China · Attractions · High-Speed Rail
Booking China with a foreign passport: the four systems, explained
Four of China's most wanted tickets — and every one of them is booked online, in Chinese systems, against your passport. This hub walks you through each one: the official channel, when tickets are released, the documents you need, and the mistakes that leave other travellers standing at the gate. All release times are Beijing time (UTC+8).
How booking works in China — the pattern
Almost every major sight in China now uses real-name, online-only booking. There is usually no ticket window to fall back on: if you have not booked, you do not get in. The good news is that all four systems on this page accept foreign passports, and once you understand the pattern, they are not hard to use.
- Book in advance, online, against your passport number.
- Tickets are released at a set time, days before your visit — set an alarm.
- Your entry ticket is the physical passport you booked with. There is no paper ticket to collect.
- Enter your name exactly as printed in the passport's machine-readable zone — same spelling, same order, no punctuation.
What you need before you start
- Your passport — valid, and the one you will actually carry in China.
- A phone that can receive SMS or email verification codes.
- WeChat with WeChat Pay, or Alipay, set up and linked to your bank card — several official mini-programs accept nothing else. Set this up at home, not at the gate.
- A translation app with camera mode, for Chinese-only booking screens.
The booking timeline — four clocks, one trip
| When | What happens |
|---|---|
| 30 days before | Zhangjiajie — booking window opens (book peak dates early) |
| 15 days before | High-speed rail — tickets for your travel day go on sale |
| 14 days before | Chengdu Panda Base — booking window opens; morning slots go first |
| 7 days before, 20:00 | Forbidden City — tickets released; peak dates sell out in minutes |
| Day of travel | Passport in hand. Arrive early; entry slots are enforced |
If you are combining all four — a classic Beijing → Chengdu → Zhangjiajie loop — the Forbidden City is your tightest deadline and the Panda Base morning slot is your scarcest resource. Fix those two dates first, then fit trains and Zhangjiajie around them. Golden Week (around 1 October), the summer holidays and Chinese New Year compress everything: expect the Forbidden City and Panda Base to sell out at release, and trains within minutes on popular routes.
Want the full walkthroughs? Get the PDF guide
The complete China Travel Ticket Guide (13 pages) adds the full step-by-step for every system, the on-the-day playbooks and the whole FAQ — made to be read on your phone while you book.
Get the China Travel Ticket Guide on Ko-fi1 · The Forbidden City, Beijing
The hardest ticket of the four: online only, released at 20:00 exactly 7 days before your visit, with peak-date morning sessions gone in minutes. Foreign passports are fully supported and the English booking site needs no Chinese phone number — but there are no same-day sales, ever.
- Channel: bookingticket.dpm.org.cn (English) or the Palace Museum WeChat mini-program
- Key facts: up to 5 visitors per order · entry by passport at the Meridian Gate · closed Mondays
2 · Chengdu Panda Base
Booking opens up to 14 days ahead, real-name against your passport. The whole game here is the session: mornings, when the pandas are fed and active, sell out days ahead — afternoons in warm weather are mostly sleeping pandas.
- Channel: official WeChat mini-program, or authorised platforms such as Trip.com
- Key facts: morning entry from 07:30 (Mar–Oct) · passport at the gate · don't confuse it with Dujiangyan Panda Valley
3 · Zhangjiajie National Forest Park
The "Avatar" mountains on a single 4-day pass, bookable 30 days ahead and bound to your passport. Day 1 entry is fixed to a reserved gate and time slot; the eco-bus is included, the famous lifts are not.
- Channel: official WeChat mini-program (张家界一机游) or authorised platforms
- Key facts: days 2–4 need a quick free re-booking per day · Tianmen Mountain is a separate ticket
4 · China high-speed rail (12306)
Your passport is your ticket. The official 12306 app has a full English version and charges no booking fee; tickets release 15 days ahead, each departure station at its own daily time.
- Channel: "Railway 12306" app or 12306.cn
- Key facts: verify your passport once, online or at a station window · book companions in one order to sit together · scan your passport at the gate
Quick FAQ
Can I buy any of these tickets at the gate on the day?
Plan on no. The Forbidden City sells nothing on site; the Panda Base and Zhangjiajie ration entry by booked slots; same-day train seats exist only if the train has not sold out. Book everything ahead.
I don't have WeChat. Can I still book?
Partly. The Forbidden City's English website works with email registration, and 12306's app and English site do not need WeChat. For the Panda Base and Zhangjiajie, the official route is a WeChat mini-program — set up WeChat and WeChat Pay before your trip, or use an authorised platform such as Trip.com for those two.
My passport was renewed after I booked. What now?
Your booking is tied to the old passport number. Cancel and rebook against the new passport if the system allows; if you are already in China, carry BOTH passports — staff can often match the booking to the old number and your identity to the new document.
The name on my booking doesn't exactly match my passport. Will I get in?
Maybe, maybe not — gates check the document, and mismatches are the most common cause of refused entry. If you spot an error, cancel and rebook correctly rather than travelling on hope.
What if everything is sold out?
For the Forbidden City, keep refreshing during the first hour of release night and try the afternoon session. For trains, 12306 has a waitlist function that automatically books you if seats free up — use it. For all four: shifting by one day often changes everything.
Do children need their own bookings?
Yes — every visitor, including children, needs a real-name booking against a document (their own passport). Some sights are free for young children but still require an entry voucher booked in advance.
Where can I confirm prices and the latest rules?
On the official channel for each sight, before you book — prices and rules change frequently, so this hub deliberately points you to the source rather than quoting figures that may go stale.
Still stuck? That's what the concierge is for
If a booking defeats you — a verification that will not pass, a sold-out date you cannot move — the Full Trip Ticket Concierge builds your whole Japan & China ticket plan in writing: exact release minutes, channels, seats, trains and backups, delivered within 72 hours of your request form.
See the concierge on Ko-fi Get the full PDF guideBooking rules change frequently — always confirm on the official channel before you book. This is an independent guide and is not affiliated with the attractions or with China Railway. Last updated: October 20, 2026.