线". It is the most popular snack in Yunnan. The fresh rice noodle have been vacuum-packed, which are heated in the dining car and can be served directly to your seat. The price for the food on train is ranging from RMB30-RMB60. You can pay it by wechat or Alipay, and of course, by cash.
If you're not interested in these, other options like pizza and coffee or the other western food are also available. Or if you bring some fast food on train by yourself, you can also be served with free hot water.
How to Book Ticket Currently
Yuxi-Mohan Section Ticket of China-Laos Railway have been on sale on Dec.2. The train ticket price might be differ, it is depend on the season,the date, the period and the market demand. Feel free to contact us if you want to book the ticket or if you want to know more details.
What You Need to Know If you Want to Travel to Laos
There are two exit for passages at the Mohan station. One is for those passengers who finally arrive at Mohan, they can leave the station through normal ticket checking.If you are going to Laos, you must take the international passenger channel. Here are something that you need to prepare in advance, the paper ticket, your passport and the visa.
Further reading:
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